UNAIDS World AIDS Day 2023

Meet

Erika Castellanos

Partnership, not paternalism: put your trust in trans and gender diverse communities

Erika Castellanos

Executive Director, Global Action for Trans Equality (GATE)

Belize and the Netherlands

While medical advancements offer a beacon of hope for people living with HIV, the impact of medical advancements depends on people accessing them and being supported as they access them. That is why the success of the global HIV response is contingent on governments, donors and other stakeholders fully recognizing this and investing wholeheartedly in community-led responses.

My story, although unique in its specifics, echoes the lived realities of many people. I can attest to their unwavering spirit and potential. Each community has its distinct cultural, economic and social fabric. As the people in closest proximity to the challenge, communities understand the nuances of what works and what needs to change, and can craft interventions that resonate and make a difference.

“As a trans woman living with HIV, the most important support I have ever received since my diagnosis in 1995 is from the trans community.”

The HIV work of the Global Action for Trans Equality (GATE) focuses on centring trans and gender diverse populations at the heart of the global HIV response, supporting them to engage at local and national levels in HIV advocacy, research and service delivery. Every project is led by and for the communities.

Trust is an essential asset. As someone living with HIV, I've found that people often respond better to peers who understand their journey because they too are on that journey. Communities can harness this trust to drive change, dismantle myths and rally people together. In this way, enabling community leadership is not only the right thing ethically—it is also central to the effectiveness of the HIV response.

Instead of ineffective paternalistic oversight approaches, we take the path that works in advancing health, placing our trust in trans and gender diverse-led community-based organizations to know their own needs, to serve their own communities, and to deliver advocacy at the local and national levels using their own strategies and tactics. This approach of mutual trust not only supports the trans and gender diverse populations but also serves the whole of society, by ensuring HIV advocacy, research, service delivery and policy are more effective because they are better designed.

"Governments should see that communities are deserving of recognition and are also the most powerful force for advancing progress."

-Erika

Communities provide vital emotional support and play a pivotal role in linking people to essential health-care services, enabling them to access and stay connected to life-saving services. This is especially important where mainstream health care falls short—which for trans and gender diverse people happens often.

Because GATE initiatives are community-designed, its services meet intersecting needs. GATE funding and training help organizations deliver community outreach activities, including providing condoms and lubricants to trans sex workers; delivering rapid HIV testing to trans people who use drugs, trans sex workers, and other key vulnerable populations within trans and gender diverse communities; and delivering educational and informational services directly to trans and gender diverse communities, such as conducting community-based research, monitoring, and increasing HIV service uptake and adherence. In addition, community-led programmes provide spaces for trans and gender diverse people to come together, eat food, share experiences, laugh and celebrate the simple fact of living and surviving in a world that often denies our very existence.

Some of the key outcomes of GATE projects in collaboration with local and national trans and gender diverse-led organizations have been inclusion in HIV national strategic plans, with specific funding allocated towards community-based and community-led service delivery; the engagement of government health ministries and service providers with ongoing awareness and inclusivity training and informational materials led by trans and gender diverse communities; and successful advocacy for national government funding for HIV health-care services delivered by trans and gender diverse people.

Communities have the capability to make monumental differences—but to do so, they need to be met with support, not obstruction. Here is my appeal to governments, donors and stakeholders:

Provide financial backing: passion fuels community-led initiatives, but they also need tangible resources. It is crucial for donors to invest in these grassroots movements, enabling them to amplify their efforts.
Remove roadblocks: governments need to foster an environment where community-led efforts can thrive. This includes championing the rights of people from marginalized groups, ensuring inclusive policies, and protecting activists and community health workers.
Strengthen bonds: the mission to end AIDS requires a united front. Collaborative efforts between governments, nongovernmental organizations, donors and communities are essential for effective strategies. Recognize communities as fellow experts, and recognize us as being on the same side.

“If authorities support grassroots movements and provide them with the robust support they merit, together we can bring about a brighter, AIDS-free future for all.”

next leader

philll Wilson

Founder, the Black AIDS Institute

Erika Castellanos

Executive Director, Global Action for Trans Equality (GATE)

Belize and the Netherlands

“As a trans woman living with HIV, the most important support I have ever received since my diagnosis in 1995 is from the trans community.”

"Governments should see that communities are deserving of recognition and are also the most powerful force for advancing progress."

“If authorities support grassroots movements and provide them with the robust support they merit, together we can bring about a brighter, AIDS-free future for all.”

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philll Wilson