FSC To Host HIV Stigma and Prevention Panel at AEE

LAS VEGAS — The Free Speech Coalition will host a special, one-hour panel discussion on HIV in the adult industry, in hopes of inspiring a discussion of what negotiation of health, safety and consent looks like among performers.

The HIV Prevention Panel is part of the Adult Entertainment Expo’s (AEE) educational seminar series. It will take place on Friday, January 25, 2019 at 4pm in the Las Vegas Hard Rock Hotel’s Festival Hall C.

Speakers will include Atlanta-based Dr. David Holland, the Chief of Communicable Disease Prevention for Fulton County, Georgia; Bella Bathory, Co-Director of the Sex Workers Outreach Project Los Angeles (SWOP-LA); adult performer and anti-stigma activist Charlotte Sartre and Matthew Rose, Board Member for SWOP National and Policy and Advocacy Manager of the NMAC (formerly the National Minority AIDS Council). The event will be moderated by Candace Moore, aka ‘Saint Bettie Crocker’ of the DFW Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and co-founder of the Dallas-based Transgender Support Health Services Clinic.

The goal of the panel is to break down the stigma and misinformation around HIV and HIV transmission, and to help performers understand how PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis), TasP (Treatment As Prevention) and U=U (Undetectable = Untransmittable) can help prevent HIV transmission on-set and off.

“The adult industry has long been a leader in HIV prevention and education,” said Eric Paul Leue, Executive Director of Free Speech Coalition. “Even so, there is still a lot of misinformation and stigma about HIV and HIV transmission within the industry. As a longtime activist and educator, I want this conversation to advance our understanding of HIV.and HIV prevention.”

“We’re bringing together medical experts, sex workers, activists and educators to engage directly with producers, performers, agents and others, to talk about one of the most highly fraught issues facing the industry,” Leue said. “I hope by confronting stigma head on, we can really help change the way HIV prevention is discussed in the industry.”

Performers, producers and others interested can submit questions in advance here.

You can read more about the panel here.