Social Impact with Emma » Jamaica AIDS Support for Life : A Jamaica Gleaner Blog

COVID-19 and Our Most Vulnerable – Part 1

May 15th, 2020

The ongoing pandemic, and our response to it, continues to raise many questions, and fewer answers than I would like. With the slight “loosening” of social restrictions and the pending opening of our borders, how are those who already face so many everyday challenges faring? And one wonders, how do they face up to the […]

Jamaica AIDS Support for Life: Celebrating Its 25th Birthday in Style, and Despite Challenges

November 29th, 2016

Thursday, December 1 is World AIDS Day. This piece is my personal, small (and probably very inadequate) tribute to all the men and women who have worked so hard to establish, build and maintain a non-governmental organization that has had more than its fair share of trials and challenges: Jamaica AIDS Support for Life (JASL). […]

HIV/AIDS in Jamaica: Are The Kids Alright?

June 18th, 2016

My last post was about health issues, and it seems there is much more to say. This time I would like to touch on the issue of sexual and reproductive health, in particular among our youth. I recently attended the annual Health for All forum, involving a number of non-governmental partners including Jamaica AIDS Support for Life, […]

Msgr. Albert, HIV/AIDS and the Need to Recommit

December 1st, 2015

At breakfast today in a Kingston hotel, a large group of Jamaicans stood for a minute’s silence in remembrance of Msgr. “Father” Albert, who had passed away quite suddenly just the evening before. His presence seemed to hover among us for a few minutes; he was a regular participant in World AIDS Day ceremonies. Last […]

The “Forgotten Faces”: Children Isolated by HIV/AIDS

May 5th, 2015

People working in development agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) tend to assign acronyms to groups of people they are seeking to support. So, here is one for you: OVCs. OVCs are Orphans and Vulnerable Children, in case you did not know. Many children are vulnerable to a range of dangers these days. They need our […]