2026 marks the 12th year that we uplift Day of Action to End Violence Against Women Living with HIV.

More than raising awareness, we are calling for action to end the violence that women living with HIV experience. This harm goes beyond the horrors of physical attacks. It includes loss of shelter, loss of employment, financial control, coercion, isolation, reputational damage, assaults on our families, and murder.

None of this is acceptable. And yet too often women living with HIV are ignored when we speak up. Just as often, we are blamed for our outcomes. This harkens back to a time when we were told that we didn’t get HIV—we just died from it. We reject that ideology and call on the community to help us.

We don’t want you to protect us. We need you to stand beside us as accomplices and help dismantle the walls of stigma that oppress us. Here are six actions you can take to help our community members who are experiencing abuse:

  1. Believe us when we say we are being harmed even if you do not understand it.
  2. Work to ensure we have a safe place to rest and think.
  3. Give us time to develop our next steps.
  4. Open up the doors to financial freedom and opportunity, so that we can stand on our own.
  5. Respect our process as we navigate healing.
  6. Fund services for survivors of domestic violence or donate your services and skills to organizations that support us.

HERSTORY:

On October 23, 2014, PWN-USA launched the first-ever National Day of Action to End Violence Against Women Living with HIV (Day of Action) to draw attention to the high rates of interpersonal violence, abuse, and systemic brutality that women living with HIV experience. This was in response to high-profile brutal murders of Elisha Henson and Cicely Bolden, following disclosure of their HIV status. To honor them, Venita Ray and Morénike Giwa Onaiw, organized to ensure that none of our community members were forgotten and to inspire others to help stop the violence at its root.

The root cause is HIV stigma. And while there is no cure for stigma you can help eliminate it, by challenging harmful narratives about our community and amplifying our experiences. For instances, nearly 1 in 4 women living with HIV experiences physical violence as a direct result of sharing her status.

Remember: It does not have to be this way. Even saying that much — “We can stop the violence that women living with HIV experience by talking about it and ensuring their are resources for survivors.” — can create a change. To learn more, please watch our #PWNCares video series here. It lists the perspectives and experiences of PWN-USA members on abuse, survival, and healing.

Resources