This past Friday, World AIDS Day 2006, I took a moment to reflect on the impact AIDS has had on my own life. I was born a year after the "discovery" of HIV. I have never known a world without it. I have seen it go through all of the myths from something only gay people get, to something you could get through casual contact, to what we know today: that you get it through certain body fluids, like blood and semen. Although I learned about HIV/AIDS in school (before the times of abstinence-only), I didn't know what the disease meant for me.

The first time I realized the seriousness of HIV/AIDS was through Pedro Zamora by watching the 1994 season of the Real World on MTV. It was the first time I "knew" someone with HIV. Watching someone on a day to day basis live with HIV helped to squash my misconceptions about the disease. I watched Pedro go from healthy to sick in a very short amount of time. Still, it didn't seem real to me until the day I heard that he died of AIDS. His death saddened me and still does. Pedro was just 22 years old, which is two years younger than I am now. But, his legacy lives on, not only in the numerous foundations and organizations created in his memory, but also in me and others who were educated about the disease through him.

As I reflected on my own experience of learning about HIV/AIDS, I began to wonder how young people today experience it; how they learn about it, deal with it, and prevent it. Realizing that abstinence-only-until-marriage sexuality education may not adequately cover HIV/AIDS education, I searched for alternative ways young people are learning about HIV. Ironically, I found myself looking at a website co-created by MTV called thinkhiv.org. In conjunction with the Kaiser Foundation, MTV has created an interactive website for young people to learn about HIV/AIDS. The website includes sections like "Get the Facts", "Take Action", and "State Resources" as well as video documentaries and a message board.

The documentaries are great and offer a glimpse into how young people all across the U.S. view HIV/AIDS. Kelsey, 17, from Waco, Texas takes viewers with her as she gets tested for HIV for the first time. Bailey, also 17, from Elkmont, Alabama interviews people in his community to see how they think HIV/AIDS has impacted their lives. The message board also offers glimpses into what young people think about HIV/AIDS and how it has affected their lives, ranging from revelations to ignorance. Additionally, the website has a "Get Tested" sidebar where you can enter your zip code in order to find where to get tested.

Although this website and others like it provide new and innovative approaches to HIV/AIDS education for young people, I still fear that not enough is being done to reach young people in the U.S. I wonder how many people actually knew Friday was World AIDS Day and then how many actually did something to acknowledge it? While I applaud MTV for attempting to get the message to young people, I fear that websites and TV shows are not enough. I know in my area, there was hardly any mention of World AIDS Day and would have gone unnoticed if not for a few commercials I saw on MTV.

Additionally, there were few events in my area designed for young people. What does this mean for the future of my generation and the generations after mine? Have we forgotten the seriousness of the disease? Have we become complacent in thinking of it as just another sexually transmitted infection? It is estimated that half of all new HIV infections in the U.S. occur in people under age 25. Although people with HIV are now living longer, it is still life threatening and there is still a lot of work to be done. There is no cure for HIV and there is no vaccine. Please, become involved. Educate yourself, your family, your friends, and your community.