Portland Area Global Aids Coalition

Who We Are
Our coalition's strength lies in the diversity of our membership. Members vary in size from individuals, to small organizations, to large NGOs, and in skills from direct medical care, to education, awareness and political advocacy.
While many members of the PAGAC work in the field of HIV/AIDS in a number of capacities, for simplicity's sake they have been categorized according to their primary activity or affiliation.

What We Do
As a recently formed coalition, our mission is still evolving and much of our work occurs through informal networking. We gather to share information on activities and advocacy alerts, and collectively sponsor larger community events.

How to Learn More
To learn more about getting involved with the Portland Area Global AIDS Coalition contact either of the co-chairs:

Ann Pickar | 503-246-8629
Theresa Burks | 503-764-8714

It Affects People Locally

Of the 2,000,000 people living in the Portland metropolitan area, roughly 10,000 are either infected with HIV or living with an AIDS diagnosis. More than 60% of HIV positive Oregonians live in Multnomah County.

The overwhelming majority of those who are HIV positive in the Portland area are Caucasian males between the ages of 20 and 50. However, if one looks at statistics controlled for population, African Americans are about 4 times as likely as whites or Latinos to be HIV positive. This discrepancy is even larger for African American women who are 10 times as likely as white women to be HIV positive.

Most individuals living with HIV in Portland are able to receive anti-retroviral medications at this time, although this availability is under threat and is not universal. Since individuals living with HIV are much more likely than the general population to be low income, they often face many other associated challenges, such as substance abuse, mental illness, incarceration, homelessness, etc.

It Affects People Globally

Every year, nearly 3 million people around the globe die due to AIDS. Africa has been hit harder by the HIV/AIDS virus than any other region of the world, and sub-Saharan Africa accounts for about 70% of all AIDS cases.

In Africa alone, the disease kills 6,300 people daily, and 8,500 more are newly infected with the HIV virus. Studies show that approximately 1.9 million of those infected are children. Young people in Africa, particularly young women, are at great risk for the HIV virus. Recent studies have shown that of the HIV infected young people in sub-Saharan Africa, 76% are female.

There are currently 4.1 million people with AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa who are in immediate need of life-saving anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs). At the end of 2004, only an estimated 50,000 of these people were able to take these drugs. As the majority of the world’s population lives on less than $2 a day, people in need are unable to even afford basic medications, let alone anti-retroviral therapy.

Africa is not alone in its plight. Communities around the world, in Asia, Latin America, Europe, North America etc., experience the debilitating effects that HIV/AIDS has on families, relationships, and entire economies.

The members of the PAGAC are united on behalf of the millions affected by HIV/AIDS locally and globally, as each individually and collectively work to help those in need.