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The Rev. Bruce Davenport, pastor of
New Orleans’ St. John No. 5 Baptist Faith Church, is affectionately known to
his congregants as “Da Condom Father.” A certified HIV counselor, Davenport has
preached about HIV/AIDS and STD prevention from his pulpit since the mid-1990s.
Together with daughter Tamachia,
Davenport has taken his safe-sex campaign out of the church and into the
community. Every afternoon, volunteers dressed in red shirts and khaki pants go
door-to-door in neighborhoods hit hardest by HIV. The team also visits
barbershops, convenience stores, pharmacies, bars, and adult-entertainment
clubs, often in crime-ridden areas. They hand out colored, flavored condoms and
HIV/STD pamphlets to anyone wanting them. “They know we’re coming around to
give them goodies,” said Tamachia.
In 2009, Davenport and volunteers
dressed as “The HIV Prevention Mobsters” for a billboard that attracted local
and national attention. In bold red letters, the sign in downtown New Orleans
read “HIV ... It’s time to take control of this GANGSTA.”
Working with a small staff, St. John
No. 5 offers testing services Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Around 15 people from all over the city are tested each week, but the number
can go as high as 30, said Davenport.
In 2010, St. John No. 5 initiated
“Faith in Action,” a multi-faith network of nine other churches and a mosque
dedicated to raising HIV awareness statewide. But Tamachia said “coordination,
cooperation, and consistency” are still not the norm when it comes to HIV
prevention. “How can you not help when, as a church, you’re supposed to help?”
Davenport wondered.
The Friends of AIDS Foundation is
dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and
empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV
virus. To learn more about The Friends of AIDS Foundation, please visit: http://www.friendsofaids.org.
TOGETHER WE REMAIN STRONG!
