In the 1980s, Central Harlem became the epicenter of the intersecting epidemics of crack cocaine use and HIV transmission, and in 2003, it still had the second highest HIV rate of any neighborhood in New York City. Citywide, HIV has had a particularly profound impact on minority youth: by early 1990, between three and four percent of all newborns in Harlem were born to HIV-infected mothers. Though medical advances have all but eliminated mother-to-child transmission of the virus in the subsequent decade, black and Latino children still account for over 90% of New York City youth living with HIV.
The Ujima program works within Harlem Hospitalís Family Care Center, a comprehensive clinic for HIV-positive youth and their families, to provide peer group activities, mentoring, and academic support for adolescents infected and affected by HIV. During weekly group meetings and individual academic sessions, volunteers offer participants a supportive, enriching environment informed but not dominated by the realities of living with HIV.