“Equalize” — tackling health inequities — is the theme of this year’s international World AIDS Day campaign.
On Dec. 1 each year, the world commemorates World AIDS Day. Beginning in 1988, World AIDS Day was the first international day to commemorate global health, a day for people around the world to show their support for people living with HIV and to honor and remember those who have died from AIDS-related illnesses.
Today, the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) affirms its commitment and support as the University lives our core values of Respect and Integrity, honoring our colleagues and friends who are living with HIV and remembering those who have died from illnesses related to AIDS.
For decades, UMB has been instrumental in advancing HIV/AIDS research and patient care. For example, the University of Maryland School of Medicine’s (UMSOM) Institute of Human Virology (IHV), founded in 1996, continues to forge new paths in the fight against HIV and AIDS. Robert Gallo, MD, the Homer and Martha Gudelsky Distinguished Professor in Medicine at UMSOM and co-founder and director of IHV, is the esteemed scientist who co-discovered HIV as the cause of AIDS in 1984.
Under the umbrella of IHV is UMSOM’s Center for International Health, Education, and Biosecurity. The center’s mission is to improve the human condition globally, safeguard communities against health-related threats, and promote health equity worldwide. This mission aligns with the theme of this year’s World AIDS Day campaign led by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS): “Equalize.”
“We can end AIDS — if we end the inequalities which perpetuate it. This World AIDS Day, we need everyone to get involved in sharing the message that we will all benefit when we tackle inequalities,” said UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima. “To keep everyone safe, to protect everyone’s health, we need to ‘Equalize.’ ”
Across the globe on World AIDS Day, events and activities are taking place to commemorate those we have lost to AIDS-related illnesses and show support for all people living with HIV.
Read more about IHV’s leadership in fighting AIDS at this link.