Justin B. Terry-Smith has been involved in LGBTQ and HIV Activism since 1999. He is an Air Force 9/11 Disabled Vet. Raised in Silver Spring, MD, he now lives in Albuequerque, New Meixco with his husband Phil. He writes an HIV/STI Advice Column for A&U Magazine, is a Contributing writer for thebody.com, a Life Coach and an Adjunct Professor. He has earned his Doctorate in Public Health with a concentration in Infectious Disease and his Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling.
HIV Denialist Christine Maggiore, 52 died on the 29th of December. Maggorie was a Italian American woman who founded the organization of Alive & Well AIDS Alternatives, a nonprofit group that questions whether HIV causes AIDS.
The organization is centered around HIV-positive mothers, like Maggiore who don’t want to take meds while pregnant. Marjorie was diagnosed as being HIV positive in 1992. Also her organization promotes women, who are already HIV infected who plan to breast-feed their babies (a known route of HIV transmission). She also was the author of an HIV denialist book, What If Everything You Thought You Knew About AIDS Was Wrong?
In May 2005 the County Coroner determined that Majorie’s 3 year old daughter. Eliza Jane Scovill, died of AIDS-related pneumonia. In the following year the court decided not to file criminal charges against Maggorie and her husband for not having their two children tested for the HIV virus.
This woman’s (Maggorie) way of thinking is just one example how many people view the HIV virus. Many people that have a HIV denialist way of thinking contact me on Justin’s HIV Journal on youtube.com. They often tell me that I’m poisoning myself because I take HIV medications. A lot of them eat foods and take vitamins which to them is an alternate way of treated their HIV, but changing your diet isn’t enough. You need to seek medical attention for HIV. I’ve had trouble with my meds but my body has gotten adjusted to them and I’ve changed my diet and how much alcohol I consume and when.
Justin, you do have reason to be scared if you remain in the CLUTCHES of the HIV/AIDS Establisment!
They'll do you in brother .. there's no doubt about that. You are such a DIVINE, adorable soul & deserve all the LOVE, COMPASSION & CONCERN that comes your way.
You don't have to worry about HIV - it means IMMUNITY! So relax!
Now get in touch with DAVID CROWE and/or Christine at:
howpositiveareyou . com
That's where I truly HOPE to hear you again!
Love you ..
South Africa :)
This is just one of the messages that I’ve received on my youtube site.
This comment from Annie 46664 can be found on the following link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9ESC7otKxU
This comment listed above is trying to pressure me to be apart of the same organization that Christine Marjorie was apart of.
A couple of months ago a study came out with a life expectancy for people who live with HIV in this country. A person who is 20 years old and starting medications can expect to live to about 69 which is a vast improvement when not taking meds at all.
I’m not blaming this woman for killing her child but I do think she is partly to blame for not getting either one of her children tested for HIV. This hurts me to see that there are people who actually think this way. It’s my treatment and my life.
It’s ironic that this woman died on my birthday December 27, 2008.
Hello EVERYONE I know it’s that time of the year again.I was so busy with Christmas things I couldn’t get all my articles out in time.This is Justin B Smith from Justin’s HIV journal saying Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy Kwanzaa, and a Happy New Year to all of my readers and listeners.This journal that I’ve been dedicated to has helped a lot of people get over the stigma of living with HIV.Also it given people a chance to see there is life after HIV.I’ve decided to make it a journey to help others on my personal path for personal enlightenment and community service.
These holidays are very tough.With the economy in peril and people having very little money for the holidays the dc boys of leather have decided to raise money for Pediatric AIDS.This year we raised about 310.00 forPediatric AIDSwas created at a time when few people knew that HIV/AIDS affected children. There was no research specifically on pediatric AIDS, and the drugs being used and developed for adults were not being used or tested in children.
Established to help level the playing field for children, the Foundation has spent almost two decades funding pediatric research and raising awareness about children's fight against HIV/AIDS. Thanks to this research and awareness, as well as the advent of combination antiretroviral therapy, many children born infected with HIV/AIDS now have the opportunity to grow up healthy. For children in resource-poor countries, however, long-term survival is still a dream.
Also we donated over 8 big garbage bags full of toys for Toy for Tots.The objectives of Toys for Tots are to help needy children throughout the United States experience the joy of Christmas; to play an active role in the development of one of our nation's most valuable natural resources - our children; to unite all members of local communities in a common cause for three months each year during the annual toy collection and distribution campaign; and to contribute to better communities in the future.
I hope everyone got what they wanted this Christmas.Remember there are people that are infected with HIV/AIDS on the street.Lend your hand and help them.We must do what we can to help them as much as we can.Whether it be a blanket or some food we have to take care of each.Now is the time, and not later.
OHH YEAH MY BIRTHDAY WAS ON THE 27TH of DECEMBER, I'M 29 AND LOVING IT!!!!
Justin’s HIV Journal World AIDS Days Part II Justin B Smith sees the AIDS Quilt for the first time,
When it was World AIDS Day I decided to make this video because I’d had never seen the AIDS Quilt before. I’m 28 years old and AIDS is just about as old as me. It’s even older it you look at it literally. Some experts says AIDS has been around a lot longer than people think. I believe them. In the 80’s 90’s AIDS carried off many of our Black, White, Hispanic, Latino, Asian brothers and sisters. I went to see the AIDS to remember them. To remember all those who had been infected before me and who had died doing the very same thing I am. I also thought about my friends’ whose funerals I had missed and who also died from AIDS. I know there might come a day where I too will pass away from this disease.
My mother has a quilt that she made for my when I graduated High School. It’s very special to me she made it with love. I have now decided that if I die from this disease then she has my permission to make it a part of the AIDS Quilt or bury me with it. I’m unsure which one she will do but I’m sure she will make the right decision. I cannot let the death of anyone of myself go in vain.
About The Quilt Founded in 1987, The AIDS Memorial Quilt is a poignant memorial, a powerful tool for use in preventing new HIV infections, and the largest ongoing community arts project in the world. Each "block" (or section) of The AIDS Memorial Quilt measures approximately twelve feet square, and a typical block consists of eight individual three foot by six foot panels sewn together. Virtually every one of the more than 40,000 colorful panels that make up the Quilt memorializes the life of a person lost to AIDS. As the epidemic continues claiming lives around the world and here in the United States, the Quilt continues to grow and to reach more communities with its messages of remembrance, awareness and hope. History of the Quilt In June of 1987, a small group of strangers gathered in a San Francisco storefront to document the lives they feared history would neglect. Their goal was to create a memorial for those who had died of AIDS, and to thereby help people understand the devastating impact of the disease. This meeting of devoted friends and lovers served as the foundation of the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt. Today the Quilt is a powerful visual reminder of the AIDS pandemic. More than 44,000 individual 3-by-6-foot memorial panels -- most commemorating the life of someone who has died of AIDS -- have been sewn together by friends, lovers and family members. This is the story of how the Quilt began… Activist Beginnings The Quilt was conceived in November of 1985 by long-time San Francisco gay rights activist Cleve Jones. Since the 1978 assassinations of gay San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone, Jones had helped organize the annual candlelight march honoring these men. While planning the 1985 march, he learned that over 1,000 San Franciscans had been lost to AIDS. He asked each of his fellow marchers to write on placards the names of friends and loved ones who had died of AIDS. At the end of the march, Jones and others stood on ladders taping these placards to the walls of the San Francisco Federal Building. The wall of names looked like a patchwork quilt. Inspired by this sight, Jones and friends made plans for a larger memorial. A little over a year later, he created the first panel for the AIDS Memorial Quilt in memory of his friend Marvin Feldman. In June of 1987, Jones teamed up with Mike Smith and several others to formally organize the NAMES Project Foundation. Public response to the Quilt was immediate. People in the U.S. cities most affected by AIDS -- Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco -- sent panels to the San Francisco workshop. Generous donors rapidly supplied sewing machines, equipment and other materials, and many volunteered tirelessly. The Inaugural Display On October 11, 1987, the Quilt was displayed for the first time on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., during the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights. It covered a space larger than a football field and included 1,920 panels. Half a million people visited the Quilt that weekend. The overwhelming response to the Quilt's inaugural display led to a four-month, 20-city, national tour for the Quilt in the spring of 1988. The tour raised nearly $500,000 for hundreds of AIDS service organizations. More than 9,000 volunteers across the country helped the seven-person traveling crew move and display the Quilt. Local panels were added in each city, tripling the Quilt's size to more than 6,000 panels by the end of the tour. The Quilt Grows The Quilt returned to Washington, D.C. in October of 1988, when 8,288 panels were displayed on the Ellipse in front of the White House. Celebrities, politicians, families, lovers and friends read aloud the names of the people represented by the Quilt panels. The reading of names is now a tradition followed at nearly every Quilt display. In 1989 a second tour of North America brought the Quilt to 19 additional cities in the United States and Canada. That tour and other 1989 displays raised nearly a quarter of a million dollars for AIDS service organizations. In October of that year, the Quilt was again displayed on the Ellipse in Washington, D.C. By 1992, the AIDS Memorial Quilt included panels from every state and 28 countries. In October 1992, the entire Quilt returned to Washington, D.C.. and in January 1993 The NAMES Project was invited to march in President Clinton's inaugural parade. The last display of the entire AIDS Memorial Quilt was in October of 1996 when The Quilt covered the entire National Mall in Washington, D.C. The 1,000 newest blocks - those blocks received at or since the October 1996 display - were displayed the weekend of June 26, 2004 on The Ellipse in Washington D.C. in observance of National HIV Testing Day. The Quilt Today Today there are NAMES Project chapters across the United States and independent Quilt affiliates around the world. Since 1987, over 14 million people have visited the Quilt at thousands of displays worldwide. Through such displays, the NAMES Project Foundation has raised over $3 million for AIDS service organizations throughout North America. The Washington, D.C. displays of October 1987, 1988, 1989, 1992 and 1996 are the only ones to have featured the Quilt in its entirety, The Quilt was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 and remains the largest community art project in the world. The Quilt has been the subject of countless books, films, scholarly papers, articles, and theatrical, artistic and musical performances, including "Common Threads: Stories From The Quilt" which won the Academy Award as the best feature-length documentary film of 1989. The Quilt has redefined the tradition of quilt-making in response to contemporary circumstances. A memorial, a tool for education and a work of art, the Quilt is a unique creation, an uncommon and uplifting response to the tragic loss of human life.
Information provided by The Names Project Foundation – AIDS Memorial Quilt website http://www.aidsquilt.org/
Justin’s HIV Journal: Justin Remembers a friend World AIDS Day Part I
Justin B Smith remembers his friend Rodney who died of HIV/AIDS. He lights a candle in remembrance of good times that they had. Rodney is also one of the reasons why Justin does what he does. He is one of the reasons why Justin has made Justin's HIV Journal
My friend Rodney and I had some really good times and it hurt to hear that he left us especially when I had to hear it months after he was buried. The thing that people didn’t know about Rodney and I is that we were dated when he died. We were actually started to really like each other and get into one another. We went to Georgetown at one point to see a movie and then walked to a place in Georgetown where we had dinner. He chose the place because he wanted to expose me to Escargot. When he suggested it I said, “What the hell are you thinking, snails yuck”. He would always say to me, “Justin, why don’t you try something new”. I did like it.
This still rings in my ear as my partner says the same to me. Maybe it’s Rodney tell me something.
Let me first start of by saying I Justin B Smith apologize to the readers and watchers.I have been taking some much needed time off and needed.I need to refocus on my own health.My medication has my undetectable as of last month.But my body is changing a bit.The yellowing of my eyes (jaundice) has been an issue.I’ve talked with my doctor about it and she said I need to get some lab work done on my Liver.Also I mentioned a bone density scan as well.With some of the medications effects on the body some people will experience their bone density shrink.Yes shrink.Your body might get smaller.
Also regular consumption of alcohol is NOT recommended.I used to have a beer for dinner and now I’ve actually started drinking juices with antioxidants.There have been a number of studies reported at various congresses and published in peer-reviewed medical journals indicating that deficiencies in antioxidant nutrients lead to more rapid HIV-associated disease progression. Basically what this is saying is that a body that has been infected with HIV is going to have complications with other diseases because of the break down in antioxidants.It’s our job to make sure our own bodies get antioxidants by drinking or taking Vitamin A and E.So I’ve started to take more and more steps to incorporate Vitamins’ A and E into my life.
So it’s off to the doctor I go to actually find out what supplements I should and should not take.I also am going to set up a appointment where I can get a bone density scan.On the lighter side of news I’ve moved in with my partner, so I have a new doctor and it looks like I might have more one on one time with this doctor.I’ve had to also take a look at when I go to sleep and how many times I go out.I’m always involved heavily in my community so I just have to make sure it’s not taking a toll on my body.
Please feel free to comment below and watch the video.I need input on what the public thinks I should be doing?I need suggestions from you, the public.Please give me information ;-)
Hello my name is Justin B Smith, from Justin’s HIV Journal.. I first decided to record my life with HIV using live video feeds because of the lack of representation that we as African American men have when it comes to documentation of this disease. With all the recent strides the United States has been going through such as the first Black President and Gay Marriage being legalized in Connecticut, I felt it only right for me to take my watchers and readers to the Protest on Proposition 8 held in Washington DC in response to the constitutional vote in California banning same sex marriage.
This recent vote is but one example of when a majority has institutionalized discrimination. People have to know that banning anyone from having a legal marriage is discrimination. Let’s look at it from both a Civil Rights and Religious stand point.
In the case of Loving vs. the Commonwealth of Virginia, two people who loved and were devoted to each other decided to get married. Mildred Loving a woman of African and Native American descent and Richard Perry Loving, a Caucasian man. Both were residents of the Commonwealth of Virginia. They were arrested and charged with miscegenation, which in this instance banned inter-racial marriages. On January 6, 1959, the both pleaded guilty and were sentenced to one year in prison, with the sentence suspended for 25 years on condition that they leave the state of Virginia. The trial judge in the case, Leon Bazile, repeated Johann Friedrich Blumenbach's 18th-century interpretation of race, proclaiming that
“Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, Malay and red, and He placed them on separate continents. And but for the interference with His arrangement there would be no cause for such marriages. The fact that He separated the races shows that He did not intend for the races to mix.”
History has shown us that people have been using God and the Bible as their platform for discrimination. The Bible has been used and misinterpreted to justify discrimination against blacks and others, in defining marriage as in the case of Loving fight and now against gay marriage. Many “Christians” use it to impose their moral stance. When Christianity and Catholicism were introduced and forced on African and South American nations, they were told that homosexuality, amongst other things, was wrong, when it was already a part of everyday life even when it was unspoken. Those cultures were required to accept the Christian and Catholic beliefs and forced to disregard their own. Has history taught us nothing. Hopefully, history will repeat itself and will use the case of Loving vs the Commonwealth of Virginia to overturn this ban on gay marriage. If Christians want to talk to moralization tell them to look at their own history books for the truth about homosexuality, and make sure it’s NOT the bible.
Then more people started to come and the line grew and grew and grew. The polls opened right at 7:00AM on the dot. There were no hold up and everyone that was there were there in support of there candidate. Maryland itself has almost always been a “blue state” when it came to the Presidential Elections.
As I was in line I looked upon the people’s faces I saw no frowns and no complaining. But I saw hope and so many that were proud to be an American. There were women, men, Blacks, Whites, Hispanics/Latinos, Asians, Gay, Lesbian, Hetero, etc. Everyone under the sun was there. I thought to myself I wonder what they are thinking as there are getting into line to vote, to change the world.
So I decided to Interview them
I felt like I was going to make a difference in the world with my vote, the one voice that nobody could take away from me.
After the elections were over I called my Grandmother. My Grandmother is 90 years old. I called her to get her reaction. She was elated. I asked her, “Grandmom, did you ever think that you would see a black President?” She replied jokingly, “Baby I didn’t think anyone would see a Black President of the United States”.
Justin B Smith's Grandmother
I laughed with her. I then asked her, “How do you feel about all those hard years of discrimination and segregation that you’ve lived through do you think that you’re work has paid off?”
She replied, “Yes BUT there is still more work to be done and I think he (President-Elect Barack Obama, can do it, he the best man for the job”.
I will never forget this day. I’m just glad that I’m a live to see it
The best thing about my trip was not in the first part of my HIV vacation. The best part is when one Saturday night when snuggling up with my partner Philip, watching TV the news came on and we noticed the headline, “Senator Barack Obama in Las Vegas at Bonanza High School”.
Barack Obama - soon to be President-Elect
I jumped out of bed and shouted, “Honey did you see that, he’s here in Las Vegas”. Philip said sarcastically, “Gee honey do you want to go”. I screamed, “Hell Yeah”.
So I took initiative and put in a RSVP for us both. This is a great opportunity.
I felt like it was destiny for me to see him. I googled the high school to see where exactly it was and how far it was from our hotel, it was only 20 minutes from us.
All and all in was a moving experience. I recorded the whole thing on camera.
Child looking toward Obama for change
In the end of the third part there are McCain protesters shouting in an enclosed area. It got heated as people started throwing things at them.
People that are infected with HIV are more apt to suffer from depression than people who are HIV negative.What better way to get out of depression than to take a vacation.I myself am not depressed but I figured that this vacation that I take might remind people that a vacation is a must for everyone, whether their HIV positive or negative.
My partner went to San Francisco to see our two friends get married, which I heard the ceremony was very nice.Sadly I wasn’t able to go to the wedding.
Justin B. Smith at Hoover Dam
So my story begins here in the Baltimore/Washington Area where I had to take a plane to JFK in NY.I was so tired; it was 5:00PM when I landed in New York.The only thing that I like about this part of the trip was the men at the JFKAirport.I not going to lie there was a lot of cruising at the Airport.SO I get on the plane noticed that there was an older gentleman in first class that couldn’t put his bag in the overhead compartment.I was annoyed anyways because I didn’t have my coffee and it was early. Of course when I have to walk past everyone in first class I try not to look at them because I wish I was in first class myself.
So I just happen to look down and guess who looks up at me, 8 Medal Olympian Michael Phelps.
Michael Phelps
I was so stunned I couldn’t even talk or ask for an autograph.Well just my luck, 4 girls rush 1st class then the flight attendant quickly said, “Ladies please take your seats”. Of course when I heard that I said well, “that’s right ladies take your seats”.The flight attendant then said, “Umm you too Sir”.So I said, “Okay” but right before I went to my seat.I said, “Michael, smile”. Phelps said, “Sure” and smiled.I stole a picture of him on my cell phone.But as I looked at my seating number I noticed I was at the very last seat next to the bathroom.NICE, lol.Phelps was very nice, when the plane landed in Las Vegas he gave all the girls pictures and autographs.
Justin B. Smith at Hoover Dam
So when the plane landed you could imagine I was tired.It was 6 hours and no real food.Can we say “cranky”.LOL SO all in all I had a good time. Going to Las Vegas and Hoover Dam was an experience I will never forget.
Check It Out!!!
But that wasn’t the high light of the trip check out the next Vegas Entry!!!!
Justin’s HIV Journal Washington DC AIDS Walk Edition II:
Justin B Smith does the Washington DC AIDS Walk/5K Run Victoriously
Hello all this is Justin B. Smith again. About 2 weeks ago I decided to do the 2008 Washington DC AIDS Walk/5K Run. It was the first time I did the AIDS Walk/5k Run and it’s the first time I ever ran a 5k for a good cause. It felt so good to give something back to my community. I first thought about the AIDS 5K Walk and then thought about how in high school I ran 5K’s like they were nothing. I wanted to see if after 10 years I still had it.
Washington DC Mayor Adrian Fenty (L) and Justin B. Smith (R)
I also decided that community service when talking about HIV/AIDS is one of my callings as well. I do have my hand in many different arenas right now.
Olympic Gold Medalist Diver Greg Louganis (L) and Justin B. Smith (R)
So as most of you know I gauged about 500.00 for my goal for the AIDS Walk/5K Run. Well thanks to all my readers and watchers I raised 700.00. Thank you to all my supporters.
My Personal Page
Thank you for your involvement!
Enter Donation Amount Here: *Currency shown: US Dollar $
My Fundraising Goal:
$500.00
Money Raised to Date:
$700.00
If you are unable to donate online, please print out a donation form.
Join me in my efforts to support AIDS Walk Washington 2008!
Please support me as I participate in AIDS Walk Washington 2008. Your donation helps Whitman-Walker Clinic to provide vital health care and supportive services such as primary medical care, free HIV testing and counseling, mental health care, medications, legal assistance and other services that clients need. Your contribution is greatly appreciated.
My partner accompanied me on this journal entry and he is has been here from start to finish.He has been my backbone and everything that a partner should to be.I thank him for his strength and generosity as well.
Up Next for Justin’s HIV Journal is a HIV vacation we are going to Luscious Las Vegas !!!!!
