A fight that’s come a long way

A campaign to end the stigmatization and discrimination experienced by people living with HIV

For World AIDS Day, the initiative “Montréal, ville sans sida,” its partners and Upperkut are joining forces to launch a campaign to fight the stigmatization and discrimination that are still victimizing people living with HIV (PLHIV).

There are around 10,000 people living with HIV in Montreal today. A large majority of them are in good health and no longer transmit the virus thanks to medical advances and effective treatments. But while the fight has come a long way, prejudices that harm the health and well-being of PLHIV remain.

The campaign aims to end these stubborn prejudices and encourage the wider public of Montreal to get informed about the reality of people living with HIV and correct their false understanding of the virus’s transmission risk. According to a study by the Public Health Agency of Canada, over 20 percent of respondents in Quebec were afraid of contracting HIV by being next to a person living with HIV

“This is the kind of project that enables us to believe, by collaborating with all our partners around the same table, that we can make a difference,” explains Serge Leathead, president and founder of Upperkut. “With the slogan ‘The most dangerous thing about HIV is the stigma,’ we’re directly attacking irrational fears and unfounded opinions and putting them to rest.”

The first “Montréal, ville sans sida” campaign will be deployed over the next three months through activations in metro stations and within metro trains, digital displays downtown and on social media.

About “Montréal, ville sans sida”

On December 1, 2017, mayor Valérie Plante signed the Paris Declaration, making Montreal the first Canadian city to join the international UNAIDS Fast-Track network. The “Montréal, ville sans sida” initiative, co-chaired by the City of Montreal, the regional directors of public health for the CIUSSS du Centre-Sud-de-l’Île-de-Montréal and Table des organismes communautaires montréalais de lutte contre le sida (TOMS) aim to eliminate the epidemic locally and around the world by 2030. One of the goals of their action plan includes reducing discrimination towards people living with HIV.

For more information : www.montrealsanssida.ca