LiveHopeLove: HIV/AIDS in Jamaica
Summary: "How it had me
all I wanted was to do
was crawl in a ball
and dead like that
but see me here now,
see me here now,
man must live, iyah,
man must live.
-Kwame Dawes | HIV/AIDS is defined by people: their complex lives, their bravery, their fear, their sadness, their need, their laughter, their inconsistencies--basically, their rich humanity. LiveHopeLove looks at the universal problems faced by people with HIV/AIDS, through the specific lens of Jamaica, where almost no one is unaffected by the disease. What are the unique realities of this small island state that set its HIV/AIDS sufferers apart from those in the rest of the world? | Poet and writer Kwame Dawes travels to Jamaica to explore the experience of people living with HIV/AIDS and to examine how the disease has shaped their lives. The journey brings him in touch with people who tell their stories, share their lives and teach him about resilience, hope and possibility in the face of despair. Some are living with the disease; others have committed their lives to HIV/AIDS care. Dawes' poems, inspired by their stories, take this documentary into deep realms of the heart. | LiveHopeLove allows audiences to meet individuals behind the statistics and better understand this epidemic's human side, especially for many in the U.S. who see the Caribbean simply as a playground of all-inclusive resorts. | High-caliber journalism and poetry intersect, in a multi-layered, textured audio narrative. As a Jamaican, Dawes gave his colleagues and the audience entr'e to a world they might not otherwise have known. | The radio documentary was produced by Stephanie Guyer-Stevens and Jack Chance of Outer Voices, in association with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. It is part of a larger multi-media reporting project, which includes an extended essay by Kwame Dawes for The Virginia Quarterly Review, a feature in the Washington Post, two short documentaries for public-television, a collection of poetry inspired by his reporting, a performance of the poems set to music (performed at the National Black Theatre Festival in August 09), and LiveHopeLove.com, the Emmy and Webby award-winning interactive web presentation that synthesizes audio and text versions of the poems, the videos, music, and photography. | The result underscores the Pulitzer Center's dual missions of covering under-reported stories and engaging the public across as many platforms as possible. The Pulitzer Center is a non-profit journalism organization that covers systemic global issues through innovative media campaigns and educational outreach. The Center collaborates with freelance journalists, non-profits, traditional media, and educational institutions to create original, compelling reporting projects. | LiveHopeLove: HIV/AIDS in Jamaica is the second of three multi-media reporting initiatives produced by the Center with support from the MAC AIDS Fund. | Outer Voices is primarily dedicated to sharing the untold stories of women leaders from remote parts of the globe working for non-violent social change. Outer Voices radio documentaries have been broadcast on over 500 stations in the U.S. and internationally."--2009 Peabody Awards entry form
Corporate Producers: Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting | Outer Voices
Persons Appearing: Kwame Dawes, Poet
Broadcast Date: 1-Jan-09
