Departments
Public
Education
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| Janelle
Wright, Public Education Coordinator for JAS
Ocho Rios |
Lennessa
Blake, Coordinator of Public Education in
Montego Bay |
Purpose
This Department is charged with:-
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Heightening public awareness and sensitivity about HIV/AIDS in order to influence positive behaviour change.
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Highlighting the work of JAS in order to secure the support and involvement of the public
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Lobbying for change in public and private policies, beliefs and practices in order to preserve the human rights of the JAS target groups.
Shell Company Limited is the major sponsor of this Department’s work.
Staff
The
Department's Staff members are:-
In
Kingston, Annmarie Dobson
who is the PE Coordnator.
In
Ocho Rios, the Department
is coordinated by Janelle Wright and
In Montego Bay, the department
is coordinated by Lanessa Blake
Activities
“Walk and Talk” – This is an outreach programme done on a monthly basis by each of the three JAS Chapters. Its aim is to heighten HIV/AIDS awareness and education and promote safer sex practices through one-to-one interaction and condom demonstration and distribution.
Usually clad in JAS T-shirts, Walk and Talk volunteers have to face a variety of such questions and comments. For example, volunteers have reported being asked “How can you tell if someone has the virus?” and “Can you catch AIDS by kissing?” and “ How does that female condom work?”.
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| Condom
demonstration being done in the streets |
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Media Programmes
JAS
works in tandem with several media houses to
disseminate information on or related to HIV/AIDS.
The
JAS radioshow called “Life’s Voices”,
airs on Roots FM on Tuesdays at 8 p.m.
re-runs
of the TV version of “Life’s Voices”
is regularly transmitted on Reggae Sun Community
Cable Network.
Other
media activities
Upon request or as part of JAS' proactive media
involvement, the organisation will provide information
or resource persons for spots or public service
announcements in the electronic and print media
respectively. JAS plans to make at least one
such spot or announcement available each month.
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| JAS
volunteer Noelle Dale recording
opinions from persons in the street for the
JAS radio programme |
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| Interviewing a Guest for the JAS Radioshow Life's Voices |
LISTEN TO LIFE'S VOICES
(Windows Media Player Required) |
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Workshops / Health Fairs
On a regular basis, businesses, community groups, service clubs and various other organizations invite JAS to conduct basic HIV/AIDS workshops for their membership.
One recent example of this is the Shell Company (WI) Ltd-sponsored workshops for schools in the Rockfort area, where Shell's corporate offices are located. Thousands of students, parents and teachers received basic information on HIV/AIDS courtesy of Shell and JAS. Several workers at the Kingston and Montego Bay plants of Shell also received similar information
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| Advocacy
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| MayClaire presents a supply of female condoms to JAS |
As part of its advocacy programme, JAS designs strategies aimed at changing specific policies, practices and perceptions.
The "Pum Pum Power" campaign is one of these strategies. It's aim is to empower women to make better, healthier sexual choices and to get their partners to use condoms at all times. This targeting of women is informed by the fact that they constitute more than fifty percent of HIV cases worldwide.
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| Pum Pum Power volumteer |
The Pum Pum Power initiative is complemented by the distribution of female condoms as a means of giving women greater control over their sexuality. MayClaire Co-operation is the donor of these condoms to JAS.
VCT Campaign
This campaign encourages more persons to use the JAS voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) facility. This is based on the view that early discovery of an HIV positive status can lead to earlier treatment, which delays the onset of AIDS. Support Services/VCT. The Support Services/VCT Department has designed and recorded Public Service Announcements for radio to encourage the public in this regard. Public Service Announcements.
<Coming Soon! Listen to latest programmes>
MP3 Player Required
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Musicians
In it's attempts to find creative and efficient means of educating the public, JAS has been working with singers and DJs to (a) encourage them to use their art form to inform others about HIV (b) ensure that their lyrics are HIV sensitive.
Resulting from that intervention, JAS now has the music of numerous such artists whose work supports the JAS mandate. Some such artists include the late Bennie Culture, Rev Ripton Vickers, Ashe Performing Arts Ensemble, Red Danger, Abijah, History Man, Mabrak, Mickey Ruff, Mr. Glamorous, Richie Wonder, Clarka Irie and Lloyd Pecco. A similar alliance is presently in place with the Pum Pum Poets.
Anti-discrimination and Stigma Campaign /
Human Rights violations
JAS believes that the tremendous stigma and discrimination associated with HIV contribute significantly to its spread. Consequently, the purpose of the organisation's campaign is to considerably reduce stigma by changing public inaccurate perceptions about HIV/AIDS. JAS' annual poster and calendar are designed with this in mind.
JAS is charged with documenting and addressing abuses against its target groups. The organisation maintains a register of such abuses and works in collaboration with other human rights groups to address them.
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| The late Benny Culture was at the forefront of HIV work" |
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DJ Red Danger lights a candle for
World AIDS Day Cnalde Light Vigil 2003 |
LISTEN TO RED DANGER TRACKS
(Windows Media Player Required) |
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The Speakers’ Bureau / PLWHA Bureau
Both initiatives are conducted by JAS volunteers trained to provide basic and sometimes detailed information about HIV/AIDS in workshop settings. The persons living with HIV /AIDS (PLWHA) Bureau features trained PLWAs conducting sensitisation sessions on living with the condition.
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| Women living with HIV speaking out! |
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Documentaries and Research
JAS has helped students and other members of the public conducting research on HIV and other related issues by granting access to its library, which includes books, videos, programme recordings, newspaper clippings etc.
The most recent such venture involved:
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Gillian Bernard, a final year Masters in Communication student at the University of the West Indies, whose research project assesses the impact of HIV messages in the media on the sexual behaviours of sexual minorities and PLWAs. Her findings will be used to inform future JAS public service announcements and media activities.
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Each year JAS acts as a placement site for students from the School of International Training (SIT) and assists as they do research on a variety of topics. This year, for example, JAS facilitated Yvonne Ochilo, who examined some of the gender issues specific to HIV. Her analysis focused on the contribution of the Pum Pum Poets to HIV sensitisation.
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| University student Gillian Bernard conducting a focus group |
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Specialized Training
JAS provides specific training for a variety of groups on matters related to HIV/AIDS.
These include training recently for:-
- Inner-city community leaders in the 'Pum Pum Power' method.
- Shell employees to deliver basic HIV/AIDS information to their co-workers.
- Church leaders in the Grant’s Pen area, held at the Stella Maris Foundation.
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Prof. Nesha Hannif trains community leaders" |
Shell worker giving workshop to co-workers |
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