Posted on

Alan Roth

Alan Roth

When I was originally thinking about how to take these stories and bring them to life, my main concern was how to make it as honest as possible. The issues that the characters were dealing with in their lives were heavy enough. This meant that I would NOT want a video that stressed style over content.

Working with some wonderfully skilled actors who could relate to the characters in the script made the characters as real as our friends. Collaborating closely with those who live and work in some of the housing developments in Jersey City and community centers in Newark allowed us to choose locations and spaces that were to become the familiar backgrounds for all our scenes. And having a project team at every step kept us all on point.

My background is in documentary film, which I utilized in approaching decisions about how to shoot the scenes. This depended a lot on the actors playing out a scene, while one of two cameras followed along as if it was real life and we were documenting it. I think this was successful so that for some viewers, there is uncertainty if this is a documentary or a scripted drama.

My life now shares time between Brooklyn, NY and Mexico City, Mexico. I directed two documentaries on the music known as free jazz: Inside Out In the Open (2001) and The Breath Courses Through Us (2013). A recent work Dos Danzas was produced in Mexico and is a portrait of two folkloric dancers. I was associate producer for the PBS documentary Parliament Funkadelic: One Nation Under a Groove (2005).

Posted on

Martinique Moore

Martinique Moore

I was born in Newark, New Jersey, and nurtured in Georgia and North Carolina. I graduated with honors from University High School, then went on to obtain an Associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education from Essex County College, and a B.A. from Rutgers University in Television and Media, with a minor in Social Work.

I have had leading roles in stage plays such as Poor Girl Rich Girl, Newlyweds, Man of the House, You Can Run, But You Can’t Hide, A Piece of Me, Love’s Gonna Get Ya, Church Folks, Cooking in Yesterday’s Grease, Best Kept Secrets, and Looking For Love; and independent films, such as A Piece of Me, God is Calling, and A River Runs.

Presently, I enjoy voice-over work, script writing, and promotional grass roots efforts to advertise for companies such as Stuart films, Newarkiff, Body Language Productions, and the underdogs of the east coast. I currently Co-host & Co-own the “AIRITOUTSHOW” a Cable, Radio movement and YouTube show currently housed on DTFRADIO and SCRATCHVISIONRADIO.

Over the course of several months, a team drew from the real life focus groups of true life situations with the men in their lives. Through open discussions I helped create the dialogue within the story. This project gave me the opportunity to Cast, Write, and Direct several scenes. I am forever humbled by the chance to make a difference in the lives of our viewers and participants.

AIDS awareness is very near to my heart. I’ve watched family; friends and several people in the community lose their lives. So when I was given the opportunity to use my voice as a script writer, and my skills as an actress, I jumped at the task. This wasn’t a job. This was an opportunity to work with a grassroots effort to give these women a voice often ignored.

Posted on

Lorraine Lacroix

Lorraine Lacroix-Williamson, MPH

I have worked with Dr. Rachel Jones since 2009 as the Project Manager of her research projects. I obtained a bachelor’s degree from Boston University in 2006 where I majored in Human Physiology. I obtained a Master’s in Public Health from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in 2009 with a concentration in Epidemiology. Currently I am pursuing my PhD in Population health with a focus on STD and HIV prevention among adolescents.

My previous research experience includes STD prevention among adolescents, intimate partner violence among adolescents, and cancer prevention research. After completing my master’s degree, I wanted to shift my focus to working within the field of HIV prevention in an urban population. Through Dr. Jones’ work I was given the opportunity to make a real difference in reducing HIV among African-American women. In addition to HIV prevention, I am a fighter for social justice locally and abroad.

Posted on

Rachel Jones

Rachel Jones, PhD, RN, FAAN

I am an Associate Professor at Northeastern University, Bouvé College of Health Sciences, School of Nursing in Boston, Massachusetts.

I was working as a registered nurse in emergency rooms at the dawn of the epidemic-before treatment was available. Like many nurses of that time, I worked by day and helped care for friends with AIDS by night. The current work shown on this website is a commitment to the examples of courage I saw in those who succumbed to AIDS; to their lovers, friends, families, and communities, and to the nurses and physicians who cared for them.

Based on our conducting several studies among young urban women in sexual relationships with male partners, we came to understand that knowledge and intentions to reduce HIV risk were essential but not enough to change unprotected sex with high-risk partners. We understood the need to focus on the reasons women engage in unprotected sex in the context of their relationships.

The stories woven into the HIV prevention intervention video series called Love, Sex, Choices, are based on women’s realities and are written from the framework of Dr. Elizabeth Barrett’s Theory of Power as Knowing Participation in Change (more on this in our website) and Sex Script Theory (Simon & Gagnon). The videos resonate with women’s trials and tribulations in relationships with men. They also show women as they grow and change and their wisdom emerges. Women are shown realistically and with the respect they deserve. Our goal is to share the wisdom of women with women who are not yet in touch with their own wisdom and power as women.

Much of this work has been funded by grants from the National Institute of Nursing Research at the National Institutes of Health and by the National Library of Medicine (to create a risk algorithm for mobile devices). We are in the process of analyzing data from our current clinical trial that studied the effect of the 12-episode Love, Sex, & Choices. Our team consists of graduate students, undergraduate students, a biostatistician, and information systems professionals.

This clinical trial succeeded in recruiting close to 5,000 women via Facebook advertising for screening, over 2,000 of whom were at-risk and are residing in high HIV prevalence communities. This work has resulted in multiple publications on streaming video on smartphones as a public health intervention and Facebook advertising to recruit for clinical trials.

I currently serve as an Advisory Committee Member of the NIH Office of Research in Women’s Health. I’m a frequent reviewer on HIV/AIDS related study sections at NIH. My research has involved extensive collaboration with Northeastern Information Technology and IT security.

This work is dedicated to promoting health in the community and an end to HIV/AIDS in the U.S. and globally. Please enjoy Love, Sex, & Choices and share it with others. Let us know what you think.

Together we will defeat HIV/AIDS.

In solidarity,

Rachel