Sharing Hope: Charles Kaggwa Kasumba

Charles Kaggwa Kasumba grew up in a suburb of Kampala, with fourteen sisters and brothers and two loving parents. Four of his siblings have died from AIDS, and when Charles found out that he was HIV-positive, he was sure he, too, would die. For five long years, Charles tried to ignore his illness, but finally his symptoms became too great to ignore – he was referred to IDI, where he received the physical and emotional care that he desperately needed.

When Charles regained his health, he auditioned for and was given the position of Trainer for the Music, Dance, and Drama Group, a professional-level performance group sponsored by IDI. The group is made up of IDI patients who are themselves living with HIV/AIDS. This dynamic group of 25 dedicated singers and dancers is committed to helping residents of Kampala and surrounding areas to gain a better understanding of the issues related to AIDS through performances to community groups and schools, at HIV testing sites, and at the IDI clinic. Their work supports prevention activities, encourages testing and counseling, and helps to reduce the stigma that so many infected individuals and their families encounter.

A highlight of Charles’ life was when he was invited to take the Music, Dance and Drama Trainer job at IDI. “My heart filled with joy,” he says. In this role, Charles is inspiring others living with HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases like malaria and tuberculosis, to have hope. Today, he leads the group in a series of education and advocacy campaigns across the Kampala community and outside of the city’s borders.

With Charles as leader, the group has developed 63 songs and dances, seven poems, two plays, one film story, and 12 skits. All involve multiple messages of prevention, adherence, stigma reduction, family planning, discordance (when one member of a couple is HIV-positive and the other is not diagnosed with the disease), behavior change (especially among youth), and male circumcision—and which also provide general entertainment. The group has performed for over 6,000 people through 65 performances over the past two years.