In April 2011, Antonio Davis was arrested during a protest on Capitol Hill. Almost a year later, he faces trial because the doctor-recommended marijuana he uses to mitigate the pain from AIDS registered on a court-mandated drug test. more ›

Recent statistics show that more people in the District are getting tested for HIV/AIDS, earlier. That's no reason to wait, though. more ›

A new report on the number of District residents living with HIV and AIDS showed that 3.2 percent of the city, triple the standard World Health Organization rate for an epidemic, still suffer from the afflictions -- but the report did note a decline in the number of new cases. more ›

Frustrated by the way the federal government treats the District of Columbia, and wondering what the Obama Administration is doing about it? Well, here's your chance to ask -- Michael Blake, White House Director of African American & Minority Business Outreach in the Office of Public Engagement, will appear at a forum on Wednesday night at All Souls Church in Ward 1 where residents can "voice [their] concerns to the White House directly and have [their] questions answered." more ›

Last spring, Washington became the first American city to organize a campaign to distribute free female condoms in areas of the city where HIV/AIDS infection rates were highest. The good news: the public-private D.C. Female Condom Project campaign -- given the catchphrase "DC’s Doin’ It!" -- has been fairly successful so far. According to statistics released earlier this week, 25,000 D.C. residents were made aware of the female condom during the program's first year. That figure includes 13,000 men who were made aware of the contraception's existence -- a rather impressive showing, considering that the D.C. HIV/AIDS Administration had assumed that zero fellas would take an interest in the contraception. more ›

This morning's big entertainment news was the death of actress Elizabeth Taylor, who died due to heart failure at the age of 79. The actress, who will be well-remembered for her roles in classic films like Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, her passion for jewelry and her eight marriages, was also a tireless advocate for AIDS-related causes. In fact, you've likely walked past one part of Taylor's charitable legacy several times -- the Whitman-Walker Clinic named their treatment facility at 1701 14th Street NW in Taylor's honor in 1993. more ›

The Whitman-Walker Clinic is extending National HIV Testing Day (NHTD) to a full week in D.C. NHTD, which takes place on June 27 this year, is a Department of Health & Human Services initiative to raise awareness of and to increase testing for HIV nationwide. more ›

Yesterday, the Whitman-Walker Clinic announced plans to restructure itself, with a focus on expanding its medical services. With the restructuring comes layoffs from within its nearly 240 member staff as early as today. WWC didn't specify how many would be let go, and published news reports currently give inconsistent figures; Metro Weekly says up to 10 percent of staff will be cut, while the Washington Post reports closer to 25 percent. more ›

Say what you will about the $515.7 billion spending bill the House of Representatives passed yesterday, there is a silver-lining for the District -- the ban on the use of public funds for needle-exchange programs was finally lifted. more ›

Good morning, Washington. We'll be standing by for a good chunk of the day to see what the Metro Board decides to do about the proposed fare hike - the Board is meeting at 11 a.m. for a session that is expected to produce a final vote on the fare hikes, which could go into effect as soon as January. Board members have indicated they would likely pass a fare hike that is slightly less than the current proposal. more ›

The Onion's regular American Voices segment takes on the D.C. HIV/AIDS epidemic today, proving once again that there is no holy mad cow disease too sacred for America's Finest News Source. more ›

December 1 is World AIDS Day, and several vigils and protests are planned in D.C. today and through the weekend to mark the occasion. In the wake of the recent report by the D.C. HIV/AIDS Administration calling the HIV infection rate in the city "a modern epidemic," over 40 protesters are planning to drape themselves in red tape and stage a sit-in on the White House sidewalk by Lafayette Square at 2:30 p.m. this afternoon.... more ›

Good morning, Washington. It's news of the weird day today on DCist, as the Post tells the bizarre story of two 2nd-year engineering students from U-Va. who have been charged with the kidnapping of a man in Tysons Corner and demanding $500,000 in ransom. Both the two kidnappers and the victim are Chinese nationals who had been living with host families in Virginia while attending college. Police arrested Guanyu Lu and Baichuan Shu, both 19,... more ›

Good morning, Washington, and welcome back to work after a nice long holiday away. We hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving vacation as much as we did ours. That is if you can take a long enough break from all the online shopping you'll supposedly be doing from your desk today to tell us about it. Stay tuned until the week before Christmas for your next update on the holiday shopping habits of Americans -- we... more ›

DCist's highly subjective and hardly comprehensive guide to the most interesting movies playing around town in the coming week. Indie: Romance & Cigarettes John Turturro's third film as a director is the sort that seems tailor made to become a cult classic. Not nearly polished or glamorous enough to be the sort of Broadway to big screen musical hit that Chicago or Hairspray was, it was too oddball to fit into the heads of most... more ›

Good morning, Washington. The city is still reeling from the news that the U.S. Attorney's Office has indicted two employees from the District's Office of Tax and Revenue on charges of embezzling over $16 million. It's a staggering sum, and the Post cites officials who are calling it the largest theft ever uncovered in local government in the Washington area. The two women, Harriette Walters and Diane Gustus, are said to have used the money... more ›

The condom saga continues, as community groups have returned as many as 70,000 of the D.C.-branded condoms provided by the health department. Despite assuring the public that the condoms, which bear the slogan "Coming Together to Stop HIV in D.C.", are safe and effective, the city eventually gave in and agreed to phase them out, agreeing that they were now so mistrusted as to no longer be effective, de facto. The uproar began when the Post published a story saying demand for the condoms had gone way down in recent months as people reported that the integrity of their packaging was questionable. more ›

Compiled by DCist Contributors Josh Kramer and Sarah Stonesifer The Eagle - American: >> AU is fine-tuning their free HIV testing program to accommodate students' schedules. They've also switched from an anonymous testing program to a confidential one. The changes aim to bring the school in line with the District government's HIV testing initiative. >> The American University bus drivers were approved by the Undergraduate Senate to have their own union, a debate that had... more ›

The District was still defending its yellow-and-purple packaged condoms yesterday, but today Health Department officials are whistling a different tune. On the heels of news that the company that makes Trojans will donate 350,000 condoms to the city's HIV/AIDS outreach prevention program, officials are finally throwing in the towel on the old batch, which have been derided for having weak packaging that reportedly falls apart. The condoms, which bear the slogan "Coming Together to Stop... more ›

Good morning, D.C. Yesterday was just about the most beautiful day, weather-wise, that the city has seen in a long time, and today we're expecting more of the same. So is there anything on God's green Earth that could cause us to lose the attendant sunny dispositions we all naturally have as a result? Oh, drat. It's Thursday. Metro General Manager John Catoe will appear before Metro's Board of Directors today and recommend raising minimum... more ›

We gave Mayor Fenty a hard time back in March for being so slow to get going on fighting HIV and AIDS in the District, which has the highest rate of infection of any city in the country. Eventually he did name who appears to be a good choice to run the city's HIV/AIDS agency last month, but a story in today's Washington Post detailing the problems plaguing the District's effort to give away 1 million condoms this year suggests a lack of leadership in HIV/AIDS prevention this year has had serious consequences. more ›

>> Mayor Fenty has named Shannon Lee Hader, an epidemiologist and public health physician who has directed the U.S. AIDS program in Zimbabwe, to head the District's HIV/AIDS Administration. [WaPo] >> D.C. Law enforcement officials are trying to seize control of a house at 1923 Rhode Island Avenue NE, a long-time location for illicit activity. [WJLA] >> A small plane crash landed in the Hollywood area of St. Mary's County. Two of three passengers... more ›

Good morning, Washington. Did you stay up late arguing the finer points of last night's Democratic presidential debate at Howard University? Or were you just hoping to get a table at Busboys and Poets but unable to shove your way through the crowd? Shaw and the U Street corridor were overrun with Democratic political operatives last night ... which really probably isn't any different than any other night. But forget about the substance of the... more ›

Good morning, Washington. Predictions of a cold front that will bring in spring-like conditions tomorrow have us a little bit giddy this morning, so we hope you'll forgive us for putting up a slightly hurried morning roundup so we can seize the opportunity to dance around our office with glee. You know want to do the same, so go on, we won't tell. Post Starts Beating Examiner's Drum: A front page story this morning in... more ›

It's often easy to huff and puff about the city's lack of voting rights, budget autonomy and the kingly powers used by members of Congress to derail local initiatives or force the city into doing things that its voters never envisioned. But rarely does an example come along that brings the District's second-class status into such sharp relief as did a story published today in the New York Times. The story chronicles the tireless work... more ›

We know that despite the grumbling, despite the lack of voting rights, despite the indie rock neighborhood battles to the death, even despite the fashion sense or lack thereof, you guys love this town just as much as we do. That's why this year we're starting our own team for the Greater Washington Servathon 2007, the massive, annual volunteer event presented by Greater DC Cares and AOL. In addition to volunteering our time on either May 4 or 5, each participant is asked to raise just $100 by asking friends and family to donate to the cause. All the money, including your registration fee of $20 (which goes towards your $100) goes to help local nonprofit agencies run throughout the year. This year, Servathon hopes to raise $400,000 and provide 11,000 volunteer hours fixing up the community. more ›

Good Morning, Washington. Yes, we too woke up to the rude fact that it's friggin' cold again well into April, with no relief in sight through the weekend, and briefly considered giving up this urban life we'd always thought we wanted in favor of opening up a fruit stand in Acapulco. We wouldn't need much really, just a couple of bathing suits and maybe a blender to occasionally whip up a frosty tropical beverage. Mmm.... more ›

We get it: Mayor Fenty is one helluva busy guy. In his first few months on the job, he's hit the ground running on issues ranging from public safety to schools to Congressional representation. One area where some residents feel he's been curiously quiet, though, is on the District's ongoing HIV/AIDS crisis. Among them is the newly formed Metro D.C.chapter of The Campaign to End AIDS (C2EA), which writes that with "Adrian Fenty's first 100 Days more than half over, it is clear that he has failed to lead on HIV/AIDS in the District." more ›

Dine Out For Life On March 8 If you've been feeling guilty about all your meals out lately, get ready to wash that all away next week. The annual Dining Out For Life benefit will take place next Thursday, March 8. If you're unfamiliar with the charity affair, it's one day each year when dozens of area restaurants donate at least 25% of their profits to local charity Food and Friends. The event, which takes... more ›

> > Deadline worth noting! Anyone interested in participating in this year's DC Idiotarod has until tomorrow, Thursday March 1, at 11:59 p.m. to register your team for the big race on March 3. Don't miss out on this opportunity to bring wanton chaos to the streets of D.C. [DC Idiotarod] > > Fans of soccer, wine, photography, and philanthropy will descend upon the JW Marriott tonight for the Goals for Girls Auction & Wine... more ›