diversity

The Houston Community Center carries on a long and illustrious tradition of social service in this ethnically diverse South Philadelphia neighborhood. Founded in 1901 as St. Martha’s House, the organization functioned as a settlement house serving the predominantly Italian and Eastern European immigrant communities of the area. St. Martha’s provided education and health services and emphasized “integration and assimilation” programs for immigrants intended to ease their transition into an unfamiliar city and culture.

Oxford Circle had been a predominantly white neighborhood for decades before the 1990s. Once a suburb of Philadelphia known as "Old Village," Oxford Circle is a neighborhood in the Northeast section of the city that is in the midst of a demographic transition. Oxford Circle Mennonite Church is at the forefront of the community's efforts to come to grips with the changing landscape as African American, Indian, and Latino families have increasingly come to call the neighborhood home. The area is "at a crossroads," says Leonard Dow, the church's pastor.

"I just love that place. It's a haven," a woman says with a joyous smile as the video opens. Featuring exuberant testamonials from HIV positive members of the We The People "family," this doumentary short lovingly documents a unique HIV and AIDS-themed social service agency located within shouting distance of City Hall. We The People, an organization run by and for people with HIV, has produced a moving video which documents the organization's efforts to emotionally, socially and economically empower people with the HIV-virus.