Last week, officials from the White House, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced a comprehensive five-year plan to fight the spread of HIV and AIDS in America, with a special emphasis on the African American community.

The Act Against AIDS campaign – which highlights the statistic that every nine and half minutes another person in the United States becomes infected with HIV – will feature public service announcements (PSAs) and online communications, as well as targeted messages and outreach to black and Hispanic communities in the U.S., populations hit especially hard by HIV and AIDs.

"Right here in the United States, every nine and half minutes, someone's brother, sister, best friend, father or mother becomes infected with HIV," said Jeffrey Crowley, director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy. "Yet, research shows that many of those becoming infected do not recognize their risk. This is a major concern, because lack of knowledge contributes to increased risk behaviors."

The campaign will feature public service announcements and online communications beginning with African Americans, with subsequent phases focusing on Latinos and other communities disproportionately impacted.

Phill Wilson, of the Black AIDS Institute, sees this new initiative as promising. "I think there are three things the Obama administration is offering that is different than previous administrations, and they are presidential leadership on the domestic AIDS front, a commitment to a national AIDS strategy and the first national social marketing campaign in 15 years."

To help achieve widespread use of the campaign messages within African American communities, the Obama administration also announced on April 7 the Act Against AIDS Leadership Initiative (AAALI), a partnership with 14 of the nation's leading African American civic organizations that includes integrating HIV prevention into each organization's outreach programs.

The initiative's participants include: 100 Black Men of America, American Urban Radio Networks, Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, National Action Network, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, National Coalition of 100 Black Women, National Council of Negro Women, National Medical Association, National Newspaper Publishers Association, National Organization of Black County Officials, National Urban League, Phi Beta Sigma and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

"The new Act Against AIDS Leadership Initiative will harness the collective strength and reach of these organizations to increase HIV knowledge, awareness, and action within black communities across the country," said Dr. Kevin Fenton, director of the CDC's National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention. "By raising the visibility of HIV and AIDS, Act Against AIDS aims to confront and overcome the stigma that helps keep HIV alive in black communities."

The Act Against AIDS campaign will be supported by a CDC budget of roughly $45 million over the next five years. To promote broad use of the campaign messages, the CDC is also collaborating with the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation to focus on outreach and technical assistance to the media and entertainment industries.

For more information on the Act Against AIDS campaign and partner activities, visit www.aids.gov or www.cdc.gov/hiv/aaa.

For information about Nine and a Half Minutes, visit www.NineAndaHalfMinutes.org.

For information on the Black AIDS Institute, visit www.blackaids.org.