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Byllye Avery: Celebrating Health Awareness Week at Spelman E J 5Sf&,. founder and jsident V the National Black omen’s Health Project, one o veral people present on Spelman s mpus for Black Women s Hegth rareness Week, January 19-24,1992. Mrs. Avery approached her idience with a topic she called the 3 V AIDS, Abortion, and Assault, all • which she materialized with isterhood. ** "The important things are what you ave in your head about who you are ad about who we are as a collective nit of beings here on this earth, she ” First on her agenda was AIDS and its effects on Black women, collectively. In a relationship, before anything, she advised, "Find out where your mate is on the topic of AIDS. It is not about trust, it’s about protecting yourself. "It might be fine if you don’t have a boyfriend this year; that might mean you may be around in the future to have one," she said. On abortion, Mrs. Avery said, "You want to maintain the power to make a choice because Black women had no choice! The nerve of us giving up the opportunity to have a choice." According to Mrs. Avery, we - young Black women - have to start fighting for ourselves. Men, particularly white congressmen, cannot make such decisions for us. Mrs. Avery invites each of us to participate in the National Black Women’s Health Project’s "nest project." On April 5, NBWHP will charter buses from the Atlanta University Center to Washington, D C. for the Pro-choice March on Washington. "We were not put here to be messed with. You don’t have to take it...Talk about it. It was not your fault," she said. When our bodies are assaulted there are psychological and physical repercussions. "Assault that happens to our bodies eludes those factors that make us feel iwerless, hopeless, and alienated from ich other," said Mrs. Avery. "We ust break the cycle of silence." Mrs. Avery’s final bit of advice: Vs you love yourself so runs your ipacity to love each other." She icouraged Spelman women and Black omen to support each other, to ;build the sisterhood that has iteriorated even in crisis situations. The National Black Women’s ealth Project is an organization by id for Black women which incentrates on the issues that affect lack women socially and physically. is located at 175 Trinity Avenue, W 2nd Floor, Atlanta, GA 30303.