Three distinguished Atlantans sat at a table in front of TV cameras and a flock of churchgoers Sunday afternoon and swabbed the insides of their mouths for all to see.

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Warnock

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An inelegant moment, perhaps, but Julian Bond, U.S. Rep. John Lewis and Rev. Raphael Warnock were making a point. HIV/AIDS among African-Americans is pervasive and deadly, and its spread can only be stopped by greater awareness and further education.

To that end, Warnock, senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, hosted and participated in a public test for the disease inside the sanctuary of the church, with Bond and Lewis joining him.

Warnock called HIV "a clear and present danger," and said "we are [in] crisis."

African-Americans, he noted, are disproportionately affected by the virus.

"In Georgia, where African-Americans are a mere 30 percent of the population, we account for 76 percent of all statewide HIV infections," he said.

He called HIV/AIDS "a major civil rights issue," and said, "There is no doubt that [it] would top Dr. Martin Luther King's agenda."

Warnock referred to "the unholy trinity" that prevents more African-Americans from getting tested for the virus: silence, shame and stigma.

Sunday marked the 19th annual National Black Church Week of Prayer for the Healing of AIDS. The testing at Ebenezer was conducted in collaboration with the National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS, AID Atlanta and Our Common Welfare.

Warnock, Bond and Lewis submitted to an OraQuick Advance test, described as the only rapid saliva test for HIV.

No needles are used and no blood is drawn, and results can be obtained in less than 20 minutes. That is significant, representatives said, because many people tested for HIV at public health clinics never return to learn the results.