(BLACK PR WIRE) Los Angeles don't miss Sheryl Lee Ralph in "Sometimes I Cry". Make a date with family and friends, and enjoy an evening at the theater. This will be an evening of live theater, you won't soon forget! National HIV Testing Day is an opportunity for people to get tested, know their status, and unite in the fight against HIV and AIDS. This year, it's up to you, me and us to stop the spread of HIV and erase the stigma.

Wednesday, June 27, 2007
National HIV Testing Day

Nate Holden Performing Arts Center

4718 W. Washington Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90016


4:00 PM On-site Rapid HIV Testing

5:00 PM "Not in My Family" Book Signing with author Gil Robertson

7:30 PM "Sometimes I Cry"

*Donations appreciated. This event is free and open to the public. Seating on a first come, first serve basis.

"Sometimes I Cry" is a one-woman show written and conceived by award winning actress and honored AIDS activist, Sheryl Lee Ralph. A complex and thought provoking show, Sometimes I Cry was inspired by the real life stories of women who are infected and affected by HIV and AIDS. The show creatively examines the female struggle when coping with HIV and AIDS, and offers an engaging window into the unique difficulties women face. Writer-performer Sheryl Lee Ralph becomes each character through word and song, with every move and simple gesture, breathing life into them and their stories. Read More...

Not in My Family is revealing and sometimes shocking, but the sentiments expressed very clearly related how HIV/AIDS has reshaped lifestyles and attitudes within our community. Not in My Family will provide lessons in courage and pearls of wisdom and inspiration. It will also present an opportunity for families both immediate and extended--to gain the courage to move forward with their lives, dealing openly and honestly about their feelings for each other in sickness and health. Not in My Family is a patchwork of essays that forms a quilt of expressions by individuals who have chosen to come out of the shadows to bare their fears, isolation and pain of living in the age of AIDS. Many of the contributors to this book are famous, but most are not, however, with every essay they all demonstrate their commitment to the community; offering invaluable insights on the joys, pains, triumphs, fears and love that people living with HIV/AIDS and their families deal with everyday.

National HIV Testing Day (NHTD) is an annual campaign produced by the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA-US) to encourage at-risk individuals to receive voluntary HIV counseling and testing.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 180,000 to 280,000 people nationwide are HIV-positive but are unaware of their status. HIV counseling and testing enables people with HIV to take steps to protect their own health and that of their partners, and helps people who test negative get the information they need to stay uninfected.

What happens on National HIV Testing Day?

In observance of this day, there will be many community events that involve state and local organizations. The campaign's outreach effort includes everyone, but especially targets high-risk populations such as African American and Latino communities; adolescents; young homosexual, bisexual, and transgendered men; women of childbearing age; and people who use contaminated needles to inject drugs.

Why is testing important?

The CDC estimates that more than 1,000,000 people in the U.S. are now living with HIV, and approximately 25 percent are unaware of their HIV infection. The decision to take the test is the first step in taking responsibility for your health and the health of others with whom you may be intimately involved. “Get Tested. Know Your Status.”

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