"I am heard there"
"I could overcome my self-stigma and fear of discrimination because of Human Touch Foundation. From my childhood they have supported me with a range of services, like nutritional counselling for example. My voice is heard there," she said. Patriarchy adds another intersectional layer to stigma and discrimination.
Her both parents are living with HIV. Mother works but father is out of work. She had to drop out of school due to stigma and discrimination. She chose to work. But she had to quit her job at a local supermarket due to stigma and discrimination. Luckily, she found a job as Outreach Assistant, Adolescent Health and Wellbeing at Human Touch Foundation and now helps children and other young people with HIV who come to seek help and support.
"I got to know my HIV status at the age of 13"
Another young person living with HIV shared with us: "I got to know my HIV status at the age of 13. I was with my relatives because I had lost my parents. That is when I first felt being stigmatised and discriminated against by my own family. For example, I was told not to use the common family nail cutter because if any blood comes out while cutting my nails then it can put others at risk. Or sometimes there were separate utensils for eating food. It used to hurt me."
He added: "I searched for institutional care on the internet myself. I found one and went over there. I stayed there too and found other young people in similar situation. Empathy helped a lot. But still there were a lot of gaps - I was not fully aware of HIV for example. That is when I met Peter Sir."
Peter Borges is the CEO of Human Touch Foundation in Goa. He has been a widely respected voice for helping improve youth-led HIV responses grounds-up.
"Peter Sir helped me a lot from the very beginning. He helped me with my documents too. We used to have residential camps back then too, with adolescents living with HIV. I learnt a lot from these camps. Doctors were involved in these camps where we learnt a lot about HIV and how can we overcome problems we face. Earlier when I was in 8th or 9th standard class in school, the staff did not have the kind of connect needed to help us tide through so many questions about HIV and how it impacts our lives," he said.
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