Ending the loneliness
Pedro's life on the street was characterised by drug use, violence and extreme poverty. An HIV positive test result led him to help other people living in similar difficult situations. He is now training to participate as a promoter in the Genesis project which aims to reduce the impact of HIV on affected communities by reducing stigma and discrimination.
Pedro* lost his parents at an early age and started taking drugs when he was seven years old. His substance use began with marijuana, solvents and alcohol.
Pedro describes his childhood as brutal, just like other street kids. To survive, he had to manage with whatever he could get hold of. “If I had a job, I would eat. If not, hunger would keep me going”. Pedro also has a disability which affects his arm. ”This complicated my existence even more,” he said, “as being so young I was not able to cope or compete with the other boys”.
Life went on with Pedro either working or stealing to survive. His sole purpose in obtaining money was to buy food and drugs. Work involved throwing rubbish from the market stalls or as a builder.
“The most difficult thing to cope with is the loneliness”, says Pedro. The absence of “someone to give you a kiss, a hug, a mother who loves you, a father who tells you off when you make a mistake, a partner, a son to hug….that hurts immensely and has hurt all my life. I tried to commit suicide several times. I thought drugs would provide company, but it was just a way of getting through the day”.
At the age of 16 Pedro started taking hallucinogens, cocaine and heroin. He was immersed in drugs for many years and then his acquaintances began to die one by one. “Around 10 people from the same neighborhood died in quick succession. We did not have any information, but once an acquaintance’s family member told us what they had died of, then a cousin also got infected, a brother in-law died in prison and it was from HIV and my brother in law’s brother also has HIV”.
After hearing so much about HIV, Pedro, together with one of drug-using acquaintances, went to the organisation Irapuato Vive, to take an HIV test. They both tested positive.
When he received his diagnosis, Pedro thought “I have another opportunity to help”. In Irapuato Vive he received training, and at 37, he plays an active role in the AIDS response. He shares his story, gives informative talks, distributes material such as leaflets and condoms, conducts surveys and gives information face-to-face on the streets.
At present, Pedro is receiving training to participate as a promoter in the Génesis project, which aims to reduce the impact of HIV on affected communities to reduce stigma and discrimination related to HIV and drug use.
For Pedro “the only way to end the loneliness is to help people to be informed about HIV infection and to help, in whatever way possible, people who live in difficult situations like I have lived in”.
Irapuato Vive is supported by Vida Digna (Life with dignity), a three-year project coordinated by Colectivo Sol, the Alliance organisation in Mexico, which aims to reduce the HIV/AIDS-related stigma and discrimination experienced by sex workers, men who have sex with men, and people living with HIV in four cities in the central states of Mexico: Aguascalientes, Guanajuato, Querétaro and San Luis Potosí.
Work carried out as part of Vida Digna includes advocacy for access to services and HIV prevention, the provision of information, and outreach peer support work. Strengthening groups to respond to stigma and discrimination is a key part of making this work more effective.
*not his real name
