We The People is the only Philadelphia-area organization created and run by and for people living with HIV disease and AIDS.
We serve as the major point of linkage to the larger medical and social service system for the growing number of people with HIV/AIDS who are disenfranchised because of their own behavior or because of discrimination based on race, mental illness, substance abuse, income status, sexual preferences, lifestyles, etc. We do this by offering practical support services that our target population tells us, as their peers, that they need: supportive housing programs; free, anonymous and confidential diagnostic and medical services, meals, clothing, social connections, peer and professional substance abuse and mental health counseling and referrals, culturally appropriate HIV/AIDS treatment and risk reduction education, and linkages and referrals to other services. We offer these services in an informal, "low demand" atmosphere that makes it possible for individuals to build trust amongst themselves and ultimately work with us as their peers -- since our fundamental identity is as a self-help group building on the talents and energies of our members living with HIV/AIDS themselves -- as we all attempt to help each other. Вода, заказ воды Войковский.
With the opening of our drop-in center in 1989, We The People began to develop programs aimed at building its membership and responsiveness to this population; since that time, we have become an essential link between that population and the larger AIDS social service system set up to help them. We have played a pivotal role in the establishment of a continuum of HIV-related services by making those services more accessible to poor, homeless and non-white populations. Through The Life Center, (open weekdays to midnight and weekends from 8am-6pm) and throughThe Lombard Street Community,and our Marlton Street and Hunting Park housing programs, we provide facilities through which a wide variety of organizations can deliver their services to a clientele that otherwise might not be able to access the services. british airways customer service phone
At The Life Center, located in south central Philadelphia, we presently serve approximately 700 non-duplicated individuals per month (we now average over 3500 visits per month, which does not include our dinner programs, educational presentations or other off-site activities), of whom 90% are African American, 5% are Latino and 5% are white. Eighty percent of our members are on Medicaid or in Medicaid HMOs, 15% are uninsured and 5% have private insurance. About 75% percent of our members have had a history of addictions (usually to crack cocaine and alcohol) or are in recovery from addiction, 90% are male, and 60% are sexual minorities, including transgendered people. Some of our members, male and female, are or have been "sex workers," selling sexual favors for drugs or economic survival.
On a given day, approximately one-half of our members are presently homeless according to generally accepted definitions (living on the street, in abandoned properties, with friends on a night-by-night basis, or in shelter); most of those remaining are residents of programs assisting them with their HIV-related illness, substance abuse problem or mental health status. This latter group includes those receiving rental assistance related to their AIDS diagnosis or history of poverty, and their participation in WTP activities is often mandated as a condition of their continued participation in those rental assistance programs in order to assure that they are linked to necessary medical and social support services.
The Lombard Street Community, a 15-bed single room occupancy residential program for people living with symptomatic HIV disease, located next door to our Life Center;
Marlton Street, a 25-unit apartment building presently being constructed in West Philadelphia;
Hunting Park, a 6-unit apartment building in the city's Puerto Rican/Latino neighborhood
Living Positive Treatment Center, a licensed outt-patient substance abuse treatment facility in Kensington
The Village Project, a special HIV prevention case management program targeted to sexual minority men of color, in collaboration with The Colours Organization, Unity, Inc., the Gay and Lesbian Latino AIDS Education Initiative, and AIDS Services in Asian Communities
The Employment Project, which provides small volunteer stipends to individuals on disability (SSI, SSD) within federal guidelines, to perform clerical, administrative and program tasks for the organization;
LifeSavers Emergency Housing Assistance Program, to assist individuals in meeting financial crises which threaten their ability to maintain their housing, and to assist them in obtaining emergency and permanent housing, including intake fo r TRAC Housing Assistance Fund and the Philadelphia Housing Voucher Program, Section 8, PHA and other low-income housing programs;
Positive Voices Outreach Team, through which WTP members share their experience and hope with other people with HIV/AIDS through outreach efforts in area shelters, treatment programs, and other sites, and assist them in linking to services;
Project TEACH, an intensive treatment education program for people living with HIV/IDS
Community Meals Program, which offers at least ten communal dinners and twenty lunch programs each month, not including special events;
Holistic AIDS Project, which assists members in incorporating alternative and complementary HIV/AIDS therapies into their lifestyles;
WISDOM (Women with Immune System Disorders Organizing and Meeting), an HIV+ women's advocacy network affiliated with WTP;
Prison Outreach Program, including a pen pal program, referral to legal, medical, social and housing resources upon release, advocacy for quality treatment, and publications and articles through which prisoners with HIV/AIDS are updated on their special concerns and interests;
Medical Services, including diagnostic testing & consultation, medical and nurse practitioner consultation, and intake for TPAC diagnostic and evaluation fund);
Substance Abuse Counseling and support, offered by professional and peer counselors;
Special Services for homeless and low-income people, including mail and phone call service, haircuts, showers, emergency food and clothing, personal hygiene items, furniture and household supplies when housing is obtained, etc.;
Support Groups, including six groups for people with HIV/AIDS in recovery from addictions, four HIV/AIDS support groups, two groups on natural healing and complementary therapies, and groups for HIV+ women, for HIV+ lesbians, for HIV+ hetero sexuals, partners and friends of HIV+ people, and for people grieving for loved ones lost to HIV/AIDS;
Educational Activities, including medical updates, risk reduction education, life skills training, adult basic education/GED, reading and writing skills, etc.;
Cultural Activities, including museum trips, seminars on literature, writing workshops, cooking and art workshops, etc.
Advocacy Activities, including participation in the Minority AIDS Project, the AIDS and Deafness Advisory Committee, the AIDS Coalition on Prisons and Jails, The Philadelphia HIV Commission, the Philadelphia AIDS Consortium and other forums.
Social Activities, including parties, movies, field trips, games, etc.
Case Management and Crisis Intervention Services, available on a 24-hour basis (545-6868 during regular hours, 552-1781 off-hours).
Diagnostic clinic providing HIV counseling and testing, CD4+ counts, TB testing, STD screening, medical and nursing consultation (Princeton Biomedical Laboratories, Philadelphia Health Management Corporation, volunteer physicians and counselors)
HIV/AIDS case management (BEBASHI, Congreso, ActionAIDS, PCHA, independents)
Mental health services (Community Living Room)
Substance abuse counseling (Al-Assist, One Day At A Time, Diagnostic and Rehabilitation Center, Gaudenzia House, Valley Forge Medical Center)
Medical information seminars (Phila. FIGHT, Phila. Health Dept., private physicians)
Safer sex/risk reduction education (Minority AIDS Project of Philadelphia, BEBASHI, Unity, Inc., GALAEI Project Congreso de Latinos Unidos)
Employment counseling (Private Industry Council, The Employment Project)
Nutritional counseling (Philadelphia FIGHT, MANNA, Holistic AIDS Project, Visiting Nurses Association, LifeSPAN).
Unlike other organizations, which often find themselves competing for clients, funding or services, We The People recognizes that anything which benefits another agency or organization helping people with HIV disease ultimately benefits our own members. As a result, we are able to claim very positive organizational relationships with many other organizations serving people with HIV/AIDS. For referrals to other services, We The People utilizes well-established relationships and referral agreements with a wide variety of agencies. We have also helped to sponsor the creation of several new organizations serving people living with HIV/AIDS: A New Way of Life, a 10-bed residential substance abuse recovery program in South Philadelphia, and The Colours Organization, the region's largest social service agency specifically targeted to sexual minority people of color. We also started the regional AIDS Case Management Coordination Project and the AIDS Nutrition Coalition, both now formal programs of the city's AIDS Activities Coordinating Office.
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