HIV Research Cafe

If you are HIV+ and living in Toronto and do not belong to any AIDS service organization.

You need to get a note from your doctor and call the Toronto People with AIDS Foundation at 416-506-1400, ask to make an appointment with an intake worker. The PWA site is www.pwatoronto.org. If you don’t live in Toronto or to find any ASO in Ontario go to www.aso411.ca. 

If you live in Ontario then go to www.aso411.ca to find a local AIDS service organization location within the province of Ontario.

For more issues surrounding HIV like housing, ODSP, and the courts.

Please see the following http://kylescaferesults.spaces.live.com/

Do you have anyone who is helping you fulfill this dream?

 Question?  Who are you and what do you really want with this cafe?

My name is Kyle Vose and with a group of PHA Leadership graduates we are starting a social group community centre that we hope will be able to spread across this nation and to the whole world. A group based on a safe space cafe, which includes everyone and anyone that is living with HIV from every community. It would be for every language and culture, which makes up our HIV+ community.

We have big dreams, and we know that this idea can become a reality and it is already becoming just that. And it fits into one of my beliefs which are listed below at the end of this blog.  This is that something is better than nothing!! 

Question?  What is your dream out come for this project?

Our dream is that HIV positive people can meet in safe environments free from stigma and be able to sit with their peers and discuss issues that we as HIV+ people face.  This is so that we meet other members and enjoy there company, and feel free for a couple of hours, from the stigma of being HIV+. And not having to deal with the fear that someone will disclose their status.  With this freedom we can exchange ideas and find solutions in a safe environment with only HIV+ people and get to know the people that make up our HIV+ community. We can use the internet and meet in person in safe spaces.

Question? Membership?

The membership would come from the AIDS service organization since this is for HIV+ people just like them.  Only by email or phone would members be able to access a site where the next cafe would be held and would be told what the next topic would be.  We would have a building that would be called "Positive Community Involvement Centre" and we would also have meeting in people's living rooms, relaxing talking and just getting to know our community one person at a time. 

The events could be pot luck, snacks, what ever the group decides. 

Question? Can you give me an example of a “cafe”?

This is what we are doing right now in reality.  How many of you reading this right now have sat with another HIV+ friends house and sat around and discussed issues with a group of HIV+ friends.  When you get to really know these people you help each other out, share information about med's, or talk about problems in your lives.   You create your own community and or family. 

Question? How do I become a Member?

 The members would be recommended by their ASOs or doctors.  Members would be emailed or called and told where and when the cafes would be held.  In the beginning subjects of discussion would be chosen to talk about in order to get the group to get to know each other and the ideas we come up.  The first discussion could be about what we would like our cafe to represent and achieve for us, and the discussion would be recorded down.  This way if another cafe has similar goals you might want to change cafe's to something that suits your needs. The question of using the term brother or sister instead of member in order to feel like a family instead of a group!

Question? How will we be able to identify members at the community centres and how is going to protect my identity?

The membership is going to be taken from two different organizations and their membership programs. 

First like the YMCA membership you will have a card with a number and bar code scanner.  No name or picture is printed on this card.  This membership will then be valid anywhere a Positive Community Involvement Centre wither it be in Ottawa or North Bay.  You are a member at one community centre, than you are a member at all community centres.

Second when your card is scanned then your picture comes up and if the person presenting the card does not match with the picture than no information is given out and the card is kept and returned to the rightful owner.  Just like those who have a membership card at CALM!

Question? How is this going to help me in my situation?

But the secret is about this project is what can come out of it.  We can create social groups where we can play cards and talk, bowling nights and talk, anything we want as long as we feel safe and if everyone chipped in we could do anything we wanted.  Our money is just as good as anybody else’s, so business will support us if we can support ourselves and get the support of our community. 

Little do we know it but we are actually working together and planning for our communities’ future!  Those talks would take a trip up the ladder until every group from every community has had it say and we end up with something everyone agreed on or accepted somewhere along the line.  It will be one voice from many different communities that make up of our HIV+ community. wither it be a Spanish cafe, Muslim cafe, Greek cafe, or even a star trek cafe, if they are HIV+ cafe's then they will have representation in our larger group of cafe's.

Question? Why now?

The Canadian government is cutting one million dollars from the ASOs in Ontario this year.  To the HIV+ community in other provinces remember that you could be next, so my suggestion is to best be planning now, and this is only going to be the beginning of the cut backs! This way we start living our lives with dignity!

Question? It is going to be the same thing one person speaking for me!

The members who go on to higher meetings can change once the group gets going or  I would recommend (from your feed back to solve the issue of the same people always do the talking for me) that the roles of "leader" get voted after the meeting ends.  Using the idea of who has the most information on this subject, or has an idea or a positive solution to the problem.  That way this information is shared with other people in our community, who may have certain skills to fulfill a role such as provide needed training.  But it would come from the HIV+ community to help the HIV+ community from within our communities. 

Question? What can come out of this cafe?

For example we realize within our community our members need education in computer skills and we have three people in our group that have these skills.  They get sent up and maybe a computer class is started.  Training begins in our community so we can better educate ourselves and may even lead the way to good paying jobs.

We are also still part of the ASO’s therefore they can provided the skills and tools needed for us to get this project up and running. 

Question? How is this going to strengthen my community when we don’t know who we are?

I have been approached that these cafes could open up the door for ways of meeting others in our community offering a way for our community to get together for singles nights at a local bar or night club.  If we get enough support the bars will allow closed events and only our community would be allowed access by saying a secret code.  Imagine a safe place where we are within our community and be able to meet possible our mate and not have to deal with the issue around disclosure as we know that our members are positive too!!

We already have social groups that provide this service we are only going to link these services together and therefore give more support and members to each of our own projects.  It is really a way of networking the groups that are already out there and ways of creating new group projects.

Question? How does this work to strengthen our community?

This way all groups have a role in making our whole community stronger.  We all have skills remember our HIV+ community is made up of Lawyers, Doctors, cooks, cleaners, and this list can go on and on.  We can even create safe spaces advertising jobs needed to be filled or other members can put skill that they have and other can contact them to create work within our community.  The same way there is the Pink pages, or the Chinese pages, we could have the HIV+ pages.  It would not only list business and services that are owned by our HIV+ community but also HIV+ friendly companies.

We already have other members creating their own parts of this project and we in reality are creating a link to all these groups and also other group outside of our HIV+ community working on common issues.  For example many of us are on ODSP and therefore know of the problems and issues of being on ODSP and we link our group with the ODSP Action Coalition http://odspaction.civicrm.ca/

Question? Is this not like a focus group?

In other words the cafe starts out much like a focus group, however this group carries on and eventually trust begins between members. That trust turns into friendships, and friendships turn into member becoming our extended family, and we get a chance to learn about other members in our community. 

If we don’t know who is our community than how can we ever fight for our lives.    We then find our communities strengths and weakness.  We build on the weakness from within our community, that way we can say just like the song "We did it our way, the POZ way".

We then also join other groups that support issues that we too face in our lives like the http://www.socialplanningtoronto.org/25in5/index.html which deals with many issues we face being HIV+.

 Question? I can’t come out and disclose I might loose my job, family, and friends?

Mainly the people doing the site like this one would be in the position of public speaking.  But the web site we must be willing to come to our community, be recognized by other members and be able open up talk to someone who understands our situation.

Since I put my picture up on this site so many people from my community have come up and said hi.  Some have told me their ideas for this project and as you can see we are listening to you, and trying to give you what you need to make this work for you.  This way we want to try and make everyone within our HIV+ community happy.  But remember its up to us on our first meetings with these cafe’s to lay down guidelines that we are all comfortable with. 

Question? Who can be members?

We are open to anyone and everyone in our HIV+ community.  No one should be excluded from any Cafe events.  

Question? Are you attacking the ASOs?

For the ASO's the information gathered could help your ASO see what services are needed by us their clients.  We could then look within the group for any HIV+ to fulfill the position and if they qualify than the position must go to them.  HIV+ applicants would have first priority, and if there is no one within our community then we look from outside of our community.

From the discussion, support groups can then formed if the need is warranted and the way we need them to be run in order for them to be successful to solve issues in that community, and these support can also be offered to others group and if it works we can give it as an example or suggestion to our whole community.   

Question? How will this help the ASOs?

The groups also can realize the cost of running the ASO and find ways of coming up with money or ideas to get what we need without it costing to much in order to fulfill our own needs.  For example having a used clothing store run by volunteers and the money goes to the ASO to fund other projects.

We also can tell the ASO what programs or training we require to get our projects off the ground.  And we will be able to connect with other PDHA in different areas and share our ideas and projects. Thus helping other areas deal with the real issues we face being HIV+.

Question? What about my own personal dreams?

Another member is already working on his project which is to help PDHA’s fulfill there dreams and it can be found at his web site www.btscoaching.com/belowthesurface/Below_the_Surface_Coaching.html

And take his survey

www.btscoaching.com/belowthesurface/Survey.html

He has also created a page where you can add your idea for a group or project that the community centre can support.  I am still trying to find a way for everyone to have a way to get a copy of this page and where you can leave it where we can get you together with like minded people and make your dreams a reality!!

When that is done I will post it on here!!

Question? Can you give me examples of project that this community would support to give me an idea of what is expected?

There is a member who has already started a garden and he is willing to help anyone else who also wants to start their own community garden.

http://www.giftoflifegarden.50megs.com/

There is also another member who is creating a harm reduction support group and to contact him regarding this project which is also being supported by the PWA

Question? What are you beliefs in life?

"If you always do what you always done then you always get what you always got."  Taught at the "leadership Program" offered from the Ontario Aids Network.

"If you see and injustice being done you are not an observant but a participant" June Callwood

"A man has four natural enemies: fear, clarity, power and death.  Fear, clarity, and power can be overcome, but not death.  It can be postponed but it can never be overcome."  Carlos Castaneda

“You must love your neighbour as yourself”