Bruce E. Smail. Photo: Susan Jordan
By Susan Jordan
Bruce E. Smail has been Executive Director of The MOCHA Center, a non-profit organization providing health and wellness programs and services for communities of color, especially the LGBTQ community, for five months.
Born in New York City, he was raised in St. Croix, Virgin Islands. He went to The College of New Jersey in Trenton, N.J., where he did his undergrad and masters degrees, and then worked in multicultural and LGBTQ affairs at various universities around the country.
“In 2005 I went home to the Virgin Islands,” he said, “to lead VICARE, the largest HIV/AIDS non-profit organization in the Virgin Islands for three years. I also launched a social justice consulting company in Washington, D.C. Then I felt it would be better to be back in a fulltime job, and I launched a national job search.”
Bruce started work at MOCHA in July 2011. “My heart and passion are in education and training,” he says. “I’d say my work is a combination of a lot of different areas. Foremost is administration, but the work we do with people of color, LGBTQ, and HIV/AIDS communities draws upon my counseling background. The majority of my career has been in advocacy and providing services to LGBTQ, people of color, and HIV/AIDS so this position is a unique opportunity to bridge my 20 years of working with these communities.”
He continued, “Like St. Croix, New York State is ranked unusually high in the per capita rate of HIV. New York State has the highest per capita rate of HIV in the United States and the Virgin Islands is second. The per capita rate of AIDS in New York is ranked second in the U.S. while the Virgin Islands is rank fourth.”
“In terms of high incidence rates, there are several things that are important. The concentration levels of HIV and AIDS are high in New York which increases risks if people are having unprotected sex. You have a greater chance of being in contact with someone who is living with HIV/AIDS. It is important that we increase dialogue on HIV/AIDS. People are often uncomfortable with the issue, but the more you discuss it the more you normalize the topic. Having HIV positive individuals visible brings the issue closer to home.”
“I think people feel they personally are not at risk – ‘I’m straight, I’m in a committed relationship,’ etc. But it’s about behaviors – not what community you’re in. It’s about having unprotected sex, or using unclean needles. You may not identify as being part of the gay or drug using communities, but your risky behavior may be putting you at risk.”
When asked about his first priorities as the new ED, Bruce said, “I’ve been working internally with the organization and also with the community. The MOCHA Center has gone through several transitions in the past year, and it’s important to show our stability through the new leadership in the organization as well as the board of directors. Dr. Ed Brockenbrough, a faculty member in the Warner School of Education at the University of Rochester is serving as the new President of the Board of Directors. We are working closely to refocus our vision for the MOCHA Center. It’s also important to create opportunities for MOCHA to engage with the community, and vice versa. We’re looking for opportunities to develop strong community partners and we are engaged in various collaborative plans right now.”
“Also important is that in Rochester we have a large youth contingent and we need to expand beyond the social aspect and add more educational, leadership, and career development programs.”
“We need to do fundraising and it’s a priority. But one thing I’m working on with the board is looking at fundraising and seeing how we can raise self-generating funds for the agency. That could be done through consulting, capacity building, and trainings for a fee. We’ll also look at business ventures and of course there’s a range of fund-raising options.”
“Fundraising is part of it, but we still need to look both at programming and how we address needs of our communities. In Monroe County in 2010, 45 percent of new HIV cases were in the age group 24 and under – which is very difficult and calls for our organization, and other organizations, to seriously look at what types of programming we can offer to bring the attention of youth to HIV/AIDS. There are concerns in our schools about providing free condoms to students, for instance. I don’t think we have the privilege of stalling on that, when you look at the high rates of HIV and STI among youth. Nationally, the other high incidence rate is MSM – men who have sex with men – largely young African American men. We need to break the stigma around sexual identity and truly address the needs of these communities.”
“Our communities face huge challenges unless we increase dialogue, HIV testing, and make condoms easily accessible. I do think there is some resistance to condoms and frank dialogue about safer sex, HIV/AIDS, and sexual and gender identities.”
Bruce said that MOCHA is currently launching two new support groups, one for newly diagnosed people and the other for people who have been HIV positive for two years or more. He said, “We’re looking for men of color. We’ve also invited various community groups to sponsor programs within MOCHA. We’re very excited about a possible new group for LGBTQ elders of color. Please visit our website, www.mochacenter.org for more details.”
In reference to his visions for MOCHA’s future, Bruce said, “MOCHA is a big organization. We have offices in Rochester and Buffalo and satellite offices in Niagara Falls and New York City. Our partnership with GMHC (Gay Men’s Health Crisis) in New York City is an excellent opportunity to serve the entire state of New York. Both organizations are leading the New York State Taskforce on Black Gay Health and provide capacity building and technical assistance to NYS organizations that serve Black MSM. As we continue our grassroots efforts and commitment to our local communities, the MOCHA Center will also expand our reach on state and national levels.”
Years of experience in HIV prevention education has lead Bruce to see multiple ways to educate people. “I tend to prefer a personal touch,” he said. “I think largely because so many people have not been in contact and haven’t personalized HIV – when they can see people living with HIV and doing well, that adds a whole different dimension.
“I’ve been HIV positive since 2003, and I use my story in educating others about HIV/AIDS. Recently I spoke with about 20 youth who normally come in to the MOCHA Center on Ballroom Thursday. I shared my HIV story and gave them an opportunity to openly dialogue about HIV. They were able to ask whatever they wanted to ask. That’s the best way to learn – when you actually have someone who you can talk to and question. The more we can do that for all communities in Rochester, the more we will be able to reduce stigma and fear in our communities.”
“I did a Sunday morning radio talk show with Nate Brown a few weeks ago. His show provides an opportunity for youth from our local community organization, Threshold, to host his show once a month. The youth interviewed my youth peer leader and myself about HIV and the MOCHA Center. While Threshold targets youth of color, it gave the youth interviewers an opportunity to dialogue on HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ issues. Their questions were engaging as well as hopeful that we can reach our young people on a critical health issue that may impact their lives. I told the staff at Threshold I would be willing to come and talk to their youth. I’m open to doing it on a regular basis and also to come to schools and talk about HIV.”
“I want people to know that there are individuals who are doing well and leading normal lives. The reality is, there are also youth who are living with HIV. What does a life-threatening illness mean to individuals who are 19 or 20 years old? When I came out as HIV positive I was older and already out about my sexual identity. For me, my outness about my status was also a freeing moment that erased the guilt, shame, and negative realities about HIV. I don’t want to be sad or ashamed – the shame and guilt are what hold people back.
“I’m not suggesting that everyone positive should be out, because there are risks. But they should be surrounded by people who will give them the support they need.”
