I remember a #health class in high #school in which the lesson that day was about #HIVtransmission routes and the instructor informed us that HIV could be transmitted through a can of soda. Shocked, I politely, yet firmly, let him know that that was absolutely untrue. After going back and forth for a while, I realized that my point would not get across to my instructor. Fortunately, my classmates listened and affirmed me and that was all that truly mattered.

As someone who was born to a mother living with HIV, I was exposed to conversations and information that many of my peers were shielded from. I thought of myself as a natural-born activist because of my situation, and it was important to me that others have medically accurate information.

People tend to have a knee-jerk reaction when it comes to comprehensive sexual health education, discussions about access to condoms, and prevention methods such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a once-daily pill regimen that can help a person remain HIV-negative. Young people are often infantilized and denied proper, life-saving information because it goes against the supposed morals of their parent or medical provider.

The support that I received from my peers about HIV misconceptions reflect studies that show that young people themselves are dissatisfied with the state of #sexeducation. They know they’re being left in the dark, so when they reach out to to satisfy their inevitable curiosity, we must ensure they’re getting facts, not fantasy.

Jamanii, New Orleans