To say that attendees were pleasantly surprised would be putting it mildly. With at least 130 participants from health, government and community-based organizations in attendance, the topic of African immigrant health stirred emotions and bubbled over into conversations of education, outreach and advocacy.

The morning started off?a little late, but only by an hour?with African music by Jama Jigi and quickly moved to the topic of advocacy and encouraging immigrants to get involved in what many are hoping will become a movement reminiscent to what was seen in the 1980s and 90s by white homosexual men regarding HIV.

There were polite, but heated, debates about strategies targeting specific African communities, using providers that look like the community members they serve and divorcing HIV from sexuality.

Several panelists and audience members pinpointed privacy as a major reason African immigrants are not seeking HIV testing. Others mentioned the desire to receive green cards, but the red tape that comes with a positive diagnosis.

This health care system that many Americans complain about was touted as worse for many immigrants. And with the immigration ban removed from the recent PEPFAR bill, many see this as a long-term battle that is still worth pushing for.