LOS ANGELES—Wicked Pictures contract performer and adult superstar Jessica Drake is making a final call on industry members to join Team Wicked to participate at the annual AIDS Walk Los Angeles on October 23. The fund-raising event will begin at 10 a.m. at Grand Park, 200 N. Grand Ave. Los Angeles 90012, in Downtown L.A.
For 2016, Drake is making a special appeal to opponents of Proposition 60, the controversial “Condoms in Pornographic Films Initiative” which will be on the November 8, 2016 ballot in California as an initiated state statute. If passed, it will prove to have devastating ramifications to the adult entertainment industry as a whole. It would allow any resident of California to sue adult performers and anyone with financial interest in the film if condoms are not visible in every frame of a scene. This measure has the potential to create an avalanche of lawsuits that could cost the state—and adult performers—millions.
In 2015, Team Wicked raised $15,416 for a total of nearly $70,000 over the last four years of the event to benefit AIDS charities. Team Wicked fundraising efforts are making a difference. According to the June 2016 report from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, more than 1.2 million people in the US are living with HIV, and 1 in 8 of them don’t know it, but over the last decade, the annual number of new HIV diagnoses declined by 19%. The decrease may be due to consistent and targeted HIV prevention efforts like AIDS Walk LA.
With the aim of raising $25,000, Team Wicked so far has raised more than $14,472 and is therefore more than halfway toward its goal, making it the fourth among all teams participating. As team leader, Drake herself has exceeded her personal goal and has raised over $6,400. Those interested in donating may visit Team Wicked’s AIDS Walk L.A. web page.
“Team Wicked is again taking to the streets to join AIDS Walk Los Angeles to raise awareness of the great need for support of AIDS charities. We encourage industry members to get their walking shoes on and join us for a day of giving,” Drake said. “We will also voice our support of efforts to defeat Prop. 60 with our ‘No on Prop. 60’ t-shirts, banners and signs. We are in the final stretch of the movement to stop this power grab to drive the adult industry from California, so please join us and make your voice heard!"
In addition to Jessica Drake, Team Wicked includes Asa Akira, Vanessa Veracruz, Brandy Aniston, Ryan Driller, Brad Armstrong, Katrina Jade, Tyler Nixon, Alison Rey, Venus Lux, Alexis Fawx and others, many of whom have met or exceeded their fundraising goals. Adult industry performers and members may join Team Wicked by clicking here. Supporters, fans and anyone who wants to make a difference may inquire about walking with Team Wicked by emailing [email protected].
Supporters may donate by visiting Team Wicked’s official AIDS Walk L.A. page here.
Besides her ongoing work with Team Wicked and other charitable activities, Drake is a highly sought-after sexual wellness speaker and educator who lectures at universities and leads seminars and workshops around the world. She is the writer, producer, and director of the video series Jessica Drake's Guide to Wicked Sex, which has received critical acclaim from industry stalwarts AVN, Fleshbot.com and others, as well as mainstream outlets like The Huffington Post, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and many others.
Established in 1985, AIDS Walk Los Angeles was the world’s first walks dedicated to fighting HIV/AIDS. Over the last 31 years, the event has raised more than $79 million for HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, and advocacy programs. More information can be found at APLA.org or aidswalk.net.
For more information on Jessica Drake, visit GuideToWickedSex.com or theJessicaDrake.
