Rise in HIV - False Belief in Cure

One of the significant reasons I began my research and documentary work on HIV & AIDS was the fact that many falsely believe that 1) the symptoms of HIV are not as bad as they used to be, 2) it is not a risk in America anymore and 3) there is a cure… all of which are false, unfortunately.

An article on BBC News from this past week addresses the relationship between this rise in HIV and false belief:

A false belief among young HIV patients that the virus can be cured is fueling a rise in infection levels, a specialist has claimed.

The Terrence Higgins Trust says the number of HIV infections has more than doubled in the last six years.

According to the Terrence Higgins Trust, a charity for HIV sufferers, the number of people with the virus has risen from 30,000 in 2001 to 70,000 this year.

The poll of 1,000 people found more than 20% of people aged 18 to 24 mistakenly thought there was a cure for HIV.

My Last Week as an Intern

(Again, a post never posted, written on Aug. 24, 2007)

My last week as an intern at the Deseret Morning News was filled with excitement and emotion.

The last day at the paper, I photographed the homecoming of the National Guard. Here are three images from that shoot. The first is my interpretation and the second and third, I thought, a normal image that would come out of that assignment. The paper ended up running the first large on A1 and the other two inside. I was happy with that decision thanks to the photo editor.

Days before leaving Utah, I was sent down to Huntington, Utah, to photograph the Crandall Canyon mine disaster. My last day in Huntington, I photographed the funeral of Dale Black, one of the rescue miners killed in the second accident at the mine searching for the six miners that were trapped. This was my first experience as a pool photographer and I have to admit, I was scared and nervous going into it.

But after the family showed up, I was reminded that it wasn’t about me. I walked over to Dale’s wife and thanked her for allowing me in and told her that if at any time you want me to walk away just give me a signal. Hundreds of friends and family, and while I am bad with numbers maybe around 500, were there to celebrate and mourn. And while, I felt a little more pressure to get a good image because I was the only photographer, I tried to remain just as sensitive and somewhere in the middle, hearing the story of this man’s life, made me cry. I have learned and now I bring tissues to all my assignments.

The Families of the Miners

I just found some posts from the summer I never posted.
(Written Aug. 19, 2007)

Tonight I had the privilege of talking with Don Erickson’s family at a vigil the community held for the six trapped miners and the three mine rescuers from Crandall Canyon Mine.

I had just transmitted the photo I thought would work for the vigil and as I was eating my dinner, I saw the families walk towards the front of the stage. I started shooting as the families’ lawyer began sharing a statement the families had written. The gist of it … they still have hope that their loved ones are still alive and they want the 30″ inch hole to be drilled as they feel it is their last hope. They feel Murray has given up as he has not communicated with the family since Thursday’s accident.

After the families walked away, they all lit candles and prayed for their loved ones. I spent a couple of minutes with the Erikson family. Normally there would be a circus of photographers, but tonight there were just two, me and a photographer from the New York Times. I think because of this, the families felt comfortable to stay for a couple of minutes instead of running. This is the first time a lot of the families have been out in the community because they have been hiding from the media.

Knowing that they had become extremely weary of the media, I walked over and asked if I could take their photos. Right as I began shooting, along with their tears, came mine. I looked at them and said I am sorry. After they blew out the candles, I came up to them and told them, “I know we haven’t had access to each other these last couple of days, but I want to say I am so sorry. I can imagine that it has been so hard and I speak for the media when I say we wish the best for your families.” Then Amanda his daughter said thank you and gave me a hug.

Soon after, a woman from the community came up to me and thanked me. She said, “Thank you for covering this. We all really appreciate you being here.” Surprised, I responded, “Really? Most of the time I don’t feel that way so thank you.”

It was then I had to chose what my priority was at that moment, to be sensitive to the families or take advantage of the situation and ask them questions. It was obvious they didn’t want to answer any questions, so I let them have a couple minutes in peace without cameras in their face.

During my time covering the mine disaster, I think more than anything, I have learned a lot about the decision as photographers we make in order to retain or destroy the dignity and humanity for our subjects. Tonight it was smacked in my face. Do I make a story or do I take a couple photos and walk away. I walked away.