Protect yourself - HIV activist

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Maggie is a 40-ish single mother of two. Like many women her age, she has survived a coupler of divorces and a few abusive relationships.

And like more and more women, Maggie (not her real name) has HIV - the precursor to AIDS.

"When AIDS first came out, everyone thought it was a gay man's disease and that whoever got it deserved it," she says, her voice raw with a cold. "Well, I'm not a gay man, I'm not an intravenous drug user, I'm not a hemophiliac and I have HIV."

Part of the Elizabeth Fry Society of Edmonton's Sept. 24 All Nations HIV-AIDS Awareness Workshop, Maggie preached prevention to a crowd of 30 participants and tried to dispel the prejudices society often views HIV carriers with.

"I want to stress to people that HIV is preventable, but that the people who get it didn't purposely go out there to pick it up."

Infected by her now deceased first husband, Maggie went through two other marriages and had two children before she discovered she was HIV positive. Her first reaction was to blame a blood transfusion she received after a motorcycle accident years ago. But when that came back negative, she knew she had to examine her past relationships.

Maggie asked participants not to be prejudiced against or fear people with HIV and AIDS. She scoffed at the notions that infection can occur through tears, sweat, saliva, or social contact like shaking hands, hugging, drinking from the same glass, talking to someone, sharing the same toilet seat, or the popular mosquito bite theory.

Other stereotypes that got bashed were those set out by her Roman Catholic upbringing,.

Maggie debunked the popular myth that women who carry condoms in their purses are "easy."

"Why? Men have been doing it for years," she says. "I want to see women take control for themselves. So when you see condoms, grab handfuls of them and stuff them

in your purse. Always keep them with you."

To drive the message home to a largely female audience, Maggie shared her thoughts on what it will be like for her children, ages six and 11, should she succumb to AIDS. She hasn't told them she is HIV positive, she says, to prevent them from being ridiculed at school.

However, she has made a will and has arranged for her sister to be the children's guardian upon her death.

"It's not an easy disease to live with," she says.

Maggie urged the audience to care enough about themselves to always use a condom when engaging in sex, and to spread that message around.

"The best thing I can say is let each other know. Remind your friend when she's drunk and wants to take a guy home. Remind yourself," she says. "It's really all about making these choices sanely, soberly and rationally."