In this issue:

  • January 2019 Shero of the Month: Teresa Sullivan
  • Upcoming Webinars You Won’t Want to Miss
  • Want to Receive a Valentine from LOVE POSITIVE WOMEN?
  • PWN-USA Co-authors Article on Trauma Informed Care
  • Register for AIDSWatch
  • SCOTUS Greenlights Discrimination against Trans in the Military

January 2019 Shero of the Month: Teresa Sullivan

Our January 2019 Shero of the Month is Teresa Sullivan of Philadelphia, PA. She is the vice-chair of the PWN-USA Board of Directors, a member of the inaugural class (2017-2018) of PWN-USA Policy Fellows, senior member of the PWN Pennsylvania chapter, and was featured in PWNCares: Living and Loving Well with HIV. Teresa was awarded the 2018 Red Ribbon Award from Penn University, which is “the highest honor given to a community advocate living with HIV in Philadelphia.”

According to PWN-USA Executive Director Naina Khanna, “Teresa is a fierce and loving advocate who always follows through on her commitments and is constantly mentoring others while challenging herself to grow and learn. Her work at Philly FIGHT, especially working with folks who are facing barriers to re-entry, keeps her grounded in the needs of some of the most vulnerable members of our community.“

Read more here!

Upcoming Webinars You Don’t Want to Miss!

Jan. 31: Ending Criminalization

Positive Women’s Network – USA is thrilled to kick off the new year with the first installment of our 6-part webinar series on our new policy agenda!

Join us Thursday, January 31, at 5pm EST/2pm PST for Ending Criminalization to learn more about the different types of criminalization, how they affect people living with HIV and our communities, and most importantly, what we can do as advocates to effect meaningful change and move toward liberation with special guest panelists Magali Lerman (Reframe Health & Justice), Robert Suttle (SERO Project), and Monique Tula (Harm Reduction Coalition).
Register here!


Feb. 14: PWNCares: Dating with HIV


Think dating is difficult? Try dating while living with HIV. It can be tough, but the good news is, it can be done–and it can be fun! Join panelists Tranisha Arzah, Davina “Pozitively Dee” Conner, Thandi Harris, Tiffany Marrero and Bre Anne Rivera for the launch of the sixth video in the PWNCares series, a unique multimedia series by and for women living with HIV sponsored by ViiV’s Positive Action for Women, and a dynamic virtual coffee table chat on the nuances of dating with HIV. Click here or on the image on the right to watch the trailer for the video!

Click here to register to be a part of the conversation happening on February 14 at 4pm EST/ 3pm CST/ 2pm MST/ 1pm PST!

Learn more here!

Want to Receive a Handmade Valentine from LOVE POSITIVE WOMEN?

PWN is thrilled to be partnering with Visual AIDS, Fire Island Artist Residency, and Dieu Donne this year for LOVE POSITIVE WOMEN 2019!

LOVE POSITIVE WOMEN (LPW) is an ongoing project started in 2013 by Visual AIDS artist Jessica Whitbread. It is now an international series of grassroots events that uses Valentine’s Day as a backdrop, creating a platform for individuals and communities to engage in public and private acts of love and caring for women living with HIV. Working from a place of strength, LPW focuses on the idea of interconnectedness, relationship building, loving oneself and loving ones’ community. Learn more about LPW here.

To receive a handmade valentine, please email your name and mailing address to lovepositivewomen@visualaids.org by January 31, 2019.

Learn more about LOVE POSITIVE WOMEN here

Making Trauma-Informed Care a Standard Practice:

PWN Co-authors New Article with UCSF Women’s HIV Program

PWN-USA is proud to be part of a collaborative effort to make trauma-informed care a standard practice for health care providers. In a newly released article in Women’s Health Issues, From Treatment to Healing: Inquiry and Response to Recent and Past Trauma in Adult Health Care, PWN-USA Executive Director Naina Khanna and co-authors lay out a roadmap for doctors to ask about and address patients’ current and past trauma.

“If we can really understand the behaviors that can be perceived as problematic or challenging to deal with in a health care setting, if we can get providers to understand that these ‘challenging’ behaviors are really coping strategies and mechanisms that people are using to survive their history of traumatic experiences, then we can start a new type of conversation about what wellness really means to an individual,” explains Naina in an interview with ACES Connection about the article.
Read the article here!

Early Registration for AIDSWatch Now Open!


AIDSWatch, to be held April 1 & 2, 2019, is the largest annual constituent-based national HIV/AIDS advocacy event, bringing together hundreds of people living with HIV and their allies to meet with members of Congress and to educate them about the important issues at stake for people living with HIV in the United States.

By registering before March 9, you can save 50%. Early registration is only $35.

Learn more about and register for AIDSWatch here!

PWN-USA Condemns SCOTUS Decision to Green Light Discrimination Against Trans People in the Military

On January 22, 2019, the Supreme Court of the United States gave the Trump administration the green light to discriminate against people of trans experience. Positive Women’s Network-USA (PWN-USA) strongly condemns this latest assault on the rights and dignity of people of trans experience.

Read PWN-USA’s statement on the trans military ban here.