The first cases of the HIV virus were diagnosed and treated over 20 years ago at UCLA. Today, the university continues to take strides in fighting the epidemic by encouraging and administering testing for HIV on campus.

As part of the “I Know – And Knowledge is Power” campaign, free anonymous HIV testing will be administered in Bruin Plaza during World AIDS Day today. The campaign, sponsored by the UCLA AIDS Institute, will administer HIV testing in two vans from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Getting tested for HIV can be a difficult decision because there are stigmas that are commonly associated with the virus such as the perception that only gay men, people in Africa or sexually promiscuous people can get infected.

“By making the testing free, quick and easily accessible, I hope to make testing as routine as going to the dentist,” said Edwin Bayrd, the executive director of the UCLA AIDS Institute.

“Our point really is to remind undergraduates that it’s important for them to know their HIV status and to emphasize that the epidemic has moved well beyond the traditional risk groups.”

According to Bayrd, 300,000 people in the United States are HIV positive and do not know it, and statistically speaking this number includes UCLA students.

Options for HIV testing include drawing blood or collecting a sample of saliva. Both tests are brief and give results on site in less than 30 minutes. Results can also be obtained by calling the institute or through mail. Those who know their results receive a red wristband with the message “I know.”

The red wristbands, similar to the yellow wristbands that Lance Armstrong promoted for cancer awareness, are meant to make HIV testing more acceptable to talk about even after World AIDS Day.

“If you have them on, it’s a daily reminder of why it is important to get tested. We’re going to give out maybe 15,000 or 20,000 of these out over the next year. We hope to initiate 15,000 or 20,000 discussions about HIV testing,” Bayrd said.

Sherri Lewis, an AIDS activist and speaker at the HIV testing campaign, was diagnosed with HIV in the 1980s when the general public saw testing as pointless because fewer treatments existed. Today, more effective medical treatments are available.

“We’re trying to write a new chapter for a new millennium with AIDS. We don’t have a cure, but we have treatments. You can be healthy and HIV positive,” she said.

Bayrd said it is important for people to know their HIV status as soon as possible to prevent further transmission and start taking care of their health. Dozens of service organizations will provide counseling and support during World AIDS Day for people who have tested positive.

The Ashe Center also offers HIV testing throughout the year. “I would encourage anybody who feels that they have had any risk of exposure of HIV to be tested,” said Michelle Pearson, director of Ancillary Services at the Center. “It’s just all a matter of taking care of yourself and being a good citizen of the world.”