Founded in 1983, the National Association of People with AIDS is a non-profit membership organization that advocates on behalf of all people living with HIV and AIDS in order to end the pandemic and the human suffering caused by HIV/AIDS. We are the oldest national AIDS organization in the United States and the oldest national network of people living with HIV/AIDS in the world. You can view a brief history of NAPWA and the People with AIDS (PWA) movement and the landmark Denver Principles, a copy of NAPWA's 2003 updating of the Denver document entitled The Rights and Responsibilities of People with HIV/AIDS, our 2003-2005 Strategic Plan which describes our focus for the next few years and an introduction to our programs, our advocacy work and information about our board and staff. We always welcome your comments.
Nearly one million Americans are living with HIV and more than 40 million people around the world are infected. Scientific and public understanding of the disease has improved significantly. Better treatment and care options exist, and people living with HIV/AIDS are living longer than ever before. And while still inadequate to the huge need, government and community based programs have helped develop and fund systems of care, prevention, research, housing and other essential services.
The epidemic has changed over the past two decades and NAPWA has changed with it. HIV/AIDS has increasingly become a major health threat for African-Americans, the Latino/a community, women, youth and the poor and disenfranchised. NAPWA strives to reflect the diverse face of AIDS in the hiring of staff and in the recruitment of members for our volunteer Board of Directors. Over 80% of our staff are people of color, and women living with HIV hold senior staff positions at NAPWA. The majority of staff members are people living with HIV. Our Board of Directors is equally diverse, providing representation of the many communities impacted by the epidemic. The vast majority of Board Members are also HIV positive. These dedicated and hard working people make NAPWA unique among national AIDS organizations.
8401 Colesville Road, Suite 750
Silver Spring, MD 20910
Phone: 240-247-0880
Fax: 240-247-0574
E-mail: info@napwa.org
Web: www.napwa.org