The Major Focus of the HIV Prevention Cause to be Focused on the Gay Community Once Again?

From the Boston Globe, by Rebecca Haag and Douglas Brooks on May 17, 2010, the article is Back to the beginning in the HIV fight; this article can be found at: http://www.boston.com/news/health/articles/2010/05/17/back_to_the_beginning_in_the_hiv_fight/. Rebecca Haag and Douglas Brooks are both major players in the fight against AIDS and research into the disease, leading or helping direct multiple organizations.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released data that is quite shocking regarding the disparities between infection rates of HIV and syphilis among gay and bisexual men and other groups of people. Gay and bisexual men are 44 times more likely to contract HIV than other men, and 40 times more likely than women. The author wonders how after so many breakthroughs in treatment and increased understanding of sexually transmitted disease that gay and bisexual men are the most vulnerable to infection once again. “We’re here because we’ve watered down prevention messages. Explicit public campaigns about how to stay safe have been replaced with simplistic messages about condoms. If we have learned anything about preventing HIV transmission among gay and bisexual men in the last 25 year we’ve learned this: it’s not about condoms; it’s about dignity. As long as men who have sex with men are at a higher risk for mental illness, trauma, and substance abuse — which they are thanks in large part to the stigma attached to being gay or engaging in gay sex — they are going to be more likely to engage in risky behaviors.” The author goes on to say we are here because of the past decade of abstinence-only sex education. It’s not uncommon for young men who have been sexually active for less than a year to come to a clinic and test HIV positive. “It is at once heartbreaking and maddening.” The author believes we should be funding research into human sexual behavior and influencing habits and change; specifically, prevention efforts for gay and bisexual men. Most of our AIDS prevention funding is diverted to Africa, and the author believes that until we focus more on the effort of overhauling the prevention campaigns for AIDS in America, we will not be able to stem the spread of AIDS in this country.

This article connects to our study of AIDS, and certainly connects to my individual study of Zackie Achmat for the quilt square project; Zackie contracted AIDS as a male prostitute during the ‘80s. This article comes as a real surprise to me, I did not expect, nor would I think anyone, that the gay and bisexual male community is significantly more susceptible to AIDS than others, and I personally question the ratios thrown out there in the article. I agree with what the author says, we need to put ourselves first in the fight against AIDS, rather than focusing most of our effort in Africa; and that we really need an overhaul in the prevention education methods. I found the fact that the author states that “[Gay/bisexual men are at higher risk for mental illness],” fairly offensive. As someone who suffers from mental illness, I can certainly state that it is completely genetic and related to brain chemistry, and is not just brought on by stigma against oneself. Though, I agree with the fact that they are more likely to engage in risky behaviors due to the stigma that is put against them.