As members of the youth, we would be very lucky if we are able to encourage the rest our generation to be part of a movement that changes the way we view HIV/AIDS prevention. Why? Because we can be saving more lives than we can imagine. There is a stigma associated with HIV/AIDS, even with just simply getting tested for it. Clearly, proper education regarding HIV/AIDS will expunge the idea that HIV/AIDS is only confined to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community or Men having Sex with Men community. There is still discrimination whereas what we should be moving towards is acceptance - not even tolerance, but acceptance in its purest form. Now I guess the challenge for us, the youth, especially student leaders and like, is for us to be able to fight the stigma; fight the discrimination.

Now as we move forward with this advocacy, the best way that we can start to meet our goals, as the youth, is to get involved. It may sound simple being said, but being involved takes a lot of courage because it symbolizes going against the current stigma, the status quo that makes us believe that being LGBT or having HIV or simply being tested is taboo and unacceptable. As we get involved, we go beyond all that. We open not only our eyes to the reality, but our minds as well, in hopes that others would do the same.

That is why members of youth, like myself, and most of us here around you actually got tested. Because we believe that even if we have, we shouldn't be looked down upon or even feared. In fact, we should be taken as an example because we took the very first and most important step towards prevention - towards getting to zero.