As someone who is HIV positive and in a relationship with someone who is HIV negative, I was excited to hear that a serodiscordant (“magnetic”) couple was going to be included in season 4 of Shuga, the fictional series based on real world experiences with HIV. Femi is...
Shawn’s Gang
The Secret Sex Lives of Emojis- EXPOSED!
This World AIDS Day, MTV Staying Alive has exposed the secret sex lives of emojis in this shocking video: VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. Well, it's no secret that emojis have been repurposed for sexting. But now, you don't need to do that anymore. To get some sweet...
Shaking the Disease: An Unlikely Tribute to Depeche Mode
This month's issue of POZ Magazine is all about long-term survivors. And this year marks a special occasion in my own long-term journey as a positoid... 25 years ago, I met my favorite band, Depeche Mode, thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Back in 1990, the...
A Month of Superheroes: Charles Sanchez and Team Merce
This week saw the big finale of the 8 episode original HIV comedic web series, Merce. I was so intrigued when I first heard about Merce last year, via an Indiegogo campaign - could a comedic story centered around a guy living in NYC work? I believed. I donated. I...
A Month of Superheroes: Georgia Arnold/MTV Staying Alive
Georgia, Gwenn and me in 2010 Georgia Arnold is the Executive Director of the MTV Staying Alive Foundation, which fights HIV globally by funding youth-led programs. Over the last few years I've been fortunate to see what they can accomplish firsthand, since I'm on the...
Merce- Original HIV Comedy Series!
Now that 40 has sunk in, and I have recovered from my birthday festivities, I wanted to post an entry about one of my favorite new things: Merce! It's so over-the-top campy and kind-hearted, with a story that is centered around the middle-aged Merce, an HIV positive...
Stephen Gendin, 15 Years Later
(This blog post was originally published on August 1, 2010. Today marks 15 years since Stephen passed. - SD) --------------------------- Ten years ago I was getting a few emails from a friend about a special party for a positoid pal who "wasn't doing too well". But I...
MTV’s RE:DEFINE Rocks Dallas and HIV
Full dislosure- I'm a big mark for the MTV Staying Alive Foundation. They fund grants worldwide to provide young people with the tools and resources necessary to implement HIV prevention plans in their communities. You can learn more about them here. The Staying Alive...
Ryan White, 25 Years
Ryan White passed to spirit on this day 25 years ago- he was 18 years old, yet in that short time he educated millions of people worldwide about how HIV was and wasn't transmitted. Born with hemophilia, Ryan contracted HIV through his blood product treatments in the...
Cash for the Stache? Let’s Rock AIDS!!
You've seen the moustache... and more of me than you intended to this week... and, well, the time has come... so let's harness the full power of Freddie Mercury together! The fundraising drive for MTV Staying Alive is live- from now through Saturday you can make a...