Exhibition allows public to experience lives of people at risk from HIV
Last Christmas, the SCMP/RTHK fund-raiser Operation Santa Claus raised a record HK$16 million, helping 27 charities realise projects to enhance the lives of children and adults. In this fortnightly series, we revisit some of the charities to make us more accountable to our readers and check in with those you helped.
To understand a man, you must walk a mile in his shoes, the saying goes. That is exactly what 'Aids X-perience', an exhibition sponsored by Operation Santa Claus, aims to do: to let people experience the lives of those exposed to the risk of HIV/Aids in different parts of the world.
The interactive exhibition, presented by local non-profit organisation Crossroads International at its headquarters in Tuen Mun, allows participants to 'walk through' the life stories of four individuals and discover whether they are HIV positive.
Visitors are asked to pick a storyline before they are shown into tiny rooms decorated as homes, clinics, pubs, and other places where the protagonists lived or visited.
By listening to the soundtracks and walking through the settings, visitors gain an insight into how the individuals were exposed to the virus.
David Begbie, programme director for the group, says the simulation gives a human touch to a global issue.