Eva Marcille and Dr. Jackie Walters joined faith leaders, health advocates and journalists for a candid conversation about breaking the stigma surrounding HIV and the Black community.
The discussion, titled “Separation of Church & Sex: Faith and the Fight Against HIV,” took place earlier this month at the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) Convention & Career Fair in Atlanta.
The panel explored how churches, medical professionals, and community leaders can work together to encourage conversations about sex, HIV prevention and testing.
Dr. Jackie Walters, an OB-GYN and cast member on Bravos’s Married to Medicine, said it’s important for physicians to listen and not judge.
“I think if we can make people feel comfortable and not judged, they’ll start talking more to their physicians,” said Walters. “So we release the fears, we release the dread and doom that we put on this stigma around HIV, and we can be there for safety and health.”
Marcille, a model and actress known for her roles on BET’s All the Queen’s Men and Bravo’s Real Housewives of Atlanta, said raising awareness is important because many people in the community still consider the subject of HIV off-limits.
“It’s more of an opportunity now to get the information out,” she said during the panel. “It’s so frustratingly taboo, because I’ve understood since the days of [rapper] Eazy-E what this epidemic is and what we can do, so why are we not doing our part?”
HIV continues to disproportionately affect the Black community.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Black Americans accounted for nearly 40% of new HIV infections in the latest reporting period, despite making up 12% of the U.S. population.
ViiV Healthcare presented the panel before a full ballroom of journalists and journalism students.
Walters focused her comments on the women in the audience and said it’s important to find a doctor you feel comfortable with.
“If you can’t have a conversation with your doctor, then why go?” she asked.
Walters noted that frank conversations in churches and doctors’ offices can help prevent the spread of HIV.
“Between the doctor’s office and the church, we have the same goal, just different classrooms,” she shared.
The physician said she routinely offers testing for sexually transmitted infections when she sees her patients. She has also informs patients about PrEP, a prescription medicine that can significantly reduce the risk of acquiring HIV.
After the panel, Marcille told Urban Hollywood 411 the discussion was especially important to her as a parent and as a Christian.
“Being here at NABJ is a big deal for me,” she said. “Going to school for journalism and doing pretty well in my career as a journalist, but specifically this topic, I believe it’s just an unsung, under-spoken-about reality.”
The actress noted Walters is also her doctor.
“She’s my OB-GYN, and then myself, just as a faith-based woman, I have three children. I love them dearly. But education and understanding what is going on in the world and what’s going on for them, what resources they have available, that’s important,” said Marcille.
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones moderated the discussion. Other panelists included the Rev. Don Abram, CEO of Chicago-based Toward Pride; Ciarra Brown, director of programs at The Well Project in Philadelphia; and Randevyn Pierre, head of U.S. external affairs at ViiV Healthcare.
Some attendees stayed behind after the discussion, hoping to take pictures with the two television stars. Marcille noted celebrity can be a powerful tool for raising awareness.
“That’s why I use my platform and my advocacy to educate,” she said. “That is why I am here today.”
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