BY STEVE ROTHAUS, srothaus@MiamiHerald.com
Miami’s David Bromstad, host of HGTV’s Color Splash, just returned from New York, where he launched a new AIDS prevention campaign, “Know Yourself: Get HIV Tested.”
“Getting HIV tested is very important to protect yourself and know your status,” Bromstad told The Miami Herald. “People are a little complacent about it or they’re scared. If you’re complacent, that’s not an excuse. If you’re scared, it’s not a fun thing to get tested. The balance is held in a piece of paper.”
Bromstad, 37, says bluntly that people should be afraid before they have sex, not later when they’re tested: “You should put the condom on the penis. That’s the fear that should come first.”
The TV celebrity, who is being compensated by drug manufacturer Janssen Therapeutics, will design and paint a mural that will be unveiled in New York City in September, to recognize Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
“I’m talking with people who are members of the LGBT community who also have HIV. I’m asking what their opinions should be,” Bromstad says of the mural. “I’m still formulating ideas. I know it’s going to be colorful.”
Bromstad, who came out 16 years ago, says the campaign is to “protect everybody.”
“People are getting on the lazy side. They say, ‘It’s manageable so I don’t have to be so afraid of it.’ That’s not the attitude we need to be taking,” Bromstad says. “I adore our community. It’s an amazing place. They supported me even before I was on television. They’ve given me a lot, and it’s time for me to give back. I have a lot of friends who are HIV positive.”
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