Despite decades of education and outreach to promote HIV and AIDS awareness, it is still prevalent in our own country. HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, has not gone away. In fact, it is actually on the rise in Michigan.

According to the Michigan Department of Community Health, instances of HIV in teens and young adults are up for the third year in a row in our state. The rate of new diagnoses in 13-to-24-year-olds almost doubled between 2002 and 2006.

In our country, we have unlimited access to HIV testing. The test is painless and can be done with a cotton swab in the mouth at any community health department. The tests are free and anonymous, and results are available in as little as fifteen minutes. Today, Senators Martha G. Scott (D-Highland Park), Gilda Z. Jacobs (D-Huntington Woods), Hansen Clarke (D-Detroit), and Tupac A. Hunter (D-Detroit) underwent HIV testing at the Capitol.

The State Senators were tested to show how painless the procedure is, and how important it is for Michigan citizens to know their status. HIV/AIDS does not discriminate. It knows no race or socioeconomic status.

Testing is the best way to protect yourself and the people you love, and prevention is the best way to keep the disease from spreading. Practice safe sex, and don’t share drug needles. If you’re sexually active or using drugs, get tested regularly. Testing not only prevents an infected person from unknowingly spreading the disease, but it also means that infected persons can start getting treatment immediately.

While HIV/AIDS is a threat the world over, we have access to some of the best prevention, testing, and treatment. Together, we all have the power to stop the spread of AIDS. The Senators hope that many people will join them in this important battle and follow their example by going out and getting tested.

You can call the statewide AIDS information hotline at 1-800-872-AIDS for more information about testing locations. You can also learn more about HIV and AIDS at the Michigan Department of Community Health’s website at www.michigan.gov/hivstd.

June 19, 1865. It is a historic day for all Americans, for it is the day that recognizes the true emancipation of slaves in the United States. And on the third Saturday in June (this year on June 21^st) we will once again celebrate Juneteenth, the oldest known celebration of the end of slavery.

While slavery was officially abolished by the Emancipation Proclamation two years earlier, many Western states were either unaware of the order or lacked the Union troops to enforce it. Finally, on June 19, 1865, a Union soldier arrived in Galveston, Texas to read aloud General Order #3: "The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the U.S., all slaves are free."

A spontaneous and joyful celebration broke out, and many excited freed slaves quickly left their plantations and headed north to seek a better life. The following year, when June 19^th rolled around, many former slaves returned to their original plantations to reflect on their past and prepare themselves for the challenges that lay ahead.

The first Juneteenth celebrations were more like political rallies and focused on teaching African Americans about their new rights as American citizens. But, as former slaves and their descendents continued to return to the South to mark Juneteenth, the gatherings turned into huge and colorful celebrations of freedom.

Juneteenth was widely celebrated and, at its high point, African American workers were allowed the day off from work to participate. Participation began to decrease in the early 1920s. However, during the Civil Rights movement, Juneteenth celebrations slowly reemerged, with the celebrations expanding to focus on education and appreciation of African American history and culture.

In 1980, a bill sponsored by state representative Al Edwards passed in Texas making Juneteenth "Emancipation Day in Texas" and a legal state holiday. The bill renewed an interest in Juneteenth that spread further across the country.

Both the Smithsonian and Henry Ford museums displayed exhibits honoring Juneteenth. And in June, 2005, Governor Granholm signed a bill into law that officially recognized the third Saturday in June, as Juneteenth in Michigan, a bill I'm proud to say I sponsored.

From the mutinies on the slave ships by Africans as they crossed the Atlantic, to the revolutions organized by slaves in the New World, to the founding of organizations like the Free African Society, to the Underground Railroad, to the Emancipation Proclamation, to the Harlem Renaissance, to the Great Migration to the modern civil rights movement – our history is built on these events .

That's why is important that on this third Saturday in June, as we celebrate Juneteenth, we reflect on that history and the hard-fought freedoms we have won. And one of the most precious and powerful is the right to vote.

History has also taught us, and particularly recent history, that every contest, every candidate, and every vote is important. Voting is your right and your responsibility. And every vote does count. That means that every American citizen deserves equal access to elections and an equal opportunity to influence the political process.

It’s about fairness. It’s about equality. And it’s about freedom, the freedom fought for by your sisters and brothers for centuries.

So celebrate that freedom. Celebrate your history. And celebrate Juneteenth.