Encuentro 2022: Bringing together the Southern Latinx LGBTQIA+ Community

September 19, 2022. Durham, North Carolina — Latinos in the South, a program of the Latino Commission on AIDS, will host its Annual Regional Health Encuentro/Convening focused on the Southern Latinx LGBTQIA+ community on September 21-23 in Durham, North Carolina. The Encuentro will take place in-person at the 21C Hotel and will gather over 125 participants from the south.

The Encuentro will bring together HIV/AIDS service organizations, substance use providers, faith-based communities, and other health and multi-service organizations that serve Latinx LGBTQ communities and people impacted and living with HIV/AIDS from across the regional southeast. The convening will focus not only on leveraging our community work but also aims to transform the health of our community by addressing stigma, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, and other health-related issues affecting the health and wellbeing of Latinx southerners.

The Encuentro is also excited to collaborate with the National AIDS Memorial to bring the AIDS Memorial Quilt to display throughout the regional event.

Latinos in the South will also be celebrating its 15th anniversary and will commemorate its years of work in the South by hosting a Queerceañera (Sweet fifteen) at Queeny’s in Durham where conference attendees will participate.

“We will have the opportunity at Encuentro to share regional expertise and embrace diversity and support culturally, linguistically appropriate multi-racial health care in and beyond the Deep South,” stated, Judith Montenegro, Director, Latinos in the South.

“We hope to create visibility to the Latinx LGBTQ+ community that is present in the South and in need of sharing their experiences and strengths. We are calling for attention in addressing structural issues, such as stigma, to propose solutions from a southern Latinx perspective” stated, Joaquin Carcaño, Director of Southern Health Policy.

Latinos in the South is a regional program of the Latino Commission on AIDS that aims to build local leadership, develop networks and coalitions, enhance knowledge and cultural competency, and spur actions to address the health needs of the emerging Hispanic/Latinx communities in the south. For more information, please visit www.latinodeepsouth.org

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