PRINTER'S NO. 142
No. 40 Session of 2007
INTRODUCED BY WHEATLEY, WATERS, KULA, PARKER, PAYTON, CAPPELLI,
DALEY, DePASQUALE, FABRIZIO, FAIRCHILD, GALLOWAY, GERGELY,
GOODMAN, GRUCELA, JAMES, JOSEPHS, McCALL, McGEEHAN, MURT,
MYERS, OLIVER, PALLONE, RAMALEY, READSHAW, SIPTROTH AND
VEREB, JANUARY 31, 2007
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
JANUARY 31, 2007
A RESOLUTION
1 Recognizing February 7, 2007, as "National Black HIV/AIDS
2 Awareness Day" in Pennsylvania.
3 WHEREAS, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
4 reports that the devastating effect of HIV/AIDS has reached an
5 epidemic level among African Americans; and
6 WHEREAS, At every stage--from HIV diagnosis through the death
7 of persons with AIDS--the hardest-hit racial or ethnic group is,
8 by far, African Americans; and
9 WHEREAS, Among diseases that disproportionately affect
10 African Americans, HIV/AIDS has a particularly damaging effect;
11 and
12 WHEREAS, Even though African Americans comprise approximately
13 13% of the United States population, one-half of the estimated
14 new HIV/AIDS diagnoses in the United States in 2004 were for
15 African Americans; and
16 WHEREAS, Of the more than half a million people with AIDS who
1 have died, 38% were African Americans; and
2 WHEREAS, More African-American children were afflicted with
3 AIDS in 2004 than were children of all other races and
4 ethnicities combined; and
5 WHEREAS, AIDS has become a leading cause of death for African
6 Americans; and
7 WHEREAS, African Americans with AIDS do not live as long as
8 people in other racial or ethnic groups who have AIDS; and
9 WHEREAS, In 2002, the most recent year for which data is
10 available, HIV/AIDS was the second leading cause of death for
11 all African Americans ages 35 to 44; and
12 WHEREAS, In the same year, HIV/AIDS was the number one cause
13 of death for African-American women ages 25 to 34; and
14 WHEREAS, February 7 is "National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness
15 Day"; and
16 WHEREAS, This annual observance was created to raise
17 awareness among African Americans about HIV/AIDS and its
18 devastating impact on African-American communities; and
19 WHEREAS, The day is part of a national mobilization effort to
20 encourage African Americans to learn more about the threat posed
21 by the disease, obtain testing and treatment and make a
22 commitment to fight HIV/AIDS; and
23 WHEREAS, Awareness is a vital step in stopping the spread of
24 this disease; therefore be it
25 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives recognize
26 February 7, 2007, as "National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day" in
27 Pennsylvania to ensure that the residents of this Commonwealth
28 are aware of the destructive effect of HIV/AIDS on the African-
29 American community.
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