For media inquiries about the STOP AIDS Project, please contact Jason Riggs, Communications Director, at (415) 575-0160, ext. 227.

STOP AIDS Project launches "HIV Is No Picnic" ad campaign.

HIV+ men tell HIV- men the truth about living with HIV in new citywide social marketing ads
SAN FRANCISCO—The STOP AIDS Project today announced the launch of its cutting-edge social marketing campaign, "HIV Is No Picnic." The stark, hard-hitting series of four ads from the Project’s Positive Force program is designed to counter a widely held perception among HIV negative men that contracting HIV is no longer something to be so concerned about. The ads will debut this week in the Bay Area Reporter and on MUNI shelters around the city. Each ad features an HIV+ man describing the impact of a specific side effect of HIV disease or anti-HIV medication. "Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad to be alive," each says. "But HIV is no picnic."

"We know that some people will be shocked by the ‘in your face’ nature of the ads," said David Evans, STOP AIDS Project’s program director. "But the HIV positive guys who make up our Positive Force Program have been waiting for an opportunity to tell negative guys how tough it can be to live with HIV. We consider this a truth in advertising campaign."

"A lot of people think that the worst is over," said Geof Gray, 52, a Positive Force participant who is featured in one of the ads. "They’re not looking at the numbers."
Gray, a nursing student at San Francisco State University, has experienced facial lipoatrophy—also known as facial wasting—as a side effect of his anti-HIV medications. "At first I thought my cheekbones looked a little better," he said. "But then it became obvious that I had that ‘AIDS look.’ It’s hard getting up in the morning. There it is staring me in the mirror. I get up, I brush my teeth, and, oh yeah, I have AIDS. I can’t ever forget."

Other ads feature participants talking about life with the constant threat of diarrhea, a common side effect of both HIV itself and most anti-HIV medications; night sweats; and "Crix belly," the distended stomach and abnormally located weight gain that has been associated with taking protease inhibitors.

"People need to know that despite the advances in treatments, gay men are still dying from this disease," said Les Pappas, president of San Francisco–based Better World Advertising, the agency that designed the campaign. "And the guys who aren’t dying are dealing with some pretty serious health problems. It’s better than before, but having HIV can still be a living hell."

The STOP AIDS Project, founded in 1984, works to prevent HIV transmission among all gay and bisexual men in San Francisco through multicultural, community-based organizing. Visit www.stopaids.org for more information.

Better World Advertising was established to provide high quality, cost effective social marketing and issue advertising services to non-profit organizations, educational institutions and government agencies who are committed to advancing initiatives in the areas of public health and social welfare. Visit www.socialmarketing.com for more information.