On The 25th Annual World AIDS Day, We Have The Tools We Need To Beat The Epidemic

A cure may be years down the road, but we’ve made huge strides toward preventing the spread AIDS and extending the lifespan of HIV-positive people.

Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress
By Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress

Sunday marks the 25th annual World AIDS Day, an international effort to raise awareness about the fight to eradicate HIV/AIDS. After a quarter century of activism around this issue, there’s been a lot of progress. Of course, we haven’t yet solved the problem for good. Although the ongoing work to develop an effective HIV vaccine typically

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Nyaope: The Street Drug That’s The Scourge Of South Africa’s Townships

A dangerous cocktail of heroin and anti-HIV drugs lets some of South Africa’s poorest get high for just $3 a hit.

Erin Conway-Smith
By Erin Conway-Smith

  BOKSBURG, South Africa — Mpho was a bored teenager growing up in the bleak sprawl of big city Johannesburg, with few opportunities and little to do for fun. When a friend offered her “nyaope,” she didn’t say no. “I wanted to feel happy,” she said, recounting her first experience smoking the cocktail drug. “And I felt so happy and so

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For Minnesota Gay Marriage Sponsors, It’s Personal

Minnesota is now the first state in the Midwest to approve gay marriage by a legislative vote.

Associated Press
By Associated Press

  As a crowd of thousands roared from the lawn of the state Capitol, Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton signed the bill Tuesday that makes gay marriage legal here come Aug. 1. "What a day for Minnesota!" the Democratic governor declared, as American and rainbow flags flapped in a sweltering hot wind. The Minnesota State Patrol estimated

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Lies About Austerity: The International Struggle For Economic Justice And Dignity

People all around the world are pushing back against the rising tide of economic devastation.

Edward Rhymes
By Edward Rhymes

The verdict has been in for several years – although the U.S. has just recently been added to the mix – austerity does not work. The cuts in vital programs has not produced the surge in employment or the boom in the economy that neoliberal forces across the globe said it would – you may color this writer cynical, but somehow I believe they never

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Researchers Find Possible HIV Treatment In Marijuana’s THC

Temple University scientists found that the marijuana’s psychoactive chemical appears to damage and weaken HIV-infected cells.

Katie Rucke
By Katie Rucke

Researchers at Temple University School of Medicine’s Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and Center for Substance Abuse Research (CSAR) announced earlier this month that they may have found a treatment for HIV in marijuana’s main active component, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Researchers found that the chemical compound in THC appears

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