Red Lock campaign for HIV awareness underway in the Sault

The 4th annual Red Lock campaign for HIV/AIDS is underway this week in Sault Ste. Marie. It’s put on by the Group Health Centre’s HIV AIDS Resource Program, or HARP, with an aim of reducing stigma as well as barriers to treatment.

There are four red lock installations in different parts of the city - the Boardwalk, Sault Area Hospital, Group Health Centre and Fort Creek.

Shana Shipperbottom, a team lead with HARP, said there is still a heavy stigma attached to people with HIV and AIDS.

“There’s so many myths and misconceptions still, and people’s mindset is really still stuck in the 80s,” she said.

“So we’re hoping that we can provide education to people and raise awareness that it’s not like it used to be. And things have really changed a lot. There’s lots of advancements in treatment (and) in prevention.”

Shipperbottom said that old stigma can often lead to a reluctance to get tested or seek treatment, which she added have advanced considerably since the 1990s, when the disease was first considered treatable.

The Red Lock campaign runs until December 1st, which is World AIDS Day.