Hondura's HIV Supergirl - Ctrl.Alt.Shift

Every now and then, I come across a teen superstar who makes me feel old, lazy and well, just not quite accomplished enough. Who makes me feel this pathetic/self-sympathetic? Hondura's Keren Dunaway Gonzalez, HIV positive, a renowned little public speaker on the disease she was born with, and producer of her own teen HIV awareness magazine. The best (for you)/worse (for me) part of this story - the girl is only 13! Keren serves as an inspiration to any and all teen queens out there, and who knows how great she'll be post-puberty. Here's my Ctrl.Alt.Shift report on the HIV supergirl:

Feature: HIV Supergirl
What’s there to whine about when you’re 13? Your lack of a social life, prepping for SAT’s, that first kiss?

13 year old Keren Dunaway Gonzalez is indifferent to this process. In the poorest regions of Honduras, she produces an HIV awareness magazine and this year she opened the 17th International AIDS conference in Mexico as a young resonating voice of justice alongside the President of Mexico. Never mind school trips and dating, this inspirational girl has already found her calling as a child activist fighting the stigma of HIV in Honduras and across the globe.



Honduras continues to struggle with the disease, having the highest HIV rate in Central America. Those diagnosed with HIV in the impoverished country are often bullied and turfed by others in their communities. And if the stigmas surrounding the illness weren’t bad enough, a lack of treatment and awareness of HIV leaves it standing as the second most common cause of hospitalization and death in Honduras - a statistic Keren and her family are determined to change.

Keren and her parents Rosa and Alan are all HIV positive. As a unit they went public in 1999 with their HIV status and founded Fundacion Llaves with a mission to abolish stereotypes surrounding the virus. The organisation has created HIV support groups, workshops, their ‘learn about HIV/AIDS and win’ weekly radio programme and two Llaves magazines including Keren’s youth publication - as a result Karen and Llaves have played a hugely influential part in persuading the Honduran government to provide life-saving medicines. Bit by bit, they are giving the disease a human face, showing people and heart beyond statistics.

Keren sets the prime example with her trailblazing magazine Llavecitas that goes out to 10,000 children every two months. It contains fun features and most importantly HIV info and advice to help her demographic understand that they need not fear or reject a friend who is HIV positive. She is a trooper embodying her mother and Llaves’ lifetime ambition to “change the course of history, no matter how insignificantly.”

Find out more about Keren - read the full article here