The following stigma-related interventions were conducted in this state.
2GETHER
Study & Intervention Summary
The 2GETHER intervention is an HIV prevention and relationship education program for young male couples, consisting of four weekly sessions. The first two sessions are group-based, focusing on relationship characteristics and sexual health, while the last two are individual coaching sessions applying these skills. The intervention includes couples-based HIV testing and medication adherence. The article examines the influence of internalized stigma on the intervention's efficacy.
The intervention, Connect to Protect (C2P), aims to advance structural changes to reduce adolescents' risk of HIV exposure by improving access to health information, condoms, and HIV testing. It involves community coalitions led by adolescent medicine clinical units and technical support staff, with objectives such as eliminating parental consent requirements for HIV testing, increasing access to adolescent-friendly HIV testing, and creating safe zones for at-risk adolescents. The intervention assesses the impact of these changes on health behaviors through annual data collection from adolescents over a 4 to 5 year period.
Connect-to-Protect (C2P) (individual health behavior outcomes)
Study & Intervention Summary
The Connect-to-Protect (C2P) intervention is a 10-year community mobilization effort aimed at creating structural changes to reduce HIV exposure among at-risk youth. It involves establishing coalitions that select and implement structural change objectives to improve the local risk environment for targeted youth populations. The intervention targets local policies, practices, and resource availability to reduce risk among youth, focusing on populations such as YMSM, injecting drug users, and high-risk young women of color. The evaluation used an observational study design due to the impracticality of a randomized controlled trial.
The Healthy Choices intervention aims to reduce HIV-related stigma among youth living with HIV (YLWH) by addressing alcohol use and promoting antiretroviral medication adherence. It is delivered by community health workers in various settings over four face-to-face sessions using Motivational Enhancement Therapy, an adaptation of Motivational Interviewing. The intervention seeks to improve health outcomes and reduce stigma by promoting non-judgmental communication and adapting provider communication styles.
The aim of the article is to examine HIV disclosure practices to family and intersectional stigma among Latino sexual minority men (LSMM) of Mexican and Puerto Rican origin with HIV in the USA. The intervention aimed to identify, link, and retain these individuals in HIV care through navigation services that addressed disclosure practices and stigma management. The interventions were implemented at nine demonstration sites and included specific curricula and informal conversations to support disclosure readiness and manage stigma.
HIV stigma reduction & health literacy program in an African-American church by Cook et al. (2021)
Study & Intervention Summary
The intervention aimed to reduce HIV stigma and expand HIV knowledge and health literacy in a cross-generational African American faith center through three instructional sessions on HIV Facts, HIV Stigma, and Health Literacy. The sessions included PowerPoint presentations, handouts, and activities, with a focus on community-based participatory research principles.
Stigma Type Addressed
Structural
Study Population - Recipients
Clergy
Intervention Level
Individual - Intrapersonal (Self)
Intervention Setting Addressed
Community (Faith-based organizations, barber shops, etc)
The aim of the article is to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the "Life Skills" intervention, a small group-based HIV prevention program for young transgender women aged 16-24. The intervention addresses unique HIV prevention needs by focusing on sexual health, HIV education, safer sex techniques, communication, and accessing community services, with a structured 3-week delivery format.
The study aims to examine changes in internalized stigma and avoidant coping among African American adults living with HIV and serious mental illness following a peer-led intervention. The intervention is a community-based participatory research (CBPR) developed peer-led pilot intervention, consisting of four 90-minute peer-led weekly group sessions, designed to increase treatment engagement.
The article describes the Project ACCEPT intervention, a group-based behavioral program aimed at reducing HIV-related stigma in adolescents and young adults newly diagnosed with HIV. The intervention provides HIV/AIDS-related information, coping skills, and social support, guided by the Disability-Stress-Coping model and Social Cognitive Theory. It targets four dimensions of stigma: personalized stigma, disclosure concerns, negative self-image, and concern with public attitudes. The intervention was effective in reducing stigma for male participants but had mixed results for female participants, indicating a need for gender-specific interventions.
Project Adolescents Coping, Connecting, Empowering, and Protecting Together (ACCEPT) (intervention effect on HIV engagement outcomes)
Study & Intervention Summary
The ACCEPT intervention is a gender-specific, group-based program aimed at improving engagement in care for youth newly diagnosed with HIV by addressing stigma, disclosure, relationships, substance use, and future planning. It is based on theoretical models and includes individual and group sessions. The study compares ACCEPT to a health education control condition, showing positive health outcomes such as increased medication use and lower viral loads.
The aim of the article is to evaluate the effectiveness of Project PrIDE, a CDC-funded initiative aimed at expanding PrEP services for men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender persons through health department programs. The intervention involved identifying priority populations, referring them to PrEP providers, and increasing provider capacity, with a focus on health equity and addressing barriers to PrEP use.
Stigma Type Addressed
Perceived
Study Population - Recipients
MSM, Transgender/Gender Diverse Individuals, Healthcare Providers/Staff
Promoting Ovahness through Safer Sex Education (POSSE) Adapted
Study & Intervention Summary
The intervention, POSSE (Promoting Ovahness through Safer Sex Education), is a community-level popular opinion leader (OL) intervention tailored for the House Ball Community (HBC) within the Black young men who have sex with men (BYMSM) community. It aims to empower natural leaders to influence their peers to adopt safer sex practices and reduce HIV risk by delivering risk reduction messages within their networks. The study evaluates the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of POSSE, with findings indicating high acceptability and evidence of reduced sexual risk behaviors.
Stigma Type Addressed
Not Specified
Study Population - Recipients
General (Everyone)
Intervention Level
Individual - Intrapersonal (Self), Community
Intervention Setting Addressed
Community (Faith-based organizations, barber shops, etc)
The intervention aims to reduce negative attitudes towards gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals and people living with HIV/AIDS in Latino communities, particularly among youth. It uses a film-based educational approach, developed from stigma and attribution theories, formative research, and community input. The intervention includes a train-the-trainer program, broadcasting, screening, and commercialization to disseminate the film and promote cultural understanding and empathy.
Stigma Type Addressed
Perceived
Study Population - Recipients
Other
Intervention Level
Individual - Intrapersonal (Self)
Intervention Setting Addressed
Educational, Community (Faith-based organizations, barber shops, etc), Network (sexual, etc)
UNITY (stigma's association with HIV outcomes over time)
Study & Intervention Summary
The paper is a secondary analysis of data from the Unity Study, a randomized trial aimed at reducing HIV stigma among African-American women in HIV care. The study assesses the relationship between HIV stigma and viral load, exploring social support and depressive symptoms as mediators. The intervention itself is not detailed in the paper, but its context is used to examine longitudinal associations and inform future interventions.
UNITY (protective factors against stigma for women)
Study & Intervention Summary
The aim of the article is to evaluate whether religiosity, social support, and ethnic identity moderate the effects of HIV-related stigma on depression among African-American women living with HIV. The intervention is part of the Unity Study, a randomized controlled trial testing the efficacy of an HIV-related stigma reduction intervention among African-American women living with HIV in Chicago, IL, and Birmingham, AL.
Stigma Type Addressed
Internalized, Perceived
Study Population - Recipients
General (PLHIV)
Intervention Level
Individual - Intrapersonal (Self)
Intervention Setting Addressed
Community (Faith-based organizations, barber shops, etc), Individual
The intervention aimed to reduce internalized stigma among African American women living with HIV by adapting the International Center for Research on Women's HIV Stigma Toolkit. It was conducted as a workshop over two afternoons, led by an African American woman living with HIV, and included discussions, role-playing, and video triggers to teach coping mechanisms. The goal was to test feasibility and preliminary effectiveness in reducing internalized stigma.
The aim of the article is to examine the moderating factors in an anti-stigma intervention for African American women with HIV. The intervention, named UNITY, is an anti-stigma workshop that uses an intersectional approach to address stigma related to HIV, gender, and race. It includes education, contact with affected persons, counseling strategies, and training in coping skills, specifically tailored for African American women living with HIV.
The paper is a secondary analysis of the Unity Study, a randomized controlled trial testing a behavioral intervention to reduce HIV-related stigma among African-American women living with HIV. The aim is to evaluate the relationship between HIV-related stigma and viral suppression, and assess the roles of depression and ART nonadherence as mediators.
Stigma Type Addressed
Internalized, Enacted
Study Population - Recipients
General (PLHIV)
Intervention Level
Individual - Intrapersonal (Self)
Intervention Setting Addressed
Community (Faith-based organizations, barber shops, etc), Individual
The weCare intervention study is a social media intervention designed to increase HIV care engagement among young gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM) and transgender women living with HIV. It uses social media platforms to provide targeted messaging to improve care engagement and viral suppression among those newly diagnosed, not linked to care, out of care, or not virally suppressed.
Stigma Type Addressed
Internalized
Study Population - Recipients
General (PLHIV), MSM, Transgender/Gender Diverse Individuals
Intervention Level
Individual - Intrapersonal (Self)
Intervention Setting Addressed
Healthcare, Community (Faith-based organizations, barber shops, etc)
As of 2025, No: Illinois doesn't have HIV criminalization law but does have HIV-specific sentencing enhancements or No HIV-specific law
HATE CRIME DATA COLLECTION LAW
yes
As of 2025, Yes: Illinois requires hate crime data collection
HATE CRIMES BY YEAR
Number of Hate Crimes
0
200
400
600
98
346
347
2021
2022
2023
Years
Data view:
Individual Item
Proportion
Have you ever felt that the police refused to protect you because you have sex with men?
10%
Have you ever felt scared to be in public places because you have sex with men?
37%
Have you ever been verbally harassed and felt it was because you have sex with men?
48%
Has someone ever physically hurt you (pushed, shoved, slapped, hit, kicked, choked or otherwise physically hurt you), and do you believe any of these experiences of physical violence was/were related to the fact that you have sex with men?
39%
Have you ever been forced to have sex when you did not want to (by forced, we mean physically forced or coerced to have sex, or penetrated with an object), and do you believe any of these experiences of sexual violence were related to the fact that you have sex with men?
35%
Individual Item
Proportion
Have you ever felt excluded from family activities because you have sex with men?
29%
Have you ever felt that family members have made discriminatory remarks or gossiped about you because you have sex with men?
47%
Individual Item
Proportion
Have you ever felt afraid to go to health care services because you worry someone may treat you poorly because you have sex with men?
27%
Have you ever avoided going to health care services because you worry someone may treat you poorly because you have sex with men?
20%
10.2%
Have you ever felt that the police refused to protect you because you have sex with men?
37.4%
Have you ever felt scared to be in public places because you have sex with men?
47.8%
Have you ever been verbally harassed and felt it was because you have sex with men?
38.7%
Has someone ever physically hurt you (pushed, shoved, slapped, hit, kicked, choked or otherwise physically hurt you), and do you believe any of these experiences of physical violence was/were related to the fact that you have sex with men?
34.7%
Have you ever been forced to have sex when you did not want to (by forced, we mean physically forced or coerced to have sex, or penetrated with an object), and do you believe any of these experiences of sexual violence were related to the fact that you have sex with men?
28.9%
Have you ever felt excluded from family activities because you have sex with men?
47.2%
Have you ever felt that family members have made discriminatory remarks or gossiped about you because you have sex with men?
26.7%
Have you ever felt afraid to go to health care services because you worry someone may treat you poorly because you have sex with men?
20.9%
Have you ever avoided going to health care services because you worry someone may treat you poorly because you have sex with men?
