Advocates for Youth intern Lylyana offers her reflections on the PATHWAY Act Intern Lobby Day on Monday, July 24.
As a 25 year-old female interning with Advocates for Youth, I have received many unrecognized privileges accessible to those of us in the United States and other developed countries. I have the ability to seek out education and resources that can protect me from HIV. I have learned the ability to negotiate during sexual encounters; much of which is not afforded to women and youth in developing nations. During my internship this summer, I have focused on international HIV/AIDS and how youth are affected. My passion has grown tremendously for this area. To hear that of the seventy-six percent of the young people infected in sub-Saharan Africa are girls can be disheartening. Yet I know that one person’s voice, story, and action can make a difference towards global HIV prevention.
