Chris was diagnosed HIV+ his senior year of college. Wary to disclose his status in a community that held stigmatizing beliefs about HIV and queerness, Chris left home and found work as an HIV tester in Dallas, surrounded by people with stories just like his. With support, he gradually realized that “HIV lives with me, I don’t live with it. I want people to know that they can be more than their status.” L.I.Y.T. (Living in Your Truth) Talks was his solution: A standard deck of cards remixed as an entirely new game with links to HIV and STI resources on the reverse side—tackling sex education through a widely accessible product.
ETR’s Project L.I.Y.T. team guided Chris through the game’s development and community-centered design process. “My heart has always been for the people,” he says. “This project allowed me to really engage with the community and enhance my network.” After his first public prototype presentation, the Project L.I.Y.T. team—in need of a project coordinator—noticed his commitment and hired Chris on the spot. As a part-time L.I.Y.T. Scholar and a full-time employee, Chris coached and collaborated with the cohort throughout the next 12 months of project design, eventually leading a plenary presentation of each Scholar’s project at YTH Live 2020.
Chris uses his platform to advocate for people who don’t yet have the “audacity” to advocate for themselves. He is committed to further developing methods by which advocacy and participatory research, particularly with marginalized communities, can go hand-in-hand. He’s already begun conversations with potential partners to expand L.I.Y.T. Talks. In the meantime, Chris and the team at ETR are planning L.I.Y.T. NEXT, phase two of the initiative, which they hope to launch in early 2021.
Illustrations provided by Farah Jeune, artist and creator/producer/host of Farenheight TV.
