Here in the U.S., we often think of HIV as a problem that primarily affects gay and bisexual men — however, the reality is that the virus also affects millions of women worldwide.
Of the nearly 41 million people living with HIV on the planet, more than half (53 percent) are women and girls, according to UNAIDS. In 2024, women and girls accounted for 45 percent of all new HIV diagnoses. And globally, HIV rates among transgender women are 66 times higher than the general adult population. Multiple intersectional issues — such as violence, trauma, racism, poverty, caregiver stress, lack of female-controlled prevention methods, limited participation in clinical trials, and other gender-based inequalities — greatly affect these numbers.
It’s startling facts and statistics like these that prompted the initiation of National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NWGHAAD) in 2005. Recognized annually on March 10, NWGHAAD dovetails with International Women’s Day (March 8) and Women’s History Month. This year, two major women’s HIV organizations have come together to lead the charge in spreading awareness around this special day. The Well Project and Positive Women’s Network - USA have joined forces to bring the message of this year’s theme, “Sisterhood, Hope, and Equity,” to the masses.
“It is especially important to lift up NWGHAAD this year, since the federal government has elected not to acknowledge the day,” the orgs stated in a joint press release. “Given the long history of collaboration and sisterhood between The Well Project and Positive Women's Network - USA — two leading national organizations focused on HIV and trans and cis women, gender diverse, and transgender people – it is only fitting for us to team up and take the lead in assuring that NWGHAAD stays on the national radar!”
To promote this year’s message of “Sisterhood, Hope, and Equity,” the groups spoke with several prominent female HIV advocates across the country on the importance and purpose of NWGHAAD. Scroll on to read what they had to say.
Alyssa Crawford (she/her), Florida
"In light of National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, I reflect on what it truly means to me. Sisterhood, hope, and equity look like a strong, interlocking web of support connected through shared struggles, empathy, and lived experience. It lives in laughter, dating advice, and honest conversations about the unorthodox moments of motherhood including the reassurance that you, too, can breastfeed while living with HIV.
This day reminds me of the shoulders I stand on in the fight against HIV such as Waheedah Shabazz-El, Leisha McKinley-Beach, Rae Lewis-Thornton, Tiffany Marrero, Sylvia Hubbard, Ana Puga, Judy Levison, Lealah Pollock, and countless others who ensured our voices were heard when silence was expected. I also honor those who labored behind the scenes to protect the rights of women and future generations, as well as those who endured the pain, silently.
NWGHAAD reminds me that this work is continuous. Hand in hand with my sisters and allies, I remain committed to healthcare justice, autonomy, and equity for all. Onward!"
Ashley Cason (she/her), Florida
"When I think of sisterhood, I think about community and support. It’s a village of women building each other up, holding one another accountable, and filling each other’s cup. Having sisterhood not only gives me hope and reminds me that I’m forever surrounded by pure love, joy, wisdom, integrity, and strength; it’s unity that is remarkable and inspiring. Women uniting for any purpose ignites the motivation to stand, to build, to service, to lead, and to overcome. In short, sisterhood, hope, and equity to me means the power to unite, overcome, and conquer."
Isis Torrente (she/her), Texas
"Sisterhood, as cis and trans women, means that we need to bring each other up in a world that is hostile toward us, especially women living with HIV. We need to teach younger folks self-respect. Equity is essential – we have to meet people where they are at to ensure their needs are met. We fight for a future with better outcomes for women, and build a path for reproductive rights. A better place for women living with HIV. I have hope that we can live better lives. That we can be free of stigma, where a woman can be open about her status without fear. I want to see the full humanity of people living with HIV be honored. I hope for a world where we are seen beyond our condition. Where we are seen as mothers, grandmothers, sisters, aunts, and daughters. A world where we are free."
Janea Hunter (she/her), Mississippi
"On National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, I stand united in sisterhood with all women living with HIV across the South: cisgender women, transgender women, and every woman whose life and leadership matters. I affirm that our dignity is non-negotiable and our health is a right. I acknowledge the impact of stigma, racism, transmisogyny, poverty, and harmful policies, and I commit to dismantling them. I believe equity requires affirming healthcare, housing, stability, safety, and meaningful investments in our communities. I hold hope in our collective power and shared advocacy. I am committed to a South where women living with HIV are not just surviving but shaping systems and thriving unapologetically."
Justine Davenport (she/her), Georgia
"Sisterhood to me means having a community of women coming together to build and support each other’s needs. It’s having the ability to learn from each other’s life experiences in hopes of not making the same mistakes. Equity in sisterhood within healthcare is realizing not all women are the same, nor does our care look the same. Our lives are managed differently depending on our life experiences. We all require different things in different stages of our life. Women, and especially Black women, have historically not been heard or taken serious in this world. We deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. As a sisterhood we need to come together to fight for what we already deserve and know – that none of us are alone. The system was built against us, but I encourage all women to take charge and learn all you can to live your best life. My hope is that as sisterhood grows, communities will become stronger, and the proper resources are provided to all. Silos are no longer working. We must stand together with the support of our counterparts."
Katie Willingham (she/they), Alabama
"When asked what sisterhood, equity, and hope mean to me, my answer is simple: It means my life is full. Let me explain. As a woman of transgender experience, I’ve rarely been allotted the privilege of equity (fairness, justice, and equality) until I found true hope in sisterhood. I found that sisterhood in women living with HIV in advocacy organizations that I found some time after my diagnosis. The Well Project and Positive Women’s Network - USA are organizations that have a strong sisterhood, and finding this sisterhood saved my life as a woman living with HIV. This sisterhood has provided me with strength when mine was gone, education that I was neglected, and a family that truly loved and accepted me. This sisterhood gave me back the hope that I had long lost —and hope is everything."
Lizzie Bellamy (she/her), South Carolina
"On the subject of NWGHAAD, Sisterhood looks like a place of inclusion for all women & girls to be aware HIV and AIDS is still here and on the rise in Black & brown communities. It still doesn’t discriminate. I only wish that when I was 19 the information would have been more clear and prevalent instead of “don’t catch That Thang” or "she or he got that fire." That’s just a tip of the stigma it carries. But today, we have better understanding through science of the medication, peer-led lived experience, and PrEP. We have the opportunity to be informed properly on how it’s contracted. My hope is when you meet a woman of lived experience, allow them the platform to educate at your church, social gatherings, women’s groups, doctor’s office meetings, community meetings, legislative gatherings, and parent meetings so that young girls and women are equipped with the message of awareness & protecting themselves. As the saying goes from Anne Isabella Ritchie in 19th-century England: “If you give a man a fish, he's hungry again in an hour. But if you teach him to catch fish, you do him a good turn." And through this sisterhood I have been done a good turn."
Lynette Trawick (she/her), Maryland
"Sisterhood, hope, and equity are not just words to me. They are the reason I am still standing and still speaking. As a woman living with HIV, I remember the early days of fear and silence. What changed everything was finding other women who understood, without me having to explain. Sisterhood felt like exhaling for the first time. Hope grew each time I saw women thriving, loving, leading, and refusing to be reduced to a diagnosis. And equity means making sure the path is not so heavy for the women coming behind us. It means access, respect, and real opportunities to lead and be heard. Sisterhood strengthened me. Hope stretched my vision. Equity reminds me why I keep doing this work."
Robin Barkins (she/her), Louisiana
"Sisterhood to me means we don’t walk alone; hope reminds us that change is always possible; and equity ensures every woman has what she needs to truly thrive. Together, we can create a path toward healing, justice, and collective liberation."
Xeena Ellison (she/her), Louisiana
"'Sisterhood' sees You!, sister in Your fullness, your journey, not your destination…
Sisterhood stands together across lines of all social labels dividing women and girls globally.
She Holds our hands, she Chants! She Cries! She Exclaims! She Declares:
Our collective & individual differences, needs, strengths, and weaknesses will need to be examined thoroughly to better and advance ALL our sisters!
Sisterhood is our lens of observation, that creates equity by striking Invisibility and Neglect faced by us with Lightning! With electricity, storms, thunder, sacred divine feminine rage, Sisterhood, Our lens is a gorilla glue that won’t melt!
It is our Hope!:
What is our hope but not a fierce yet delicate dance?
A battle (cry)!
Sisterhood fights fiercely for equity by prioritizing, caring, and protecting us Sisters in all our hood(s).
Hope is also a lens of observation, an old tool being used with new outlooks, skills, and history that prepare us to advance our needs to the front of the line."
