BLACK HOLLYWOOD TESTS FOR HIV: Regina King, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Jimmy Jean-Louis and More

Guest blogged by Marcus Vanderberg of 'Everybody Hates Marcus'

Sheryl Lee Ralph and Jimmy Jean Louis publicly test for HIV at SAG With Wednesday marking the 10th anniversary of National HIV Testing Day, a number of Black celebrities joined forces with the Screen Actors Guild on Monday to take part in a public HIV test in order to raise awareness of testing.

Jimmy Jean-Louis ("Heroes"), Sheryl Lee Ralph ("Dreamgirls"), Anne-Marie Johnson ("CSI," "JAG"), Rockmond Dunbar ("Prison Break," "Heartland"), Regina King ("Ray," "24"), Gil Robertson (author of book 'Not In My Family') and Henry Simmons ("Shark") were just a handful of the many Hollywood stars in attendance.

The campaign, called "1 in a Million", is the brainchild of the Black AIDS Institute, which is run by Executive Director and Founder Phill Wilson.

The ultimate goal is to have 1 million Black Americans screened for the HIV virus by December 1, 2008, which is World AIDS Day.

The actual test consists of swabbing the inside of your mouth and waiting for the results. No more needles and more importantly, no pain.

"Phill Wilson called me, and whenever he calls me, I just say yes first before I even know what it's about," said 'Heroes' actor Jimmy Jean-Louis. "Being from Haiti, I have always lived with that stigma so it was very important for me to be here for America to show that it's ok that you get tested and know about your status."

Regina King publicly tests for HIV for '1 in a Million Campaign' Jean-Louis shared a story with the crowd about how he was forced to take a HIV Test as a child in Paris in order to take part in a class field trip with the rest of his classmates. He was the only child singled out to take the test.

The person responsible for the idea of Monday's event is Tony Wafford, who has worked closely with Wilson over the years. Wafford got involved because he felt the AIDS epidemic might be hitting too close to home.

"I don't have HIV, I'm not gay, but I went to a meeting and I heard the statistics that relate to women," said Wafford. "I have three daughters and I heard nobody raising their voices on what the disease was doing on black women. At that point, I knew I had to do something so that's when I decided I would get involved."

The goal of the Black AIDS Mobilization is to ending the AIDS epidemic in Black America by 2012 by:

• Cutting HIV rates in Black America by 50%
• Increasing the number of Black Americans who know their HIV status by 50%
• Increasing the number of Black Americans in appropriate early care/treatment by 50%
• Reducing HIV/AIDS stigma in Black America by 50%

It's something that's very important that we are aware of our status," said actor Darius McCrary. "If it takes celebrities being in the forefront to perk people's interests, then I'm all for it."

A number of the participants on hand have been tested for the HIV virus prior to Monday's event.
"Oh yeah, definitely," said Wafford. "I used to be a ho. For a Negro to have never played a professional sport or made a movie, I have my share of body count in terms of women."

Wilson hopes that people will take notice of this event and walk away with the urge to get tested.

"We want people to know that the AIDS epidemic has not gone away, especially in the Black community," said Wilson. "We want people to know there is hope to end this epidemic within our community."