December 7, 2007
JUSTE REWARD
service to people with HIV/AIDS
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Juste-Beckles shows off her hard-earned honor |
Nadine Juste-Beckles has only held her position as executive director of Housing Works' East New York Adult Day Health Care center for five months, but she is no stranger to fighting AIDS. Last week Juste-Beckles was honored by State Health Commissioner Richard F. Daines for her "exceptional accomplishments with HIV/AIDS services and delivery" in the Williamsburg/Greenpoint/Bushwick area and for the work she has done over the last 15 years for community-based AIDS organizations and the state. Juste-Beckles, who is Haitian, has also served as a tireless advocate for the Haitian-American community.
It was almost by accident that Juste-Beckles, 38 (as of today!), got involved with HIV/AIDS. In the early 1990s, she was working at a city clinic and was asked to translate for its HIV-positive Haitian clients. The experience drew Juste-Beckles into HIV/AIDS care. She worked for the city health department and AIDS Institute of New York, then for various community-based organizations. Before joining Housing Works, she was Director of COBRA for the Family Services Network of New York.
Juste-Beckles has continued helping HIV-positive Haitians as a board member of the Park Slope Center for Mental Health and Diaspora Community Services and the National Haitian American Health Alliance (NHAHA). "I've always been very involved with my culture," Juste-Beckles said. She was particularly outraged by the recent study tracing the origin of AIDS in the U.S. to Haiti. Juste-Beckles said the study increases stigma in the Haitian community and gives a false sense of how HIV is transmitted, without providing a public benefit. The NHAHA is advocating for the re-examination of the study.
"It seems like everything's come full-circle," Juste-Beckles said of the renewed stigmatization of Haitians. "Constant advocacy is really important to make sure people stay aware and don't forget that HIV/AIDS is still a huge problem."