Here is an excerpt from Jessica's blog, detailing her experiences working with the West African AIDS Foundation:


I left home in San Francisco and arrived in Accra, Ghana on January 10th. I moved into a house in North Labone with fifteen other students and began my new life in Africa. Aside from a weeklong experience with Malaria and frequent internet, water, and power shortages, the transition has been pretty effortless. My time here has definitely been an adjustment from life in New York City and San Francisco, but I have truly enjoyed every minute.

I decided to intern with the West African AIDS Foundation because after working with the AIDS Service Center in New York City last semester, I wanted to gain a global perspective on the issue of HIV/AIDS. When I arrived at the clinic, I learned that there are an estimated 350,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in Ghana, but for every reported case of the virus, there are four unreported cases. Women account for more than half of adults estimated to be living with HIV/AIDS in Ghana. This is especially problematic because the virus is extremely stigmatized here. Because knowledge about how the virus is contracted is not widespread, HIV/AIDS is thought of as a “women’s issue,” only affecting promiscuous women. Many women are forced to engage in unsafe activities with men in exchange for food and shelter. This creates an unequal power dynamic between men and women, preventing the women from requesting the use of contraceptives during intercourse. Men rarely get tested for HIV/AIDS and continue to pass on the virus to women, who are routinely tested when they become pregnant. Therefore, men are unaware of their statuses and stigmatize HIV-positive women.

In addition to interning at the West African AIDS Foundation, I have decided to create a short documentary about HIV/AIDS in Ghana for one of my classes. This film will spread awareness about the virus and educate Ghanaians on the importance of getting tested. In doing so, I hope to change the current perceptions associated with the virus. I have realized that there are strong connections between gender inequalities, poverty, and HIV in Ghana. Women’s disempowerment and their submissive roles in society dictate their susceptibility to the virus. In order to de-stigmatize the virus, I believe Ghanaians need to deconstruct and desexualize society’s gender roles. I want to use the film to covey that HIV does not solely affect a section of society; everyone is equally vulnerable.

One thing that struck me was how many women cannot afford to pay for their monthly HIV medication, which essentially keeps them alive. When I asked the doctor at the West African AIDS Foundation how much the drugs cost, she told me that they are 5 Ghana cedis per month, with is equivalent to about three dollars. The first thing that came to mind was how the cost of these women’s drugs is the same amount of money as my daily cup of coffee in New York City.

I want to start an organization called “One Cup of Coffee.” The goal of the organization is to persuade people in the United States to donate their daily cup of coffee to make a direct impact on a life abroad. In order to empower consumers, I feel it is important for them to understand not only where their donations are ending up, but also what their money is being used for. One Cup of Coffee will allow consumers to fully comprehend how the cost of one single cup of coffee can positively impact someone’s life. I envision the organization hosting booths all across the county in order to convince people to donate their daily cup of coffee. Through meaningful partnerships with local coffee shops, in exchange for their donation, they would receive an empty coffee cup. As a token for their generosity, the cup would provide the donor with one dollar off the following day’s coffee at a particular coffee shop. I could also make partnerships with organic tea companies, and give the donor a bag of tea in exchange for their donation. I also hope to create a website so that people can make their donation online. Each month the donations would go to a different cause, and consumers would always understand what exactly their money is being used for, whether it is a pregnant, impoverished women’s HIV drugs for one month, or a week’s worth of rice, beans, and oil for a poor family. I hope to work on developing this organization over the summer, and if anyone has any advice, I would love to hear it.