Philadelphia FIGHT

For the rugby team, see Philadelphia Fight.

Philadelphia FIGHT

Formation	1990
Legal status	Non-profit
Purpose	End the AIDS epidemic within the lifetime of those currently living with HIV.
Headquarters	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Website	Philadelphia FIGHT

Philadelphia FIGHT (FIGHT) is a Philadelphia AIDS service organization that provides primary care, consumer education, advocacy and research. FIGHT was formed as a partnership of individuals living with HIV & AIDS and clinicians. ^[1]

FIGHT is a non-profit organization, which is in part funded by the AIDS Activities Coordinating Office of Philadelphia.^{[ citation needed ]}

About

Mission

"Philadelphia FIGHT is a comprehensive AIDS Service Organization providing state of the art, culturally competent HIV primary care, consumer education, advocacy, social services, outreach to people living with HIV and to those who are at high risk, and access to the most advanced clinical research. Our goal and hope is to end the AIDS epidemic within the lifetime of those currently living with HIV." ^[2]

History

FIGHT was founded in 1990.^{[ citation needed ]}

Programs

• AIDS Library provides access to information on treatments, nutrition, and history of the pandemic, and referrals to regional and national resources. ^[3]
• Critical Path AIDS Project was founded by Kiyoshi Kuromiya in 1987. Today FIGHT's program provides Internet access and digital literacy training to low-income people. ^[4]
• Jonathan Lax Immune Disorders Treatments Center provides clinical care to people with HIV/AIDS. Clinicians also conduct research to test potential therapies for HIV/AIDS. ^[5]
• Project TEACH (Treatment Education Activists Combating HIV) trains people living with HIV to act as community and peer educators, especially in low-income areas and communities of color. ^[6]
• Youth Health Empowerment Project (Y-HEP) was founded in 1994 to reduce the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. ^[7]
• Family Dentistry Center was founded in 2013 to provide high quality dental care, with an emphasis on reducing dental anxiety. ^[8]
• Pediatric Health Center was founded in 2016 to serve low-income children and youth, regardless of insurance, income or immigration status. ^[9]

Events

• AIDS Education Month: recognized every June, FIGHT organizes summits about HIV prevention as well as youth, faith, and prison issues. FIGHT also organizes citywide testing for National HIV Testing Day on June 27 with other local agencies, including: ActionAIDS, GALAEI, and the Mazzoni Center. ^[10]

Controversies

• Racism Allegations
  • Philadelphia FIGHT has been accused of racist employment practices by several former staff members, many of whom have advocated for the removal of the CEO and Board and the establishment of new, anti-racist policies. ^{[11] [12] [13]} Philadelphia FIGHT has denied all allegations of racism and discrimination. ^[14]

See also

• Kiyoshi Kuromiya
• Gloria Casarez

References

1. "About FIGHT". Philadelphia FIGHT Website. Archived from the original on 2012-07-05. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
2. "Philadelphia FIGHT Mission Statement". Archived from the original on July 5, 2012.
3. "AIDS Library". Archived from the original on November 23, 2010.
4. "Critical Path Project". Archived from the original on July 5, 2012.
5. "Jonathan Lax Center". Archived from the original on May 26, 2012.
6. "Project TEACH".
7. "Y-HEP". Archived from the original on June 27, 2012.
8. "FIGHT Family Dentistry". Philadelphia FIGHT. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
9. "Pediatric and Adolescent Health Center". Philadelphia FIGHT. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
10. "HIV Prevention & Education Virtual Summit Calendar". Philadelphia FIGHT.
11. Owens, Ernest (2018-02-12). "Departing Employee Accused Philly FIGHT of "Pervasive Racism" in Staff-Wide Email". Philadelphia Magazine. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
12. Owens, Ernest (2018-02-28). "Social Justice Groups Denounce "Discriminatory Practices" at Philly FIGHT". Philadelphia Magazine. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
13. Cwiek, Tim (2024-02-20). "Philadelphia FIGHT sued for alleged racial bias". Philadelphia Gay News. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
14. Rodriguez, Jeremy (2018-03-01). "FIGHT protests racism allegations". Philadelphia Gay News. Retrieved 2024-03-08.

External links

• Philadelphia FIGHT Website
• Critical Path Project (Archived)