The War on Our Youth: Rising Teen HIV rate

A new decade for our youth only means more problems our youth have to face, some known and some unknown. Outside of dealing with education issues and violence, our youth have many health issues to combat that stem from not only from the previous decade but decades prior. Still if we as Americans are going to win this war on our youth once and for all this decade we must all work together like never before. For instance, while the youth in Chicago are continuing to be plagued by violence and the youth in Detroit have educational issues to mainly worry about it, it is clear that health issues throughout this nation will perhaps be one of the major hurdles our youth face this decade.

While reading an article in the Michigan Citizen last week, I saw a headline titled “Rising teen HIV rate prompts concern.” While the article only spoke of the HIV, the virus that leads to AIDS, rate amongst black teens in the state of the Michigan. The truth is that this issue is something that all Americans should be concerned about especially since our youth today are having sex like never before in our nation’s history. Still depending on who you are, the major problem isn’t that teens are having unmarital sex but the real issue is that they are having unprotected sex on top of having unmarital sex.

Since I can only speak of my home state of Michigan and the problems we face in terms of dealing with 85% of new cases being among black teens. It is very alarming for the African American community to see that 85% of new cases are black teens but whenever there is a problem in the black community, it seems to hit black males even harder. 62% of new cases are among African American males who had sex with other males accords to the Department of Community Health which released a report for World AIDS Day, saying the rate of new cases among 13-to-19 years old in Michigan more than doubled between 2003 and 2007.

Still Michigan is following the national trend of increasing HIV diagnoses among teens. This is why this type of news is not just a problem or Michigan but it is a problem that all of us in America must deal with this decade once and for all. Since HIV and AIDS were introduced to the world, it seems as if it has been on the increase in American especially amongst the African American community more so than any other community. Now this doesn’t mean there is some conspiracy or something but the truth is that like the unemployment rate disparity in this nation, their also exists a health disparity but better than that, there exists a communication within the African American community.

Just think about when Earvin “Magic” Johnson came out in the early 1990s and said he had the HIV virus, many in the African American community didn’t know how he contracted it yet alone what it actually was. Now nearly 20 years later, when you look at the African American community and the fact that the teen HIV rate has doubled than it is clear that many African Americans are not speaking about the HIV and AIDS issue as they should be. However this doesn’t mean that we as a nation can’t combat this trend because the truth is if our youth is our future than we must deal with the rising teen HIV rate now rather than later.

The abstinence only programs of the Bush administration did not prevent teens from having sex and didn’t put a dent in the teenage pregnancy rate, so learning from that, we as nation must now not only talk about waiting for sex but we must stress the importance protection to our youth who indulge in it. Now more than ever we have to educate our youth about not only HIV and AIDS but all STDs but this must be a community driven effort that starts in the home and school but is talked about in the barbershop, beauty salon grocery store, gas station and the church. Education and community awareness have to be ongoing and renewed with every new generation of youth if we are to decrease the rising teen HIV rate.

So if we are to win this war on our youth, we have deal with not just educational problems and violence but we must deal with health issues such as the rising HIV rate. We must deal with it starting today by talking to our youth about using protection especially if they indulge in sexual activities. While some might say, we should tell our youth not to have sex: point, blank, period. Simply telling them not to have sex is not good enough because our youth today are starting to indulge in sexual activities at a younger age just about every year on average. While 20 years ago, the average age for when a teenager had sex probably was 15 or 16, today it is not even in teen years, the average is more so 11 or 12 according to many surveys.

Thus, if we are to fight the rising teen HIV rate not only in Michigan but as a nation, we must start discussing the dangers of sexual activities and the importance of either waiting to make mature decisions or at least using protection if partaking in the activities. In fact, we should even stress to our youth to consult with their parents before partaking in sexual activities but this line should be coming from parents and guardians. Nonetheless we are all responsible for trying to put a dent in the rising teen HIV rate because it takes a village to raise a child and it is time we all start doing our part to raise our children of the village properly.

South Africa begins AIDS vaccine trial, cuts funds--By MICHELLE FAUL, Associated Press Writer

CAPE TOWN, South Africa – South Africa launched a high-profile trial of an AIDS vaccine created by its own researchers Monday, a proud moment in a nation where government denial, neglect and unscientific responses have helped fuel the world's worst AIDS crisis.

After a government official lauded the project at a ceremony at Cape Town's Crossroads shantytown, the scientist leading the research said state funding had been halted.

The contrast between Monday's hopeful vaccine launch and the revelation of funding cuts raised questions about whether the government was backsliding on its pledge to combat AIDS.

Anna-Lise Williamson, an AIDS researcher at the University of Cape Town, told The Associated Press the clinical trial would continue with U.S. money. But she said South Africa's Department of Science and Technology had pulled its funding in March, while the project's other sponsor, the state electricity utility Eskom, did not renew its contract when it expired last year.

Neither government spokesmen nor Eskom immediately returned calls seeking comment about funding cuts.

The South African vaccine was developed at the University of Cape Town and targets the specific HIV strain that has ravaged South Africa. It is also undergoing safety tests at a trial involving 12 volunteers in Boston that began earlier this year, said Sarah B. Alexander, spokeswoman for the HIV Vaccine Trials Network at the Fenway Institute, an AIDS treatment center where the trial is under way.

The safety trials started in the U.S. to allay any criticism the United States was collaborating on an AIDS vaccine that might be seen as using Africans as guinea pigs, she said.

At Monday's ceremony in Cape Town, one of 36 healthy young volunteers was injected as government officials, AIDS researchers and journalists watched. The event was also attended by American health officials who gave technical help and manufactured the vaccine at the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

The ceremony came on the sidelines of an international AIDS conference where delegates expressed concern about cuts in funding for AIDS research, treatment and prevention programs because of the global economic crisis. A report released Monday says worldwide funding for HIV vaccine research decreased for the first time since 2000, with investments of almost $1.2 billion in 2008, down 10 percent from 2007.

South Africa has not escaped the economic slowdown, and Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said in his budget speech this month that while health spending remains a priority, funds would be shifted to those areas seen as most crucial.

AIDS vaccine research has met so many disappointments that some activists have questioned sinking scarce funds into developing a vaccine, saying the money might be better spent on prevention and education.

Male circumcision, for example, has been shown to cut the risk of contracting the AIDS virus by as much as 60 percent.

But circumcision has not gotten the kind of attention in South Africa that it has in neighboring countries like Swaziland. South Africa's government has failed to seize on the cost-effective procedure, and AIDS activists say circumcision, with its cultural and political sensitivities, cannot be pushed without government approval.

South Africa was the site of the biggest setback to AIDS vaccine research, when the most promising vaccine ever, produced by Merck & Co., was tested here in 2007. Researchers found that people who got the vaccine were more likely to contract HIV than those who did not.

South African scientists working on the latest vaccine had to overcome deep skepticism from their political leaders, who had made unscientific pronouncements about the disease.

During nearly 10 years of government denial and neglect, South Africa developed a staggering AIDS crisis. Around 5.2 million South Africans were living with HIV last year — the highest number of any country. AIDS strikes men and women alike, though young women are hardest hit, with one-third of those aged 20-to-34 infected with the virus.

In the 1990s, South Africa's then-President Thabo Mbeki denied the link between HIV and AIDS, and his health minister, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, mistrusted conventional anti-AIDS drugs and made the country a laughingstock trying to promote beets and lemon as AIDS remedies.

In its vaccine initiative, the government decided it was important to target the HIV subtype C strain that is prevalent in southern Africa "and to ensure that once developed, it would be available at an affordable price," said Anthony Mbewu, president of South Africa's government-supported Medical Research Council, which shepherded the project.

Some 250 scientists and technicians worked on the vaccine's development.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease and a leading AIDS researcher, was in South Africa for the trial launch and said the South African scientists received more money from his institute's research fund than any others in the world, outside the United States. The U.S. also paid to produce the vaccine.

He called it "the most important AIDS research partnership in the world."

But, he warned: "There are extraordinary challenges ahead," referring to the years of testing needed now that South Africa has reached the clinical trial stage.

Monday's launch was put on by the South African AIDS Vaccine Initiative, the lead program of the government-backed Medical Research Council. The deputy ministers of health and science were both at the event and praised the initiative.

Aaron Motsoaledi, a medical doctor who became health minister in May, has promised to try to strengthen AIDS prevention campaigns that were weakened for years by red tape and mixed messages from policy makers.

Even before Motsoaledi took over, the government was promising to sharply step up treatment programs, saying it wanted to provide AIDS drugs to 1.5 million people over the next three years — up from 700,000 at present. AIDS activists had to file repeated legal suits to force Mbeki to provide AIDS drugs.

But Elise Levendal, interim director of the South African AIDS Vaccine Initiative, said the program has had to lay off scientists because of government funding cuts.

"We have had to refocus," she said. "It is a big blow."

Williamson, the vaccine project's head researcher, said it was crucial to continue testing.

"For vaccine development presently, the South African AIDS Vaccine initiative has no money. If we do not continue working on this, we will never have a vaccine," she said. "It's incredibly important that we keep working."

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On the Web:
http://www.saavi.org.za, the South African AIDS Vaccine Initiative
http://www.hivresourcetracking.org.

President Obama on National HIV Testing Day

In commemoration of the 14th Anniversary of National HIV Testing Day, the President and First Lady release a special video. June 26, 2009.

100,000 BLACK AMERICANS ARE LIVING WITH HIV BUT ARE UNAWARE OF THEIR INFECTION

LEADERS DECLARE EVERY BLACK AMERICAN NEEDS TO KNOW THEIR HIV STATUS

Washington, D.C. June 25, 2009--In commemoration of NAPWA's 15th annual National HIV Testing Day (NHTD), two leading AIDS organizations draw attention to the AIDS epidemic in Black America and release national report on the state of HIV testing in Black America.

Well over 100,000 Black Americans are living with HIV but are unaware of their infection, charges a new report released today by the Black AIDS Institute (The Institute) and the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA). "Passing the Test: The Challenges and Opportunities of HIV Testing in Black America" calls on every Black person in America to find out their HIV status. CDC researchers estimate that up to 70% of new infections in Black America are transmitted by people who are unaware of their HIV infection. People with undiagnosed HIV infection are three-and-a-half times more likely to expose others to the virus than people whose infection has been diagnosed.

In a press conference attended by the Obama Administration's director of the Office of National AIDS Policy, Jeff Crowley, Congresswomen Barbara Lee, and Maxine Waters and Delegates, Donna Christian Christensen, and Eleanor Holmes Norton, Dr. Kevin Fenton, Director, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention Frank Oldham, Jr. President and CEO of the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA), and Phill Wilson, President and CEO of the Black AIDS Institute (The Institute), the Black AIDS Institute and the NAPWA released the first ever national report on the state of HIV Testing in Black America.

"Given the disproportionate impact the AIDS epidemic is having on Black communities, it is long over due for us to focus on Black America during this year's National HIV Testing Day activities", said Frank Oldham, President and CEO of NAPWA.

"Knowing your HIV status is a right and a responsibility", says Phill Wilson, President and CEO of the Black AIDS Institute. "Knowing your partners HIV status can save your life."

There are many reasons why Blacks are not benefiting equally from effective treatments. But one is especially important. Far too many Black people do not know their HIV status.

In a recent survey of Black residents of Washington DC, 40% had never been tested for HIV. This, in a city where authorities believe 1 in 20 residents are living with HIV!

The report indicates inadequate HIV testing rates are making it impossible to respond effectively to the AIDS crisis in Black America. Inadequate testing reduces the effectiveness of HIV treatments. Individuals who are tested late in the course of HIV infection are significantly more likely to die than those who are diagnosed earlier.

The principal message of this report is every Black American needs to know their HIV status. Ironically, testing rates are higher among Black Americans than among Whites and Hispanics. But these rates do not offset the higher-than-average risk that Black Americans face. When Black women are 19 times more likely to contract HIV than white women, they need testing rates that are more than just marginally better; They must be vastly higher.

Signs of Progress
President Obama has committed to developing the country's first national AIDS strategy. The administration's first budget provides $53 million in additional funding for CDC. These actions provide hope and illustrate the administrations strong commitment to rectifying the health disparities experienced by Black communities.

"The President believes we must focus renewed attention on the domestic HIV/AIDS epidemic. This means shining a spotlight on the disproportionate incidence and prevalence of HIV/AIDS among African Americans. If Black America were its own country, it would rank 16th among nations for the number of people living with HIV. National HIV Testing Day is a day of action when all Americans are encouraged to take the test and take other steps to protect themselves and their communities," said Jeffrey S. Crowley, Director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy.

Getting Serious About Testing
The U.S. has never really gotten serious about promoting HIV testing in Black America. Although the federal government provides funding for HIV testing services, it must prioritize adequate funding to market these services. According to the report, the lack of seriousness is evident from the fact that the US has never had a national AIDS strategy. A serious commitment to promote HIT testing would involve a national plan that specifically tells all the different federal agencies how they should work together to increase testing rates.

"It's often said that knowledge is power. In the case of AIDS, nothing could be truer. The HIV test can help solve the AIDS problem in Black America. It's time to get serious." says Wilson.

The new report includes a series of recommendations to different stakeholders.

To Black America itself, we say it's time to be tested. Every Black person in America should know their HIV status. And we need to talk to each other about AIDS and hold our leaders accountable. At the community level, we need to create local HIV testing coalitions.

We urge President Obama to make sure that his national AIDS strategy includes a comprehensive plan to promote HIV testing.

We need to embark on a multi-year national campaign to promote HIV testing, making use of all the media and marketing tools at our disposal.

And we need to make sure that Medicaid and private insurers reimburse doctors for the HIV test.

The full report and executive summary are available at www.BlackAIDS.org

OTHER INITIATIVES TARGETING BLACK AMERICA INCLUDE:
The fifth annual NAPWA-Orasure Technologies Mayors Campaign Against HIV:
Mayors throughout the US are requested to publicly support NHTD by: hosting HIV testing campaigns in their cities, conducting press conferences to discuss local HIV testing resources, issuing proclamations in support on NHTD, and, modeling good behavior by receiving an HIV test to illustrate the importance of knowing your HIV status is to your health. NAPWA and its' partner Orasure Technologies distribute a complimentary rapid oral HIV tests among the 84 cities participating in the 2009 Mayors Campaign Against AIDS. Integral to the NHTD Mayors Campaign Against HIV, NAPWA will participate in opening the day of trading at NASDAQ.

Test One Million
Test 1 million is a call to action to engage all of Black America, from individuals to institutions, in a community wide effort to end the AIDS epidemic. The Test 1 million movement is one of awareness, personal responsibility, and collective action. The campaign is a partnership with the Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, the Magic Johnson Foundation, Black AIDS Institute and leading national Black organizations and institutions. Test 1 million is supported by the Black AIDS Media Partnership, a sustained commitment among U.S. media companies to work together in a coordinated response to the AIDS crisis facing Black America.

"The number one priority for African Americans must be to end AIDS in our communities. With the bold leadership of President Obama and the strong commitment of Mayor Fenty and DC City Council Chair Vince Gray, let's start right here in the Capitol of the United States!"

National HIV Testing Day
Each year, on June 27, NAPWA, in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Prevention Information Network (NPIN), and over 10,000 national and local entities across the country organizes National HIV Testing Day. This unique initiative sends the message to those at risk from those already living with HIV that there are powerful reasons for learning one's HIV status.

NAPWA was one of the first AIDS organizations to advocate that people at risk of infection should seek out voluntary HIV counseling and testing. NAPWA advanced this effort during 1995 by launching the National HIV Testing Day campaign. As people living with HIV/AIDS, NAPWA knew that knowledge of HIV status was essential to making informed decisions about their lives. For more information about the Test 1 million campaign go to www.Test1Milion.org.

ABOUT THE BLACK AIDS INSTITUTE (The Institute)
The Black AIDS Institute, founded in 1999, is the only national HIV/AIDS think tank in the United States focused exclusively on Black people. The Institute's mission is to stop the AIDS pandemic in Black communities by engaging and mobilizing traditional Black institutions, leaders and individuals in efforts to confront HIV. The Institute offers trainings and capacity building, disseminates information, interprets and recommends both private and public sector HIV/AIDS policies, and provides advocacy and mobilization from a uniquely and unapologetically Black point of view.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF PEOPLE WITH AIDS (NAPWA)NAPWA, founded in 1983, advocates for the lives and dignity of all people living with and affected by HIV/AIDS.

NAPWA's Vision Statement
NAPWA envisions a world free of AIDS-related stigma, a world with universal access to high quality medical care, and a world in which people living with HIV/AIDS serve as visionary public health leaders.

NAPWA advances its vision by:
--Promoting human rights, dignity and independence for people affected by HIV/AIDS,
--Creating and advocating for responsible public policies and programs,
--Raising educational awareness about HIV disease,
--Improving access to prevention, care and support services, and
--Developing strategies to end the pandemic.

About the Black AIDS Institute
# # #
Phill Wilson
phillwilson@blackaids.org
(323) 829-4195

Scientists now trying to outflank HIV/AIDS virus--By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID, AP Science Writer

Like a general whose direct attacks aren't working, scientists are now trying to outflank the HIV/AIDS virus.

Unsuccessful at developing vaccines that the cause the body's natural immune system to battle the virus, researchers are testing inserting a gene into the muscle that can cause it to produce protective antibodies against HIV.

The new method worked in mice and now has proved successful in monkeys, too, they reported Sunday in the online edition of the journal Nature Medicine. The team is led by Dr. Philip R. Johnson of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

That doesn't mean an AIDS vaccine for people is in the wings, Johnson said. Years of work may lie ahead before a product is ready for human use.

Nevertheless, the report was welcomed by Dr. Beatrice Hahn, an AIDS researcher the University of Alabama at Birmingham, who was not part of Johnson's team. "It basically shows there is light at the end of the tunnel," she said in a telephone interview.

"It shows thinking outside the box is a good idea and can yield results, and we need perhaps more of these nonconventional approaches," she added.

According to the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, AIDS is one of the most devastating pandemics. More than 20 million people have died so far and about 33 million are living with HIV. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention last year estimated there are about 56,000 new HIV infections annually in the United States.

Most efforts at blocking AIDS have sought to stimulate the body's immune system to produce antibodies that fight the disease. This model has worked for diseases such as measles and smallpox. It hasn't done as well with HIV/AIDS; test vaccines have failed to produce a protective reaction.

So Johnson decided to try something different.

"We used a leapfrog strategy, bypassing the natural immune system response that was the target of all previous HIV and SIV vaccine candidates," Johnson said. HIV, or human immunodeficiency virus, causes AIDS in people. The closely related simian virus, or SIV, affects monkeys.

"Some years ago I came to the conclusion that HIV was different from other viruses for which we were trying to develop vaccines and we and might not ever be able to use traditional approaches," Johnson said in a telephone interview.

He said the researchers knew there were proteins that could neutralize the HIV virus, so they began thinking about whether they could use them to fight the disease.

In a decade-long effort, Johnson, K. Reed Clark of Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and their team developed immunoadhesins, antibody-like proteins designed to attach to SIV and block it from infecting cells.

Then they needed a way to get the immunoadhesins into the cells.

The researchers selected the widely used adeno-associated virus as the carrier because it is an effective way to insert DNA into the cells of monkeys or humans. That virus was injected into muscles, where it carried the DNA of the immunoadhesins. The muscles then began producing the protective proteins.

Scientists first tested the idea in mice and then turned to monkeys because SIV is closely related to HIV and would be a good test model.

A month after administering the AAV, the nine treated monkeys were injected with SIV, as were six not treated in advance.

None of the immunized monkeys developed AIDS and only three showed any indication of SIV infection. Even a year later they had high concentrations of the protective antibodies in the blood.

All six unimmunized monkeys became infected; four died during the experiment.

The next step is moving toward human trials, Johnson said. He said he is working with the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative in hopes of getting tests in humans under way in the next few years.

The research was supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

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On the Net:
Nature Medicine: http://www.nature.com/nm
International AIDS Vaccine Initiative: http://www.iavi.org

Black Leaders Convene AIDS Mobilization Summit in Response to New Washington D.C. HIV/AIDS Data

Washington DC April 30, 2009 Leaders of traditional Black political, civil rights, social, and faith based organizations will come together with local AIDS and community based organizations on Monday, May 4, 2009 for a D.C. Black AIDS Leadership Mobilization Summit to respond to recent data released by the D.C. Department of Health. The meeting will take place 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. at the Kaiser Family Foundation located at 1310 G. Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20005. National television commentator Jeff Johnson will moderate the event.

On March 16, 2009, the D.C. Department of Health released its latest HIV surveillance report showing three percent of residents in the District already infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Four percent of Black residents in the District are estimated to already be infected with HIV. For Black men in the District the HIV prevalence was seven percent and 10 percent of Blacks in the District aged 40-49 are estimated to be infected.

"We have an extraordinary opportunity to change the trajectory of the AIDS epidemic in our nation's capital, and we must be committed to this fight," said Representative Donna M. Christensen (D-V.I.). Convened by the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, (CBCF) the D.C. Department of Health, and other national and local organizations, the summit will focus on engaging and mobilizing traditional Black organizations in Washington, D.C., to act against AIDS in a concerted effort with local HIV/AIDS organizations. Organizers of the event are calling upon community leaders to seize the opportunity and create momentum for a mass Black mobilization against HIV/AIDS. This disease is destroying many African-American families in the District of Columbia," said Elsie L. Scott, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer for CBCF. "We cannot remain passive out of a sense of denial or complacency. This is very serious and we must address it if we are to save lives," she said.

One of the major objectives of the meeting is to create a Black AIDS Mobilization plan for the District. In another study of heterosexual relationships and HIV in the District, the DC Department of Health found: · Nearly 50% of people surveyed in the hardest-hit areas of Washington report having overlapping sexual partners in the last 12 months. Yet virtually no resources have been directed toward programs to alert sexually active adults to the special dangers of concurrent partnerships. · 40% of participants had not been tested within the past 12 months. 50% of the people testing HIV positive did not know their status. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 75% of the new HIV infections in this country are caused by people who don't know their HIV status. · More than 70% of participants did not use condoms.

Rep. Barbara Lee, of California and chair of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) and Del. Donna M. Christensen of the Virgin Islands and , head of the CBC Health Brain Trust will join leaders from various national and local community organizations to build a five point community mobilization agenda that will: · Increase testing in the District, · Increase utilization of care and treatment, · Increase condom usage, · Decrease concurrent relationships, and · Decrease HIV/AIDS stigma.

Other organizational partners of the summit include: the NAACP, National Urban League, National Council of Negro Women, National Action Network, American Urban Radio Networks, Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, National Coalition of 100 Black Women, National Newspaper Publishers Association, National Organization of Black County Officials, National Medical Association, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, SCLC and 100 Black Men of America, the Community Education Group, Us Helping Us, The Women's Collective, Convent Baptist Church, Unity Health Care, Whitman Walker Clinic/Max Robinson Center, NAPWA, Pediatric AIDS/HIV Care, Family & Medical Counseling Services, Black AIDS Institute, Balm in Gilead, the National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS and the YWCA.

"Building a modern response to our modern HIV epidemic-with its scale and complexity-needs all leaders and community members to ask "what can I do" and to take action. We applaud the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation and the other summit partners for this community leadership call to action", said Dr. Shannon L. Hader, Senior Deputy Director D.C. Department of Health.

The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc. (CBCF) was established in 1976 as a nonpartisan, nonprofit, public policy, research and education institute to help improve the socioeconomic circumstances of African Americans and other underserved communities.

CBCF recently joined the Act Against AIDS Leadership Initiative (AALI), a five-year partnership with 14 of the nations leading African-American Organizations.

The summit is being supported by the M.A.C AIDS Fund and Kaiser Permanente. For more information or questions on this upcoming summit, please call the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation at (202) 263-0854 or email BAI.RSVP@Gmail.com

BLACK AMERICANS HAVE GREATER SENSE OF URGENCY ABOUT HIV/AIDS THAN OTHER RACIAL/ETHNIC GROUPS

New national survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation provides insights into Black America's attitudes about HIV/AIDS

While concerns remain, changes in behavior among Black Americans offer reasons for hope.

Washington, D.C. April 28, 2009 Today's report by the Kaiser Family Foundation finding that Americans' sense of urgency about HIV/AIDS has fallen dramatically provides some insights into the AIDS epidemic in Black America. "This report, on the heels of last month's report by the D.C. office of AIDS showing a 4% HIV prevalence among Black residents in Washington D.C. provides some context for the AIDS epidemic in Black America", says Phill Wilson, CEO of the Black AIDS Institute. Last August, the Institute released a report finding that if Black America were a country on to itself, it would have the 16th largest epidemic in the world. "Many indicators of urgency and concern are moving in the wrong direction, including for higher risk groups," says Drew Altman, President and CEO Kaiser Family Foundation.

"There is good news and not so good news in this survey", says Wilson. "Fortunately, most of the not so good news we already knew and are working on. For example, while the percentage of Black Americans who have seen or read "a lot" or "some" about HIV/AIDS has declined, the decline is not as great as the decline in other groups. This is a tribute to the amazing job Black media is doing of keeping HIV/AIDS on the radar in Black communities. Unfortunately it also speaks to the fact that 58% of Black Americans know someone who is living with HIV/AIDS-38% of those they know are a family member or close friend.

Key findings of the survey include:

Black Americans believe we are not spending enough on the domestic AIDS epidemic and spending matters.
--68% of Black Americans believe the federal government is spending too little on the domestic AIDS epidemic and 57% believe the federal government is spending too little on the domestic AIDS epidemic compared to other diseases.
--Two thirds of Black Americans believe spending more on prevention and treatment would make meaningful progress toward ending the AIDS epidemic.

While there has been a decline in the sense of urgency about HIV in Black America. The sense of urgency remains high.
--65% of Black Americans feel AIDS is as urgent as or more urgent in Black communities today than it was a few years ago.
--34% of Black Americans believe we are losing ground in the fight against AIDS.
--51% of Black Americans are very or somewhat worried that they will become HIV positive, and 80% are worried that one of their children will get infected.
--Among Black Americans, aged 18 - 29, 40% are very or somewhat concerned about getting infected with HIV.

Black Americans are changing their behavior.
--67% of Black Americans have spoken to a doctor about HIV, and 68% have spoken to a partner.
--68% of Black Americans report having taken an HIV test compared to 57% Hispanics/Latinos, and 42% of whites.
--47% of Black Americans aged 18-29 have been tested in the last 12 months.

The Kaiser survey confirms what many Black AIDS activists have been saying for a while: We have a long way to go toward ending the AIDS epidemic in Black communities, but the stage has been set. Black people are responding to the AIDS epidemic more than ever before. If you take the Kaiser findings and combined them with lessons learned from the latest D.C. surveillance report, you have a road map-create a mass Black Mobilization focused on:

1. Increasing HIV testing
2. Increasing utilization of treatment
3. Increasing condom usage
4. Increase HIV knowledge
5. Decreasing concurrent relationships
6. Decreasing stigma

This new survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation is an important piece of the information puzzle needed to end the domestic AIDS epidemic. It illustrates how complex the HIV/AIDS epidemic is, especially in Black communities. It also helps us better understand where we need to focus our energies. With a new commitment from the Obama Administration, and new energy in Black communities, the time is right to see significant changes in the trajectory of the AIDS epidemic in Black America.

The Black AIDS Institute is the only national HIV/AIDS think tank in the United States focused exclusively on Black people. The Institute offers training and capacity building, disseminates information, interprets and recommends both private and public sector HIV/AIDS policy, and provides advocacy and mobilization from a uniquely and unapologetically Black point of view

My Perspective: The Moral Fight Against the HIV/AIDS Epidemic

When it comes to the HIV/AIDS Epidemic in the world, many people don’t realize that it is a moral fight brewing on how to properly deal with the epidemic. HIV/AIDS is plaguing blacks more so than any other race in the world. Nonetheless, the epidemic is affecting all races and all nations like never before. Even the United States of America is not immune to the epidemic because our nation’s capitol is one of four major cities hit the hardest by the epidemic. Washington, D.C.’s HIV/AIDS rate is just as high as some countries in Africa if not worse than most. Nonetheless this is where our nation’s leaders convene to pass laws and debate upcoming legislation that is suppose to help us the people.

However it seems as if our nation’s leaders as well as leaders all over the world can’t seem to get together to come up with the best way to eliminate the HIV/AIDS epidemic that is plaguing millions of lives every year. The United Nations only answer to the problem is that more funding and resources needs to be thrown at the problem however there are no legitimate statistics showing that throwing money at the problem has yielded any better results than when less money was thrown at the situation. Therefore the moral fight that is brewing over how to deal with the HIV/AIDS epidemic is one that is necessary and real.

Pope Benedict XVI recently said in his first visit to the continent of Africa since becoming Pope that distributing condoms was not the answer to the problem of AIDS. He said the best strategy was the church's efforts to promote sexual responsibility through abstinence and monogamy. Now many people have criticized his comments including from government in France and Germany as well as some European Union officials saying that the Pope is way off base in saying that condoms don’t help in the fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Therefore the moral fight brewing on what way is best in fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic is one that is needed and perhaps long overdue.

Who better than the Pope to be the moral voice in the fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic? The Pope’s comments come at a night when a recent report on the HIV/AIDS epidemics shows that it is hitting major cities in the U.S. just as hard as it is hitting countries in Africa where majority of the new cases of HIV and AIDS is reported. Therefore is the Pope entirely wrong in saying that condoms were not the answer to the problem of AIDS. Since 1990, the number of people with HIV/AIDS has risen every year with 33 million people reporting to have AIDS as of 2007.

So it is understandable why the Pope made his comments and evidence even backs up the Pope’s remarks but data also doesn’t show that promoting abstinence and monogamy is the key to fighting the AIDS epidemic either. Nonetheless, this moral fight that is brewing is one that should help to both sides work together to come up with a concrete solution to fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic that is centered around education. Condoms alone will not solve the problem of HIV/AIDS but it does prevent new cases of the diseases from being spread. However at the same time, the promotion of abstinence if done properly can help decrease the sex drive and urges of some people.

This HIV/AIDS epidemic is one that needs to be attacked from all angles and that is what the Pope as well as his critics need to understand. One way is not better than the other because neither way has put any type of dent in the epidemic as the number of new cases of HIV/AIDS is increasing every year. That is why the Pope Benedict’s comments are important in fighting the epidemic because it does take some moral teaching to help people understand that condoms are only a preventive measure but the best preventative measure is to not have sex at all.

Harvard’s AIDS Prevention Research Project Director, Edward C. Green who is a self-described liberal defended what the pope has said recently about condoms and AIDS. When asked if Pope Benedict being criticized unfairly for his comments about HIV and condoms? Dr. Green said that this is hard for a liberal like me to admit, but yes, it's unfair because in fact, the best evidence we have supports his comments — at least his major comments, the ones I have seen. Dr. Green went on to say that, at least as far as African countries are concerned, Pope Benedict is correct that condom promotion doesn't lessen the AIDS problem (emphases mine): “There's no evidence at all that condoms have worked as a public health intervention intended to reduce HIV infections at the "level of population." This is a bit difficult to understand. It may well make sense for an individual to use condoms every time, or as often as possible, and he may well decrease his chances of catching HIV. But we are talking about programs, large efforts that either work or fail at the level of countries, or, as we say in public health, the level of population.”

Remember, Green is unconcerned with theology. He's looking simply at the empirical data (emphases mine): “We are seeing HIV decline in eight or nine African countries. In every case, there's been a decrease in the proportion of men and women reporting multiple sexual partners. Ironically, in the first country where we saw this, Uganda, HIV prevalence decline stopped in about 2004, and infection rates appear to be rising again. This appears to be in part because emphasis on interventions that promote monogamy and fidelity has weakened significantly, and earlier behavior changes have eroded. There has been a steady increase in the very behavior that once accounted for rates declining — namely, having multiple and concurrent sex partners. There is a widespread belief that somehow Uganda had fewer condoms. In fact, foreign donors have persuaded Uganda to put even more emphasis on condoms.”

In other words, there's some inverse relationship between HIV infection rates and promiscuity rates, which points to the benefits of preaching, literally, Christian sexual ethics -- sex only within monogamous marriage. While Dr. Green’s research and recent comments back the Pope’s comments, we must understand that there is perhaps out data out there that shows otherwise. Plus remember Dr. Green’s comments only is in regards to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa so it doesn’t go for the rest of the world such as in metropolitan cities in the United States which made up 85% of the well over one million AIDS cases reported in 2007. In 2007, the highest rates of new AIDS diagnoses were in Miami (33.1 per 100,000 people), New Orleans (31.5), Baton Rouge (31.4) and Washington, D.C. (30.5).

Therefore the Pope’s comments and Dr. Green’s data doesn’t explain why the HIV/AIDS epidemic is on the raise in the United States. So that is why the moral fight that is brewing is one that is needed as long as the end result is educating people. The HIV/AIDS epidemic is one that can’t be solved with simply distributing condoms and it won’t be solved by simply preaching abstinence and monogamy. It will take a combination of both in order to fully eradicate the HIV/AIDS epidemic that is running rampant throughout the world but most particularly Africa. That is why the moral fight against the HIV/AIDS s epidemic is one that is needed now more than ever in order to fight these diseases vigorously.

America is no better off than any other nation in fighting the epidemic because in our nation’s capital 4% of Black residents in Washington D.C. - and 7% of Black men - have tested HIV-positive underscores the degree to which America has lost its way in the fight against AIDS. In the capital of the world's richest and most powerful country, HIV prevalence is higher than in Port-au-Prince , the capital of the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere . HIV prevalence among Black men in Washington is 40% higher than in sub-Saharan Africa generally. Infection levels among all Blacks in the District of Columbia are higher than in 28 African countries.

To make things worse for the United States is that the statistics released by the District constitute a failing grade on the nation's AIDS report card. Nearly 50% of people surveyed in the hardest-hit areas of Washington report having overlapping sexual partners in the last 12 months. Yet virtually no resources have been directed toward programs to alert sexually active adults to the special dangers of concurrent partnerships. 40% of sexually active adults surveyed in high-prevalence neighborhoods were not aware of their HIV status. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 75% of the new HIV infections in this country are caused by people who don't know their HIV status. 70% of those surveyed in Washington said they did not use a condom the last time they had sex.

The Pope’s comments come at a time when the capital of the world’s richest nation is losing the fight on HIV/AIDS. That is why the moral fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic is one that shouldn’t be ignored but welcomed as we try to make our biggest pitch toward eradicating the epidemic like we have never done before. The moral fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic is one that can’t be ignored and it is one that is long overdue. We have dulled millions and perhaps billions of dollars at the HIV/AIDS epidemic but money alone will not solve the problem. We have dashed out millions and millions of free condoms to combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic but condoms alone will not combat the issue. We have preached abstinence and monogamy for years in order to eradicate the HIV/AIDS epidemic but the problem has only gotten worse just like sexual activity has.

It will take a combination of monetary resources and condom distribution as well as educating those who are sexually active about the diseases of HIV and AIDS. Also it will take a combination of religious teachings right along with abstinence and monogamy for those who are not sexually active and those who are married. In fact it will take a combination of monetary resources, condom distribution, abstinence and monogamy right along with all of us working together instead of against each other to help us as a people in this world combat HIV/AIDS like we have never done before. We must teach and educate one another about HIV and AIDS and why it is important to use a condom if we are sexually active and why abstinence is the best prevention for those who are not sexually active. Lastly we must teach and educate about monogamy for those who are married or who are sexually active and dating but we must stress that if you are not married than use a condom as well as monogamy.

The moral fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic should be welcomed not frowned upon. It is time for everyone to be involved in the debate of fighting HIV/AIDS. No longer can we sit on the sidelines and think that one side has the right way for fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Right now as the HIV/AIDS epidemic is getting worse, we must understand that there is no single solution to this problem and that is why all solutions are needed to deal with this issue properly.

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