The fall of the Soviet Union led to a surge in injecting drug use and skyrocketing rates of HIV spread through shared injecting equipment. BALKA: Three Stories chronicles the lives of women struggling with drug use and HIV in Ukraine.
Through the course of the film the audience meets Zina and Marina, best friends and active drug users about to discover their HIV status; Tanya, HIV-positive mother of two who is receiving drug treatment but whose husband continues to use drugs; and Galya, a former user who now works as a peer-to-peer outreach worker.
This event is hosted by the Open Society International Harm Reduction Development Program, who cofunded the film with the Institute of International Education.
Panelists
- Anya & Leeza Meksin, Filmmakers
- Lynn Paltrow, Executive Director, National Advocates for Pregnant Women
- Dasha Ocheret, Senior Advocacy Officer, Eurasian Harm Reduction Network
Moderated by Rebecca Tolson, IHRD Deputy Director