Members of LACES, the DeKalb lupus support group, will join more than 100 patients and their families for the 6th Annual Georgia Lupus Awareness Day on Feb. 13 at the State Capitol.

The event kicks off at 9 a.m. with presentations and meetings with legislators to discuss the autoimmune disease and ways to help lupus patients, who are disproportionately minority women. The observance culminates in an assembly at 2 p.m. in the North Wing of the Capitol Rotunda.

The Georgia Chapter of the Lupus Foundation of America is partnering with legislators to advocate for broader awareness and support and funding to find a cure.

More than 60,000 Georgians and 1.5 million Americans have a form of lupus known as systemic lupus erythematosus or discoid (cutaneous) lupus. The disease ravages different parts of the body. It is difficult to diagnose, hard to live with, and a challenge to treat. It strikes young women in their child-bearing years, and women of color are disproportionately affected. It is two to three times more common among African-Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, Asians, and Native Americans.

Lupus and Community Empowering Support, a support group in DeKalb since 2002, meets second Tuesdays monthly at 6:30 p.m. at the Wesley Chapel Library at 2861 Wesley Chapel Road in Decatur.

To register to attend Lupus Awareness Day or for more information, visit www.lupusga.org or call 770-333-5930.