Poz I Am Radio

This Sunday January 8th at 2pm EST, Robert & Aaron return live for the first POZ I AM Radio show of 2017. In this 30 min special Robert and Aaron will be taking your calls all hour at (929) 477-3572 

James Breinig has been living with HIV for six years. His diagnosis certainly wasn't easy in the beginning, but with the help of supportive friends and family he was able to turn a diagnosis usually marked as something dark and scary into something - for a lack of a better word - positive. For the last three years he has done outreach on numerous gay dating apps where he provided information to hundreds of gay men about HIV or where to get tested. Recently, he accepted a position with the Northeast/Caribbean AETC where he assists in building clinician capacity and expertise along the HIV care continuum.  Tearing down the walls of stigma surrounding HIV has become his passion and he couldn't imagine doing anything else

Derek Canas (AKA D-REK), born a sweet, cute, seemingly healthy baby, had everything going for him until the age of 3 months, when he was surrounded by many doctors talking about transposition of the great arteries, pacemakers, and blood transfusions.  His parents now had, what they called a “battery operated son”. This was a scary scenario for his parents with so many touch-and-go moments.  16-years later another illness that Derek had been living with started to show symptoms: HIV.  This only brought on a more terrifying roller-coaster ride.  With courage, unconditional love and sheer determination, Derek was not going to let any one of his health issues get in the way of his dream of becoming a DJ! Spinning music is the passion of his soul.  Today, taking his fight against HIV to new hope, he serves as the Social Ambassador for Yes Get Tested Coachella Valley and BeeSafe Condoms. A survivor of both open heart surgery and HIV,  his doctors refer to him as "The Terminator." And that he is!! He is also the cre

Wanda Brendle-Moss was diagnosed with HIV in July 2002 at the end of a relationship that had turned deadly violent. A relationship in which the man had failed to tell her that he had previously been involved with an HIV+ girl. Wanda has always been open about her Positivity...except in the early years because of a part time employer(after her 20 years as an RN) threatened to fire her if she discussed her HIV status in any way. Wanda has had 2 long term relationships with non HIV+ men since her diagnosis. The last one, began in 2004...and by 2007 began showing signs of strain...even so, Wanda tried to hold on to the relationship.  But she became increasingly depressed...resulting in her stopping her medications. As a result, Wanda was hospitalized in 2008 with Trigeminal Shingles.  She was then diagnosed with AIDS. Wanda resumed all her HIV care, resumed her medications...and her Viral Load quickly returned to undetectable...yet to this day...her cd4 count has not gone above 225.  Wanda has been featured

Philip Christopher Baldwin is a 31-year-old LGBT rights and HIV awareness activist. He was diagnosed as HIV positive in 2010, when he was 24-years-old. Philip went through an empowering process of acceptance surrounding his HIV. He we has columns in Gay Times and the Huffington Post and am a Stonewall Role Model. He has recently contributed to a book called The Power of my Faith and is working on a semi-autobiographical book on stigma, called Positive Damage. Themes which are central to his activism include: HIV awareness, Hep C, LGBT bullying in schools and Christianity for LGBT people. Philip says and we quote "I am happy, healthy and POSITIVE." 

After watching his partner become diagnosed with HIV and after noticing an absence of HIV negative young people (specifically gay & young people of color) advocating about social issues Benjamin Di'Costa decided to dedicate his life to being involved in the LGBTQ community on issues surrounding social justice and health education. Benjamin currently promotes HIV testing/education, PrEP, and Transgender health equality. He also spends his time advocating for expanded services for HIV prevention & treatment with other community members.

Josh Robbins started blogging weeks after learning his was living with HIV in Nashville; actually releasing his first blog post on Facebook to his personal friends. I'm Still Josh (ISJ) is an award-winning blog and online personality & journey of Josh Robbins, a recognized HIV-positive activist and quickly being recognized as the new "HIV-positive Encourager". The #HIVScoop formerly the HIV Video Minute,is the top buzz worthy HIV related info update videos by HIV blogger and activist, Josh Robbins ofimstilljosh.com. ?Josh contributes an exclusive weekly #HIVScoop for POZ I AM Radio.

Robert Breining & Aaron Laxton return to the airwaves for the much anticipated return of POZ I AM Radio. Kevin Maloney stops by to talk about his "What's your positive message" campaign.

My name is Joshua Middleton and I was diagnosed HIV positive on June 5, 2012. I had survived death twice already from Necrotizing Fasciitis and Septic shock while being hospitalized over 30 + times in a two year period. I was diagnosed when I was already in a very stressful moment of my life. I was in a relationship with a girl in Tijuana Mexico that I thought would eventually end in the perfect white picket fence life, including marriage and a baby. I was wrong… She cheated on me twice while we were attempting to have a baby together. Not knowing how to deal with the relationship breakup I started to seek out love in all the wrong places including having multiple one night stands unprotected and even visiting brothels in Northern Tijuana in an effort to want to feel what it was like to have a woman's touch again. I had put myself in many high risk situations, I wasn't sure if my ex had used protection, and we had both gotten tattoos just month prior. I got tested as I normally did out of routine after gettin

Robert and Aaron will be speaking with the Founder of Rise Above HIV Jeremy Scott Hobbs. Call us with questions and comments at 347-215-9442 RISE ABOVE HIV is a CVBWF Inc. organization for people who are affected or infected by HIV/AIDS. This Organization is a Place for us to Realize we are more than a disease. We define Our Lives....Not the Disease. This is a page for support, love and understanding and we are working to help lift the veil of shame for 34 million people living with AIDS who have endured stigma and discrimination. RISE ABOVE HIV! Invite everyone you know who has been infected or affected by HIV. We will Rise ABOVE HIV and show the world we are more than a disease. We define our destiny...Not a disease.

Rob Quinn is an openly gay HIV-positive activist and blogger. After hitting his rock bottom in 2007, resulting from an HIV diagnosis in 1993, an AIDS diagnosis in 1999, and the need to take an extended medical leave of absence from his child life career in NYC, Rob has since reinvented himself and in 2012 launched the blog www.OpenlyPoz.com to empower and support his peers who are living positive. As of September 2013, Rob was appointed to a three-year term on the Statewide Consumer Advisory Board of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Office of HIV/AIDS. Prior to that, Rob served on the Board of Trustees at the AIDS Foundation of Western Massachusetts (AFWM). He first became involved with AFWM in 2008 as a recipient of their emergency financial assistance program. Rob has since received AFWM’s Community Activist Recognition Award, and co-facilitates Living Positive, the area’s only peer-led support for men living with HIV/AIDS. Rob believes that by putting a face to HIV and talking about in open

Robert & Aaron spend 60 minutes talking all things HIV.

Robert and Aaron will be speaking with 2 amazing Mothers this evening.  Jane is a mother, college student, public speaker, HIV activist and advocate, and she is herself positive. Jane has spent the last four plus years since she was diagnosed learning what she could about HIV itself, the stigma attached the disease. Jane enjoys to spend as much time possible just being mommy to her four year old son and she believes that it is her privilege and honor to be his mother and to be the activist she has became. Later we will be joined by Chelsea Gulden White. Chelsea was diagnosed HIV positive at 21 years old between her junior and senior year In college. She was also told she was 10 weeks pregnant. HIV catapulted Chelsea into a career working with other HIV positive adolescents. She developed and implemented the first and only HIV program for youth ages 12-24. The program has yielded excellent results serving 81 youth in 2013 with 35.8% achieving am undetectable viral load when the national average for everyone

Mark S. King produces the funny and often controversial blog, My Fabulous Disease. He has been writing and speaking about HIV since he tested HIV positive in 1985, including the widely circulated POZ Magazine cover essay this year, "The Sound of Stigma."

Tonight Robert & Aaron will be speaking with 3 young men in their 20's who are living with HIV and how they have found support in eachother. The three men were recently featured in an A&U Magazine article. AdamStraga is 25 year old single gay male living in New Jersey. Who was diagnosed with HIV a few years ago and has been in an up and down battle dealing with the stigma. Amir Simon is 22 years old and was born and raised in Philadelphia. He has been HIV positive for about 2 years now and feel that his diagnoses has made him a more positive person. Ryan Hunter Ruggiero currently lives in the city of Philadelphia and is a full time Design Assistant at Ethan Allen and a part time flight attendant. He found out he was HIV positive 2 years ago. The support from his friends and family have been a great help in him accepting his status.

Damon L. Jacobs is a Licensed Psychotherapist in New York State, and has worked in HIV Treatment and Prevention for most of the past 22 years.  His 2008 book, "Absolutely Should-less" criticizes traditional HIV prevention strategies that fail to  effectively impact and change high-risk sexual behaviors.   He has been publicly speaking out in favor of information, education, and accessibility regarding PrEP for the past 12 months.  He frequently offers talks throughout New York City on subjects related to healthy living, joyful relationships, and rejecting stigma.   For more information, please email him at Shouldless@gmail.com or call 347-227-7707. 

Scott A. Kramer, LCSW, ACSW, is a psychotherapist in private practice working with the LGBTQ community in New York City. in 2007, Scott graduated SUNY Stony Brook, School of Social Welfare and started work as the Prevention Social Worker in the Youth Enrichment Services program at the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center in Manhattan. In 2009, he accepted the Supervising Counselor position at the Hetrick-Martin Institute and in 2010 received his SIFI certification from Columbia University School of Social Work. One of Scott's main goals as a social worker is to help empower people living with HIV/AIDS to lead a fulfilling life, free from stigma and fear. He accomplishes this by being a social worker who is open to both clients and colleagues about being a gay man and living with AIDS since 1995. In August 2010 Scott developed "Hi-fIVe - A Support Group for Gay Men Living with HIV/AIDS in New York City" a low-cost, weekly support group for adult gay men living with HIV/AIDS. "Hi-fIVe" has

Peter Staley has been a long-term AIDS and gay rights activist, first as a member of ACT UP New York, then as the founding director of TAG, the Treatment Action Group. He served on the board of the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) for 13 years and then founded AIDSmeds.com, an educational website for people living with HIV. Staley is a leading subject in the Oscar-nominated documentary How to Survive a Plague.

What began as a grassroots effort to fight stigma of HIV have been developed into a campaign with a full Mission Statement and has achieved recognition of 501c3 nonprofit status through the CARES organization. Mr Friendly has received so many amazing questions. We want to share these questions with you through the Frequently Asked Questions link, on this page. I encourage you to keep asking question by sending them to the creator of Mr Friendly, Dave Watt. Please feel free to e-mail Dave at DWatt@CARESSswm.org. We will strive to add your question for others to learn more about Mr Friendly. Mr Friendly began as a picture on a clipboard in September 2008. People loved the symbol, as a visual expression of how so many of us feel – to end the stigma of HIV. Check out the full History of Mr Friendly here. Mr Friendly has already touched many people’s lives in a variety of ways. Helping to initiate conversations about HIV, proven to be an effective fundraising tool and being a fun symbol to wear are just a f

Tonight Robert & Aaron will be discussing HIV Criminalization with Robert Suttle and Tami Haught Robert Suttle was convicted under Louisiana’s HIV-specific criminal statute after accepting a plea bargain and served six months in a Louisiana prison for HIV non-disclosure to a former partner, with whom he had a contentious relationship. Upon his release in January 2011, he has become engaged in anti-criminalization advocacy work.Today he is now assistant director of The SERO Project, a new nonprofit initiative combating HIV criminalization, stigma, and discrimination, promoting the empowerment of people with HIV, providing support to those charged or at risk of being prosecuted. Tami Haught is the Community Organizer for Community HIV/Hepatitis Advocates of Iowa Network (CHAIN) the lead advocacy group in Iowa working to modernize Iowa's HIV specific criminalization law.  Tami is also President of Positive Iowans Taking Charge, the lead educational, emotional and social support group for Iowans living with