A global reflection on America’s founding ideals from leading voices living outside the United States in just 250 words.
Faith Mang’ehe is an Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) ambassador from Tanzania. Born HIV-free, Mang’ehe has been a member of the fight for an AIDS-free generation from the day she was born. In 2008, Faith attended the State of the Union address with her mother, Tatu Msangi, showcasing the impact of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
I am a typical young woman, attending college, planning my career, and having fun with friends. But I also know that my life is extraordinary because I would not be here today if it were not for PEPFAR, an initiative of the United States that has transformed my generation in Tanzania.
The United States gave me and my mother the freedom to live and pass that freedom on to others. Before PEPFAR, an HIV diagnosis was a death sentence, and a pregnant woman living with HIV would very possibly leave an orphaned child who then might well get sick and die.
My mother was diagnosed with HIV, but she is alive today and working as a public health nurse. And I was born HIV-free because of PEPFAR.
Now I am studying to be a pharmacist, and I speak out to other young people to get educated about HIV so that they and their children can live long lives like me and my mother.
When President George W. Bush invited my mother and me to Congress in 2008, I was only 2 years old. We were invited back for PEPFAR’s 20th anniversary, and I was able to thank President Bush and his wife, Laura, in person for what they have done. Because of PEPFAR, over 26 million lives have been saved from HIV and AIDS. You cannot build a strong community, a strong nation, when the freedom to live is in question.
