Ignorance is deadly, and so is HIV, but both are preventable according to communication disorders senior Tasha D. Dotson.
Dotson was the facilitator of the program “Sex: A Killer” presented by Zeta Phi Beta sorority held Tuesday in the African American Cultural Center.
“Education is the first step in prevention,” she said. “The best way to become educated is through assembling information — the right information.”
Providing students with this information, in addition to dispelling common myths and misconceptions about sex and sexually transmitted diseases, was the purpose of the forum.
Other topics covered were condom types and correct usage, alcohol and drug use, the history of HIV and level of risk associated with each demographic. The threat and presence of AIDS has impacted the black population the greatest.
According to African American Cultural Center manager Jermaine Watson, this alarming fact makes learning about sexual health especially important in the black community.
“Although we understand the threat and reality of AIDS, we still think that we are the exception and it could never happen to us,” Watson said.
      Psychology senior Monique Taylor said it is important to have programs like these because it offers an alternate, more comfortable environment when compared to other methods of discovering information.
“Some students may feel embarrassed to seek counseling from the Student Health Center and other forms of help the University has to offer,” Taylor said. “This setting may help them feel more at ease.”
Dotson sad she would like participants to walk away from the forum with another mission.
“People should take the knowledge and information that they have gained to protect themselves and save a life — their own life,” she said.