HIV/AIDS

darrel, jessica, lance, and the dog sadie

Opening Up About Coming Out

It has been more than two decades since Darrel Brenneke broke the news to his mother that he was gay, but the memory still brings him to tears. He knew his mom would worry that this was a death sentence, since it had not been that long since his brother had died of AIDS. But…

Read More >

Cracking The Code For Immigrant Students

Tucked within a quiet Kansas City community, Crestview Elementary School is pretty unassuming. But once inside the building, at 4327 N. Holmes St., it’s impossible to miss the multicultural faces in the classrooms or the international flags lining the hallway. A third of Crestview’s 520 students participate in the English Language Learners program, and 45…

Read More >

Spreading The Word About HIV Prevention For African-American Women

African-American women are more likely to be infected with HIV than other women. So the District of Columbia is launching an effort to inform them about PrEP, medication that can reduce their risk.

Read More >
Artistic Director, Dustin Cates leads the Heartland Men's Chorus during a rehearsal on Thursday, December 3rd at The Folly Theater for their Holiday Concert. (Photo: Jim Barcus)

Making the World a Better Place

Voices in unity have a profound force. The members of the Heartland Men’s Chorus (HMC) have raised theirs for 30 years, serving as a positive force for a community that suffers, still, from prejudice, abuse and loss. They are, and are proud to be, Kansas City’s Gay Men’s Chorus. In 1986, 30 men joined together…

Read More >

‘The last piece of the puzzle’: Long-term gay couples make their commitments legal in KC

Donna Botts and Terri Guillott are used to waiting. The women have been a couple for 14 years, committed themselves to each other in 2007 and, now, minutes before making that commitment legal, they’re waiting for the photographer from their small town’s local paper to document the wedding. The couple stands in the lobby of…

Read More >
Two women who organized TIPS in KCK

KC-area project utilizes churches for TIPS on addressing AIDS among blacks

When activists worldwide marked three decades since the emergence of a mysterious immune disease, Kansas City, Kan., participants posted a timeline of key events in the fight against the AIDS pandemic in a building foyer in their community. Yet this was no ordinary lobby; it was the main entrance to Mt. Carmel Church of God…

Read More >
Sean-aka-Seandretta Duane Cramer Duane Cramer Creative

Photography exhibition takes aim at stigma associated with HIV and AIDS

This Friday is National HIV Testing Day, first created almost 20 years ago to encourage members of the public to learn their HIV status. Since then, what it means to be HIV-positive has changed dramatically. Individuals diagnosed as positive today can expect to live as long as they would without the virus, as long as…

Read More >

Local Storytelling. Fact-Based Reporting. Trustworthy Sources.

Help support the nonprofit media landscape in Kansas City and provide a platform for underrepresented voices across the region.