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CAAP strives to educate, increase awareness about HIV
CAAP meets in the Multicultural Resource Center located in King Hall every other Wednesday.
BY HENRY SMITH
Staff Writer
A U.N. report found that approximately
19 million of the 35 million people living
with AIDS have no idea that they are HIV
positive. According to CBS News, North
Carolina ranks 11th among the states with
the highest HIV rates wi^ 11.6 cases per
100,000 residents. There are currently 74
confirmed cases of AIDS in Guilford County.
.Education and awareness is the key to
sparking a decline in HFV/AIDS rates.
Those unaware that they are infected
are continuing to spread this dangerous
disease, even in our own community.
Guilford Health Services could not
provide The Guilfordian with any statistics
on the rates of sexually transmitted diseases
on campus, so it cannot be said whether
this disease is prevalent on our campus.
Regardless of the lack of numbers, students
are encouraged to educate themselves
through STD testing.
"I have spoken with the Wellness
Education Coordinator about arranging
on-campus testing," said Susan Smith,
coordinator of Student Health Services.
"But, as of now, it has only been a
conversation."
Although Guilford Health Services has
been working to incorporate STD testing
into their program objectives, it has not yet
become a reality for students.
Luckily, Guilford has the Community
AIDS Awareness Project to educate the
community. CAAP encourage students to
actively participate in HIV testing through
' opportunities to get tested throughout the
year.
CAAP is on a mission to raise awareness
of HFV/AIDS in the Guilford community
through the intersections that relate to
the virus, such as safe sex, abstinence and
sexual assault. CAAP reaches out to the
community by developing programs cind
events that reflect their project's objectives.
"It is extremely important for students
at Guilford to be educated about HFV/
AIDS," said senior Jasmine O'Neill, CAAP
president. "People are simply not having
these conversations."
CAAP provides a friendly environment
where students can meet and learn about
this deadly disease.
O'Neill shared some words from her
father that strengthened her dedication to
the cause.
"You should not have to get HFV/AIDS
to know about the virus for the first time,"
she said.
CAAP has prevailed on campus for
five years, originally starting out as AIDS
Fellows before changing the name to CAAP
in recent years. The club has exhibited
tremendous progress in the past year,
devoted to their cause.
O'Neill commented on clear visible
growth in people's interest in joining and
collaborating with the club. CAAP received
the Dick Dyer Award for Most Improved
Club. This recognition encouraged
Community Senate to grant CAAP a budget
for the first time since the club's creation.
CAAP has been notably successful in the
planning and implementation of events on
campus. An annual event called "Candy
and Condoms" is a project to spread STD
awareness and promote safe sex in first-
year halls.
This year, a new event has been added to
the calendar. CAAP will be participating in
the Winter AIDS Walk that will t^e place
at North Carolina A&T on Dec. 7. CAAP
encourages everybody to join. In addition
to the walk for a cause, a 5k run will also
be an option for those who are inclined to
barrel through the brisk breeze at a faster
speed.
Those interested can join in on the
carpool organized by CAAP. All who plan
on participating must register online by
emailing caap@guilford.edu. Those who
register on time will receive a free T-shirt.
"Going to CAAP meetings would be a
start," said junior Will Whealdon. "STDs
remain worldwide problems that are real
and terrifying."
CAAP meets every other Wednesday
at 8:15 p.m. in King Hall. All are highly
encouraged to attend, shine their light and
become part of a life-saving movement.
Guthrie talks about new book, multiculturalism in NM
BY AUBREY KING
Staff Writer
Empires rise and fall, but they
never really vanish. The buildings,
artifacts and even the societies of
the past never quite disappear. In
the U.S., New Mexico evidences
the longevity of past societies
more than any other state.
In the late 1500s, Native New
Mexicans found themselves
colonized by the Spanish, who
were then colonized by Americans
centuries later. The members of
each community have reacted
differently to the colonial history
of New Mexico, and in 2002,
Sociology and Anthropology
Chair and Assistant Professor
of Sociology and Anthropology
Thomas Guthrie made it his
mission to understand how.
On the evening of Nov. 11,
Guthrie gave a short talk about his
new book, "Recognizing Heritage:
The Politics of Multiculturalism in
New Mexico," to an eager crowd in
Scuppemong Books in downtown
Greensboro.
Published in December 2013
after years of work, Guthrie's book
analyzes multicultural movements
such as those that seek to celebrate
cultural history and how they can
^ actually hurt the cultures they
seek to celebrate.
"Multiculturalism can hurt
native cultures by making them
so visible," said Guthrie to the
listening guests. "By holding those
cultures in the light, it leaves them
open to critique while Anglos
stand immune to criticism."
Guthrie went on to argue
that instead of perpetuating
stereotypes, multicultur^
communities should let the
economics and politics of these
cultures dominate the discussion.
He continued with a more
personal passage from his book
before taldng questions from the
audience.
'The talk really made me
question a lot of what you see at
museums and other organizations
as a tourist," said Chemistry
Department Chair and Associate
Professor of Chemistry Gail
Webster.
Guthrie's points hit home with
students as well. Some related to
the topic in very personal ways.
"My sister and I have spent a lot
of our lives in New Mexico," said
first-year Elena Sippel. "Tom's
right when he says New Mexico is
like a foreign country that's inside
the U.S."
The entire talk offered insight to
light the fire of the mind, but one
comment in particular stood out to
many.
"I was most impressed by
him saying 'I don't have all the
answers,"' said Webster. "In
science, you never think about
how you as a person affect what
you observe, but dealing with
people is very different."
Members of the sociology and
anthropology department were
aware of the promising research
long before it came to a conclusion.
"I started to become familiar
with Tom's research from the
time we became colleagues in
the SOAN Department," said
Associate Professor of Sociology
and Anthropology Maria L.
Amado. "Flowing the merits
of his work, I was not surprised
when I heard it was going to be
published as a book."
Finishing the book was a
momentous accomplishment, but
even after years of work, Guthrie
is more than ready to move into
new pastures.
"Last year, I began a new
research project," said Guthrie. "I
started out focusing on efforts to
revitalize small scale agriculture
... but my research took me in a
new direction. I'm interested in
(a) debate surrounding GMO's in
the northern and southern parts of
New Mexico."
As Guthrie continues with his
next foray into New Mexico's
intricate and overlapping cultures,
students and faculty can find
his book in the Hege Library on
Guilford's campus and speak to
him about his research during his
office hours in King Hall.
Last Tuesday, Nov. 11, chair of Guilford’s SOAN department Thomas Guthrie gave a talk at Scuppemong Books about his recent book “Recognizing Heritage.”