AIDS in Baltimore: The cost of addiction

An agitated Sharon Williams, 45, of West Baltimore, turns from a man who is sitting on the steps of a building next to Y.A.N.A. (You Are Never Alone), an outreach center for girls and women in the sex trade on West Pratt Street. Williams had just been kicked out of the center for a week after behaving badly while being attended to by paramedics who were called to Y.A.N.A. to check her vital signs. Tucked under her arm is a sandwich from the center. In a rambling rant, she disclosed to the man who she doesn't know that she is HIV positive and has been feeling weak and has trouble with her voice. Williams has been addicted to heroin and cocaine for more than 25 years and sells sex for money to pay for her habit and other necessities. She was diagnosed as HIV positive a dozen years ago.