Today is World Aids Awareness Day. This is a day of awareness, Celebration and hope. In recognition of this I am writing today about something that is not often discussed in the black community, that is the increases of the Aids Virus in Black America. This has long been considered a gay white man disease, a disease that only affects men. These are misconceptions that have been stated for the last 20 years since the disease first surfaced. In the 1980's when the epidemic first swept our Nation an estimated 60 percent of around 200,000 HIV infections reported were White Males.The gay community mobilized, however, promoting condom use and early detection to combat the spread of the disease. Their efforts have been quite successful,
However today, with rise of intravenous drug use and the clandestine escapades of "double-dipping" bisexual men for the disproportionately high incidence of HIV infections in the Black community, particularly among Black women. The sharing of dirty needles does account for up to 35 percent of the nation's HIV infections, according to the CDC. And HIV-infected men who have unprotected sex with both men and women (on the downlow syndrome).
The latter group falls in the highest risk group. We have many heterosexual woman who have become "mules." They carry this disease and are not aware they are infected. They are an especially high risk group of heterosexual black women who have been infected by a partner, who may not even know he is carrying the virus.
Whatever the cause, the solutions are clear, We need to spread awareness in the communities, especially about prevention. The aids victims are getting younger and younger. Especially with children being born with the disease. We need a lot of healing and support in the black community. I know this is "WORLD AIDS DAY." however we need to start the knowledge here at home first. We need to put aside the pride, the covering up and recognize that aside from black on black crime that Aids is heading the list for the Genocide of our community.
Sources: Ebony Magazine
2 comments:
This remains a big problem in many parts of the world and seems to have defied solution. There are for instance, cultural barriers that exist in Africa where the disease continues to increase in women. There is not access to condoms and a resistance to use them. Education efforts sometimes fall on deaf ears.
Good looking out. I was surprised to realize how profound the damage is to Black women in America with AIDS. I was also surprised at how few of the pieces on the AIDS Memorial Quilt are from Black victims...
peace, Villager
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