08.05.2021
Media

Statement

Advocates for Youth activist Kayla Quimbley appointed to the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS

This week, Assistant Secretary for Health Dr. Rachel Levine swore in new members of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA), the council that works closely with the Secretary to influence programs, policies, and research that promote effective prevention, treatment, and cure of HIV and AIDS. 

Advocates for Youth is thrilled to congratulate Kayla Quimbley, a member of Advocates’ Engaging Communities around HIV Organizing (ECHO) council and National Youth HIV and AIDS Awareness Day Ambassador, on her appointment to the PACHA. 

The Advocates’ staff is fortunate to know Kayla’s work intimately. Over the past several years, we have supported Kayla as she leverages her creativity as a poet, her commitment to liberation for all, and her lived experiences to combat HIV stigma, decriminalize HIV, and raise awareness of the disproportionate impact of HIV on youth of color.  

As an ECHO member, Kayla uses a social justice framework to shift culture and policy by elevating the voices of young people living with HIV. She has worked closely with fellow ECHO leaders  and Advocates’ staff to increase the inclusion of young people living with HIV in the planning, implementation, and evaluation of HIV related programming and policies across the U.S.

This appointment is meaningful, and we’re incredibly proud. Young people have a committed, intentional, and powerful advocate in Kayla, and we know that her work on the council will advance the health and dignity of young people living with HIV. 

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“I’m honored to join The Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA), another platform where I can ensure youth have access to medically accurate information about HIV, as well as work to repeal outdated laws that criminalize people living with HIV.

Through this work, and by centering young people living with HIV, It is my hope that we will continue to see reduction in HIV transmission, as young people gain more equitable access to quality healthcare and become more equipped with the knowledge and resources to prevent HIV and other STIs.”

— Kayla Quimbley, youth activist, Advocates for Youth