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BHM Employee Highlight: Leone Hloko



Throughout the rest of Black History Month, we want to highlight our Black and African American staff to hear their stories and to show our appreciation for their contributions in the work that we do.


Leone Hloko is the Prevention Coordinator at Matthew 25 AIDS Services. He is a husband and a father to three wonderful children. Leone has a background in social work as well as experience working with gender-based violence, mental health, and HIV/ AIDS. As the Prevention Coordinator, he works closely with the Director of Prevention, as well as the rest of the Prevention Team to actively assess, plan and implement prevention goals for Matthew 25.


Originally from South Africa, Leone grew up aware of the history of apartheid in his country. Apartheid is a system of segregation and/or discrimination on grounds of race, specifically in South Africa. As a proud citizen of this country, he has come to see both the good and bad in American Society.


"What can we do as a society to move forward and better support our Black citizens?"


Leone responded, "The support for black communities begins with policy change in areas such as social justice, health access, law enforcement, and prejudice; all the way to education. I know for a fact that racism is not something one is born with, but rather a socially learned behavior which can be unlearned as well. People must start seeing and accepting one another. Our children cannot be taught hate at home or any other place. Diversity should be viewed for what it is, which is strength. As human beings, we have a fundamental need to be understood, not necessarily agreed with, but understood. I don't think black communities need special treatment, but rather fair treatment and this might require targeted treatment for these communities to catch up and finally just be called communities, not 'black communities.'"


As discussed last week in the blog, Black Communities are one the most at risk when it comes to HIV/ AIDS. I wanted to dive deeper into this with Leone.


"HIV disproportionately affects the African American community with numbers higher than any demographic group, making up 40% of cases while accounting for just 13% of the total population. Out of a total 1.2 million infected in the United States, around 400,000 are Black people. The reasons for these numbers include factors such as an unfair justice system leading to mass incarceration and breaking up of normal family structures. Poverty and access to healthcare, especially due to high cost or lack of insurance, is another important factor. There is a lack of structural interventions in Black communities, and HIV prevention methods are not tailored for African American communities, so they end up being less effective. Stigmatization amongst black people hinders testing and ultimately treatment, so more black people end up dying of AIDS related illnesses. Substance abuse is another huge factor directly leading to black people contracting HIV.

Some of these factors l stated above might not seem to have a clear cause and effect relation when it comes to HIV, but if looked at closely, they are the foundation of a chain reaction that leads Black people to receive the "shorthand of the stick", as the numbers state, and its true numbers don't lie. Let me give an example of this chain reaction. An unjust justice system will lead to incarceration, which break up a family and the breadwinner goes to jail. This leaves the partner in poverty and desperate, which might result in substance abuse and/or sex work. This increases chances of HIV exposure, especially coupled with lack of education and prevention options. Children lose role models and end up in the streets surrounded by crime then it is incarceration again, and the circle continues."


One of the biggest ways we celebrate Black History Month is looking back on the history of Black excellence. While there are so many influential Black people past and present to admire, here are a few of Leone's: Barack Obama, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr. and Saul Alinsky. If you aren't familiar with some of these figures- now is the perfect time to learn their stories and become even more educated on the true history of Black America.


I want to give a very special thank you to Leone for being so open, vulnerable and willing to share his knowledge and experience with us. We will continue to highlight more of our employees and their experiences throughout the rest of Black History Month.


In his closing thoughts Leone shares,

"Ultimately, if history has taught us anything, it is that Black people have contributed immensely in making this country as great as it is. This proves that any kind of change requires everyone to work diversely and collectively. We do have a long way to go as a country, but a wise person recently reminded me, 'the light will always overcome the darkness and change is coming' -CB."


If you have any questions or would like to schedule a free and confidential HIV test, please call (866) 607-6590. You can also email jdunn@matthew25clinic.org for more!


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