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Teens get lesson in AIDS
By HANNAN ADELY
THE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: March 14, 2004)
Health class, television, newspapers — those are some of the places teen-agers said yesterday they get their information about HIV and AIDS. Still, some of the teens gathered in the auditorium of Woodlands High School in Greenburgh said more needed to be done to keep them and their peers informed.
"A lot of kids are having sex and don't use protection," said Jerrell Whittel, an 11th-grader at Woodlands High School. Whittel said some teens used marijuana or alcohol and as a result were at times less careful about protecting themselves.
Whittel and other teens from Woodlands and Ossining high schools gathered yesterday at "Steppin' on HIV — Stompin' Out AIDS," a conference sponsored by the Westchester chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, a black women's service group.
All the sorority's chapters held HIV and AIDS awareness events yesterday, their International Day of Service, for adolescents and senior citizens.
Yesterday's event featured panelists from health groups and a speech by motivational speaker and former New York Giant Lee Rouson.
Rouson told stories from his life and advised the teens that their futures were up to them. "We have the ability to chose," he said. "Whatever we choose, that determines our life."
Three step teams from different high schools also stepped, clapped, stomped and performed other music-making moves on stage, drawing standing ovations. The teens each received a "goody bag" with magazines and CDs and pamphlets about preventing HIV and AIDS.
Traditionally, Delta Sigma Theta has a different theme each year on their day of service, but the past four years have focused on HIV and AIDS prevention because of the growing need for this type of education, said Kristina Newland, co-chair of the International Day of Service Committee.
"It's such a growing pandemic in the African diaspora that we wanted to address it on a large level," she said.
The sorority, Newland added, has tried to create events where "teen-agers could come out and express their feelings, whether through art or dance, with their peers." She said she hoped teens would share the knowledge with their peers.
Christian Mitchell, a 10th-grader at Ossining, said the program was a fun place to learn about an important subject.
"It's a good way to get the message out rather than read it," she said. "It's clearer if someone explains it to you."
Alyssa Robinson, a 10th-grader at Woodlands, agreed. "Statistics scare you," she said, "but when you hear from someone you can relate to, it seems a lot more realistic."
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