People Respecting Identity Diversity for Everyone is hosting a 5K run/walk on World AIDS Day on Dec.1 on Sikes Lake trail at 2-5 p.m. The free run/walk is open to students, faculty, and staff with all donations going towards the cure of HIV and AIDS. PRIDE welcomes all to come give support and have fun at the event.
“The 5K run/walk is to show support to people living with HIV or AIDS,” Christopher Cruz, president of PRIDE, said. “It’s to fight against HIV and AIDs. It’s a way to bring the community together.”
The World AIDS Day is one of the first health awareness events created in Oct. 27, 1988 by the United Nations General Assembly. PRIDE members decided, this year, they wanted to do a 5K run/walk as well as a free HIV/AIDS test, which happened earlier this semester.
“It goes back to the PRIDE objective,” Cruz, theater performance sophomore, said. “To create a safe and nonjudgemental community, not just for the LGBT people but for everyone.”
The 5K run/walk was also planned to coincide with students HIV/AIDS test results on the same day. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported that more than 1.2 million people living in the U.S. live with HIV with one out of eight, 13 percent, of people are infected without knowing.
“We need to talk about it,” Eliza Carmon, biology pre-med freshman, said. “Some schools don’t talk about HIV/AIDS well enough and it leaves young students uninformed. Some people just don’t want to talk about it.”
Prizes were donated for the event and everyone will receive a red ribbon to show their support. PRIDE members will distribute condoms and lube to promote safe sex.
“There’s a stigma around HIV,” Carmon said. “I highly doubt anyone that has HIV on campus would be able to talk about it and feel comfortable too. We want to be a resource to help them.”
While resources in Wichita Falls may seem limited, students have found one they can depend on.
“The students have been very appreciative of the resources from the Wichita Falls – Wichita County Public Health District,” Christopher D’Amico, mass communication lecturer, said. “For helping them make life decisions.”
