HIV prevention advocates push back after conservative group launches petition against ‘Get PrEP Wisdom’ campaign
HIV prevention advocates are urging public support for an open letter encouraging Paramount Global to continue airing a PrEP campaign commercial despite a petition launched by a conservative group.
“Get PrEP Wisdom” is a PrEP awareness campaign featuring “RuPaul’s Drag Race” executive producer and drag star Michelle Visage. In a 15-second commercial, Visage strides behind three similar-looking young men who are sitting poolside in deck chairs as they watch her share some PrEP wisdom.
“Some things may seem similar, but Mamma knows they’re not,” Visage says, “Like injectable PrEP options. There are differences to consider. Know what to ask your doctor,”
While funded by ViiV Healthcare, which manufactures a long-acting injectable HIV prevention drug, the commercial does not name any specific product nor does it mention “HIV,” “gay,” or “sex.”
The conservative group One Million Moms, an offshoot of the American Family Association, nonetheless is taking issue with the campaign, calling on TV Land, the Paramount-owned cable channel, to drop the commercials.
“Can you imagine what goes through the mind of a child, tween or teen when seeing this ad?” a statement on the Moms website says. “A parent never expects to discuss sexuality or homosexuality while sitting at home enjoying family time.”
Operated by the MTV Entertainment division of Paramount Media Networks, TV Land is a spinoff of Nickelodeon’s Nick at Night block of classic TV shows.
The conservative group’s petition has garnered over 11,000 signatures so far. HIV prevention advocates are pushing back with a petition of their own, seeking to get at least as many people to sign their letter.
“At a moment when HIV prevention is facing unprecedented attacks, the answer isn’t less awareness-building; it’s more,” says PrEP4All executive director Jeremiah Johnson in a press statement. “Every person deserves the opportunity to learn about PrEP and make informed decisions about their health. We should be expanding access to accurate information, not restricting it."
The advocates’ open letter to Paramount and TV Land states in part:
“Thank you for standing with patients, healthcare providers, HIV advocates, and communities working to end the HIV epidemic. We urge you to continue airing evidence-based health campaigns that normalize conversations about HIV prevention and ensure lifesaving information reaches everyone who needs it.”
To sign on to the letter, go here.
The PrEP awareness campaign isn’t the only target of the hyperbolically named One Million Moms. The group is also attacking Capitol One’s “Friends with Benefits” campaign featuring basketball star Shaquille O’Neal promoting one of the bank’s credit cards, saying the commercial, “mocks marital commitment.”