I'm Positive on ERTflix

There is nothing more powerful than a father or mother’s embrace, the smile of a proud child, or the unconditional, unlimited understanding and love of a partner. As part of Ι’m Positive 2020, the third annual discussion held at Onassis Stegi on the occasion of World AIDS Day, Marios Atzemis, an HIV-positive former substance user, talks about being accepted by society. The actor Giorgos Karkas appears alongside his parents to talk about being accepted by your own family. Erofili Kokkali outlines just how many battles need to be fought in order to topple stereotypes and discrimination. The actors Michael Ikonomou and Giorgos Makris talk about the child they are raising together. And Ogundimu Olamide Olatunde, a Nigerian man forced to leave his home because of his work supporting people with HIV, talks about stigma in his own community.

Professor Sotiris Tsiodras also takes part in the discussion. His experience tackling HIV began with his work as a specialist in US hospitals, followed by his post-doctoral research into metabolic syndromes relating to HIV treatments, and continues through his professional achievements as Professor of Medicine and Infectious Diseases at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens Medical School, and Chief Scientific Advisor to the Hellenic Ministry of Health.

Acceptance means to love and to listen, to be aware and empathetic and understanding. Let us open our eyes and ears, then, to the stories of five lives being lived alongside us, and speak openly against the stigma and prejudice that follows in the wake of every virus in every society. Five stories that need to be heard. Now on ERTflix.