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Aug 22, 2008 5:55 pm US/Central
'Hip Hop For HIV' Has Texans Getting Tested
DALLAS (CBS 11 News) ―
The number of newly diagnosed cases of Aids and HIV is increasing at an alarming rate among young African Americans and Hispanics in North Texas.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, every hour, two people between the ages of 13 and 24 contract HIV in the United States.
Today hundreds of people are being tested for free at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center in South Dallas.
People arriving before 5 p.m. received free tickets to an upcoming hip/hop concert at Dallas City Hall on September 14.
More than 1,500 people are expected to be tested. Heath officials say they are trying to avoid a crisis in Dallas County.
Rapper T.I. was a big attraction at the event Friday. The entertainer recently pleaded guilty to weapons charges and the judge ordered that he perform more than 1,000 hours of community service. "I try to inform them, as much as I can, of the importance of knowing your status. Just reiterate how dramatic that this is impacting our community," the rapper said.
North Texas radio station 97.9 The Beat sponsored the event in an effort to increase HIV awareness. "You don't know if you might pass it [HIV] on to somebody else or if somebody else has it and they don't tell you about it," said teenager Robin Moore, who was tested at the event.
Isaiah Elliott, 15, came with his sister and mother to be tested for HIV. Isaiah said there's a lot that crosses his mind when he thinks about HIV. "People just dying everyday for no reason, well for a stupid reason, not 'wrapping' it up."
Most of the participants had 'quick testing' - where results could be known in about 20 minutes.
"Well the problem is that, you have so many youngsters now engaging into sex that education has to come to the forefront," explained Dallas Deputy Mayor Pro-Tem Dwaine Caraway. "With that and those diseases, uneducated folks transmit diseases."
There will continue to be free testing conducted at four Dallas locations through mid-September.
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