By Barrett White
As a young artist, Kevin Anderson regularly poured out his soul in the spoken word scene. He soon realized, however, that the vulnerability and lived truth he was sharing with the artistic community was not being returned. When at the mic, poets would often code-switch, changing the pronouns of their same-sex lovers to that of the opposite sex—until one day, a colleague didn’t. Rather than offering support, the poet who followed the act used his platform to belittle this fellow artist. Witnessing this, Anderson decided the rules of the game needed to change.
In response, Anderson founded heART&SOUL, a monthly non-discriminatory arts showcase for all art forms. “About two or so years along in that journey, I began noticing that people were sharing real personal stories—disclosing HIV statuses for the first time, and sharing stories of being abused in their relationships. I realized that we needed a place that was specifically targeted toward LGBTQ communities of color and their allies to begin healing and utilizing the arts to do that,” Anderson says.
And thus, Telling Real Unapologetic Truth and Healing—or the T.R.U.T.H. Project—was born. Anderson leads the T.R.U.T.H. Project on a mission to educate and mobilize LGBTQ people of color and their allies through social arts, promoting mental, emotional, and sexual health for an all-too-often underserved community. “Our goal is to become one of the hubs of LGBTQ communities of color in the city of Houston and in the state,” Anderson says.
The T.R.U.T.H. Project hosts an annual World AIDS Day experience—the organization’s largest event of the year—that focuses on education surrounding and awareness of HIV/AIDS. For 2018, the experience zeroes in on women who are living with HIV and those who are affected by it. Sponsored by Bunnies on the Bayou and the University of Houston LGBTQ Resource Center, the experience, titled I AM LIFE, will be held at the University of Houston Student Center South Theater and will feature visceral experiences (most of which are inspired by true stories) that Anderson can only call “healing.”
“I love seeing people walk into a room not knowing what to expect, but they leave with a new understanding of how stigma works and how communities of color are affected by all of it.” -Kevin Anderson, CEO of the T.R.U.T.H. Project
According to the Center for Disease Control, African American and Hispanic women are disproportionately affected by HIV compared to women of other races, and women make up 19 percent of new HIV diagnoses in the United States. In 2016, nearly four times as many African American women received an HIV diagnosis as compared to white women and Hispanic/Latina women. “Although the community doesn’t hear as much about it, the impact of HIV on African American and Hispanic women falls right behind African American and Hispanic men who have sex with men,” Anderson says.
The T.R.U.T.H. Project’s annual World AIDS Day experience includes free HIV testing, as well as counseling services. This year’s female-centered event will bring the stories of women living with or affected by HIV to life through spoken word, movement, and song. This reality will not only address the ongoing HIV crisis and associated stigma, but will place both artist and audience in the unique position to question how they define their lives. “I hope people walk away with a sense of awareness that there are services out there that provide for your mental and sexual health,” Anderson says. “I want people to connect. I love seeing people walk into a room not knowing what to expect, but they leave with a new understanding of how stigma works and how communities of color are affected by all of it.”
What: I AM LIFE: An HIV Stigma Narrative, presented by the T.R.U.T.H. Project
Where: Student Center South Theater, 4455 University Boulevard, Houston.
When: November 30, 2018 at 7:30PM.
Details/Tickets: This event is free and open to the public. Reserve your ticket here.
