In the realm of social campaigns, few causes are as urgent and impactful as the prevention of HIV/AIDS. This is the reason we launched the “Pleasure Responsibly” campaign – to represent a paradigm shift in how we approach HIV/AIDS prevention within the LGBTQ+ community. This initiative places emphasis, not just on risk reduction, but on the promotion of pleasure, trust and intimacy.
The vision for this new campaign came from George Fernandez, CEO of Color & Culture, a little over a year ago. About a month and a half away from Pride month, George looped me into this campaign as a project manager. He envisioned me as a leader, driving the campaign outreach strategy and execution.
As a gay man of color and Latino descent, I realized I bring a unique perspective and unwavering commitment to representing the LGBTQ+ community and minority groups. The effort includes an array of community outreach events, social media engagement and the provision of resources, tailored to the needs of underserved communities.
My role enables me to extend beyond the confines of traditional campaign management; I’m a catalyst for change and social impact. By fostering partnerships with local organizations, healthcare providers and advocacy groups, I’m creating a network of support and resources that extends beyond the lifespan of the campaign itself. Through my leadership and advocacy, I will not only help to drive awareness and education but also catalyze tangible improvements in access to healthcare, support services and social acceptance for LGBTQ+ individuals.
Launching this campaign during Pride month sounds like perfect timing, however, having less than two months to have everything up and running — not just for community outreach events but also for our landing page and social media — presented a huge challenge that we were able to face and get it done. So, today I am proud to say that Color & Culture has an LGBTQ+ campaign up and running to help thousands of people become aware of how to ensure their sexual safety with a big focus on their pleasure.
This entire campaign wouldn’t be able to live if it was not for the terrific help and teamwork of the social media, creative design, media buying and brand ambassador teams. Their smooth and effective collaboration demonstrated that teamwork is more than just a simple word: It is actually what makes it possible to put together all the pieces in an efficient and effective manner to launch this campaign that we are so proud of today.
The “Pleasure Responsibly” team envisions this campaign to be more than just a social and outreach awareness campaign for HIV/AIDS. The campaign’s preventive messages focus on trust, intimacy and pleasure and will save lives.
So, what’s up next? Our mission is to also be able to provide our community with a mobile health unit where we can offer HIV testing, educate the community about HIV/AIDS and other STDs and, last but not least, let even more of our LGBTQ+ friends know they can pursue the best sex of their life because they’ll know how to “Pleasure Responsibly” and be safe doing so.
So, check out our new campaign, and, as always, pleasure responsibly.
