In 2021, Positive Women’s Network USA created Celebrate and Honor Black Women in the HIV Movement Day (CHBW), observed on August 18th. CHBW is a day to elevate and pay homage to the countless Black women who have always been the very backbone of the HIV movement–those who have been fighting against stigma, discrimination, and oppression since the beginning of the epidemic despite being underpaid and systemically undervalued. But CHBW is not just one day, it is a call to action to the HIV movement as a whole to #ListenToBlackWomen #TrustBlackWomen #PayBlackWomen #RespectBlackWomen #ProtectBlackWomen and #HonorBlackWomen

This year, we have the pleasure to highlight and uplift five amazing, powerful CHBW Honorees under the theme “Joy as Resistance.” We believe that the joy and celebration of Black cis and trans women are radical acts of defiance against systemic violence, anti-Blackness, and erasure. Joy fuels liberation. It is a political strategy, a survival tool, and a declaration that Black women deserve to be honored and celebrated for their contributions and for their existence.

We name joy as resistance, celebration as disruption, and honoring Black women as an act of liberation. These five honorees embody the spirit of Joy as Resistance.

Antionettea “Dreadie” Etienne is a warrior woman that has been in the fight against HIV/AIDS for over 20 years. Dreadie, as she is affectionately known in the community, is currently a health educator for several programs at Iris House, Inc. Dreadie has fought for women’s rights not only within the correctional system but also locally, nationally, and internationally. Dreadie has represented her various communities (lesbian, incarcerated, faith-based, and Afro-Caribe-Latine women) with a vigor that is spiritually bound.

She has been a chair/co-chair, board member, member, and advocate for the following AIDS service organizations (ASO’s) and community based organizations (CBO’s): Rikers Island Advisory Board, Rikers Island Consortium, and the New York State & New York City Prevention Planning Group. She has also been the chair for the New York City Prevention Planning Council and the chair for Former Inmates with AIDS at Latino Commission on AIDS. Her church affiliations are Unity Fellowship Church of Christ movement, Love Alive International, Convent Ave. Baptist church, New Testament Church, and last but not least, Metropolitan Baptist Church. At these institutions, Dreadie had either assisted in the development and implantation of HIV/AIDS and/or Prison ministries.

Myra Ann Franks is the fourth of seven children, born and raised in rural Alabama. She is the mother of five children and has seven grandchildren. She started her educational career earning an associate’s degree in Office Administration and continues to learn and grow as a community liaison.

Her HIV journey began in 2001, and for the first decade she lived in silence and fear. After joining PWN-USA in 2018, she dove into advocacy work, seeking justice for people living in rural communities. Myra is a RIBBON Ambassador of 2023, a member of the PWN Alabama chapter–currently their outreach coordinator and formerly secretary for the chapter–a Reproductive Justice for Black Lives Ambassador for her state, a graduate of Year 5 of the PWN Policy Fellowship, and this year she is one of the co-coordinators for the Policy Fellowship Program’s seventh year. She is a sitting board member for Legal Services of AL; a community health worker for WACH (West AL Cardiac Health) and also engages in outreach with Hometown Organizing Project to ensure resilience in rural towns in Alabama.

Tiommi Luckett is a native of Arkansas and current resident of Little Rock. She identifies as a woman of trans experience of African descent. Diagnosed HIV+ in 2012, Tiommi began her search for services and resources as she lived below the poverty line and knew she could not afford the medication. Beginning treatment in January 2013 and becoming undetectable by April 2013, she made good on her promise to promote HIV awareness and education. She joined the HIV Caucus and Positively Trans in 2015. She was a national facilitator with the Building Leaders of Color program with NMAC, Thrive SS, the HIV Caucus, and Positive Women's Network-USA. She developed and led the Resist, Inspire, Sustain through Education (RISE) cohort at PWN-USA where eight trans women of color in the HIV movement became national facilitators.

She is interested in conversations about restorative and transformative justice. She is an advocate for ending criminalization. As a Black woman of trans experience living with HIV in Arkansas, the potential for incarceration is ever-present. Tiommi believes that ending bailouts and pretrial detention, diverting resources to community for education, awareness, and sensitivity training, can eliminate the continued murders of Black trans bodies everywhere.

Kenya, born Kenya Randall, is a native of Camden, New Jersey that has been living with HIV since 2014. She says the news of her diagnosis took the breath from her very soul, but she is a survivor. While living in Philadelphia, she became ill and had no access to healthcare, and so she returned home to Camden to be with her family. She was rushed from her sister’s couch to Cooper Hospital with pneumocystis pneumonia (or PCP), and there she was devastated to learn she had acquired HIV. During treatment she was introduced to an African American doctor, Dr. Lightfoot, who treated Kenya until her viral load was undetectable. “I call her my life-saver,” says Kenya. She was then transferred to 3 Cooper Plaza for continuing care and encountered discrimination in the medical setting. Staff members complained that Kenya was too outspoken, too much of an advocate for herself, but she fought through these hardships.

After migrating back to Pennsylvania, she became aware of the Ryan White Program and they were able to connect her with care in her area. At this time Kenya also sought mental health care, and was connected with community care groups. “I was pleased to meet people living with HIV, just like me. I felt safe and content,” says Kenya. After finding Project TEACH in Philadelphia, Kenya was introduced to Positive Women’s Network and members of the PA chapter, and the rest is herstory! She immediately joined as a member, quickly became chapter secretary and later soared to become the co-chair of PWN-PA, where she has led countless campaigns for the betterment of her community and all people living with HIV.

Ebony Gordon is a community engagement specialist and HIV advocate with over nine years of experience in prevention, education, and culturally responsive care. At the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, she leads the HUES (Healing & Uniting Every Sista) program, creating safe spaces for Black women to center health, wellness, joy, and pleasure. She also co-coordinates the Community Advisory Board for a global HIV cure research collaborative, amplifying lived experience in research. A birth doula and domestic violence advocate, Ebony’s work blends harm reduction, policy awareness, and intergenerational leadership to dismantle stigma and advance equity in HIV prevention, care, and cure.

Let us know how you're commemorating CHBW by using our hashtags:

#ListenToBlackWomen

#PayBlackWomen

#RespectBlackWomen

#ProtectBlackWomen

#HonorBlackWomen

#CHBW2025