Saidy Brown is a 25 year old young lady born with HIV, found out at 14 about her status, and has used her status to educate other people about HIV using social media. She has been very active in her advocacy... She was a part of the youth plenary at the 8th South African Aids Conference, in Durban in 2017, and opened the conference with a piece she wrote when she was 18 titled "An Open Letter to HIV."
She works with a network for young people living with HIV in South Africa called Y plus South Africa, she is a part of the youth reference group for the Virology HIV&Adolescence workshop and also works on social media campaigns such as SANAC's #COVERED24_7, a campaign that was highlighting the importance of condom use, and treatment adherence. She was one of the influencers working on the HIV & COVID-19 campaign for UNICEF.
She was a part of the media team for the International Community of Women living with HIV. She is a She Decides 25x25 young leader.
Saidy has a YouTube channel she uses to share her experiences and life journey as a young person living with HIV, She has been using her platform to speak up on issues faced by people who are marginalized, such as queer women who are living with HIV.
In 2018, she made it on the prestigious Mail and Guardian 200 Young South Africans list, and she recently graduated from the YALI regional leadership center online cohort 9 under the civic leadership track. Her everyday goal is to try to show those who feel hopeless that there can be life after an HIV diagnosis.
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