NFL Players Association Teams Up with Outreach Inc, to Tackle HIV/AIDS in African-American Community
Contact: Carl Francis of the National Football League Players Association, 202-463-2216,
or Alfred White of Outreach, Inc., 404-755-6700
News Advisory:
The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), in a bold off-the-field move, has teamed up with Outreach Inc. in a series of the Public Service Announcements (PSAs) designed to inform the public, particularly the African-American community, about the dramatic increase in HIV infection. The campaign kicks off Tuesday, Nov. 23, at 9 a.m. at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The PSAs will also air on television and radio stations in New York/Newark, Atlanta, Oakland and Miami.
At the kick-off, NFL players will focus attention on the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS on African Americans, and Surgeon General David Satcher, M.D., will call for increased community and individual involvement in fighting this epidemic. The statistics paint a grim picture:
-- HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, is the leading cause of death among African American males ages 25-44 and the second leading cause of death among African American females in the same age range.
-- African-Americans account for almost 37 percent of the nation's AIDS cases, but comprise only 12 percent of the U.S. population.
-- One in 50 African American men and one in 160 African American women are infected with the virus.
National Kick-Off Speakers:
-- Surgeon General David Satcher, M.D. -- Gene Upshaw, executive director, NFLPA -- Sandra Singleton McDonald, president/founder, Outreach, Inc. -- Brian Mitchell, running back, Washington Redskins -- Charles Way, fullback, New York Giants -- Walter W. Shervington, M.D., president, National Medical Association -- Rick Winningham, president, Bristol-Myers Squibb -- Helene Gayle, M.D., director for the National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
This community-based initiative, headquartered in Atlanta, is spearheaded by Sandra Singleton McDonald, one of the country's leading HIV/AIDS experts. She is a member of the Health Resources Service Administration's AIDS Advisory Committee and has a long-standing relationship with the NFLPA. The NFLPA, long committed to assisting charitable and community organizations, has joined in this effort to heighten awareness about the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
The Washington media event announcing the NFLPA/Outreach Inc. African American HIV/AIDS Awareness Campaign is sponsored by Bristol-Myers Squibb.
------ Editor's and Producer's Note: To obtain a copy of the PSAs, contact Alfred White at 404-775-6700.
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/U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770/
11/18 12:29
Copyright 1999, U.S. Newswire
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