Oh for f*ck sake people. Its called a damn condom!!! They are free at the clinic.
Its really not that hard. Jesus, its 2008 you can not tell me no one noes what a condom is?

California has comprehensive sex ed. I can understand Houston or Atlanta or Detroit or any of the areas with a– backwards "sex ed," but in Cali?! San Francisco is one of the few cities in America where people actually seem to realize that AIDS still exists so you'd think some of that good sense would cross the bridge to Oakland.

I know the same cultural stigmas that exist in the Dark Continent (TM) exist in pretty much all minorities in the U.S., but the beauty of being in the U.S. is that women have more rights and are just plain not dependent on men for survival. If you fear that your man will leave you for telling you to respect your body and his, time to give him the boot.

OMG, it's called a condom, and last time I looked they were easy to find. Do you expect someone to purchase and use them for you??????? If you have no respect for yourself why in the world would you expect others to?

Hmmm, Phill Wilson. I heard you speak at a conference in LA and I'm not quite sure I agree with you on this one. I'm not sure Black America deserves to have hundreds of millions of dollars piped into it like Africa does. Alot of this is our own doing. Just rampant irresponsibility, that's all this is. There's really no excuse for it at this point. We have too many tools to do better. I'm all for empathy for people living with AIDS and I actually work with people living with AIDS, but this is absolutely ridiculous. Dag Black people. DAG. (and yall *know* how much I'm for the brothaman) SMH

Call me a conspiracy theorist. I just don't buy into all the stats about african americans makes up 80% of all AIDS cases. Another stereotype to deal with as African American.

Not Sold, that's 45% of new AIDS cases and 37% of all AIDS cases.

Also, 55% of new AIDS cases come from the South

The bottom line, regardless the accuracy of the statistics, is that we are being infected. For a population of 12%, anything that's above that is too high for us. One is too many because that's all it takes. We need really check ourselves and sexual behaviors and practices, plain and simple. No there really is no excuse. Between drug use, down low behaviors, multiple partners, and not using protection c'mon we need to use better sense. I don't think blacks in Americas are neglected about the information, it doesn't need special tweaking or focus. We just need to stop being in denial and acting nonchalant about life in general.

Wont find that shit amongst West Indians. Condoms all day

I don't think the issue is just as simple as a condom. I would love to see these stats in the context of economics and social groups.

My theory is that these social ailments AIDS epidemic, gangs and rampant drug use are symptoms of poverty.

I feel like stats like these always speak to an economic issue but are incorrectly assigned to a race in general because it's a better presentation package.

While I do think economics plays a big part, there are also other things that contribute to these statistics including the church/family structure, the black male prison epedemic (which is another symptom of poverty).

Yes, as a community we need to start using condoms more..but you have to ask yourself why some of us aren't using them in the first place.

Qui, SES have some impact but the taboo nature of sex accounts for much of the post-1990 spread in my view. Western Europe and much of the West Indies have mostly curbed their HIV rates. In spite of the prevalence of prostitution, Thailand curbed its HIV rate which is now at around 1.5% prevalence in adults. There is a great deal of poverty in that country, but the government made damn sure that prostitutes used condoms. Condom-free sex is the only condition under which a prostitute would be arrested or a brothel shut down though prostitution is illegal there.

The status of women in a society also matters. On one extreme, the countries in which women are property that are very seldom traded have very low STI rates. When women fear losing their men more than they do the disease, or use sex (often unprotected) as a commodity because they have to, the HIV rates increase.

The UN "soldiers" give desperately poor Haitian girls $3 and some candy for a BJ. That sort of poverty is not one that Americans know.

Also, those wonderful UN workers as well as police offeicders and military brought to protect them trade sex for food all over the most poverty-stricken, war-ravaged parts of Africa. A Sudanese woman in a refugee camp can screw them and feed her kids, or she can choose not to and watch them die.

Eric T
Wont find that shit amongst West Indians. Condoms all day

The people of Haiti may disagree.

The UN “soldiers” give desperately poor Haitian girls $3 and some candy for a BJ
DAria in America, women do it for free.

People are overlooking the Se.xual trends among straight people.
St8 couples are engaging in acts such as B.J and A*al without any type of protection. AS is the most dangerous and risky type of s*XuaL activity.

Daria, there was a few articles about UN soliders/workers who were raping and sleeping with the women of the Congo.

Believe the statistics. I work for a major healthcare company in the DC area and I see these health records every day. What's amazing is the shocking level of STDs among young black people. Having even one STD greatly (GREATLY) increases your risk of contracting HIV. I see so many repeat offenders that it's not even funny. Girls at 13 with Chlamydia. WTF?!!

Only recently I was reviewing the health records of a young man of 21. I could see that this guy had been treated for multiple STDs over a number of years. I mean, he was in about every three months. Still, no change of behavior, number of partners or condom use. June this year; HIV. I'm not sure what you can do with people like this. There seems to be so much denial around this disease amongst black people and a knee jerk reaction of blaming white people for making black people look bad by pointing out inconvenient facts. We haven't even gotten into the aspect of homophobia, but that's another post.

Daria-

Didn't know that.

Thanks for proving my theory wrong…with facts

@ChicNoir: what I'm saying is that that these people with their predatory sexual mores are far more likely to engage in lots of high risk sex meaning that the girls they prey upon who might never have had any sort of sexual relations before can sleep with one of these creeps, and bam, she's gotten infected.

Also, I don't really think some of the sexual behaviors of American women count as giving it up for "free." While there are some women who sleep around because they genuinely enjoy it, many are really trading it for love because that's supposedly how to keep up. Three date rule anyone? Why is it that so many of my friends think that you've gotta sleep with a guy on the 3rd date or he'll find someone else? Seriously, if you wanna sleep with a guy that soon, that's your prerogative but what so many look at as sexual liberation, I see as desperation. And you can definitely tell when it is pure desperation. Look for serial monogamists. These are also the brilliant people who think that because they aren't sleeping with multiple people at the same time, they don't need to use condoms.

Qui, all stats can give you are associations and inferences. It's damn near impossible to prove cause and effect. There are a hell of a lot of associations though and I don't think poverty is nearly or solely responsible. The poverty rate in SA is 50% which is the same as Kenya. Both have more than their fair share of violence, gangs, etc. Kenya's HIV prevalence in adults is under 7% while South Africa's is 21%

% living in poverty vs. % of adult w/ HIV
South Africa 50 vs. 21
Liberia 80 vs. 6
Nigeria 70 vs. 6
Kenya 50 vs. 7
Trinidad & Tobago 17 vs. 3.2
Madagascar 71 vs. 1.7
Dominican Republic 42 vs. 1.7
Jamaica 15 vs. 1.2
Senegal 54 vs. 0.8
Brazil 30 vs. 0.7
United States 12 vs. 0.6
France 6.2 vs. 0.4
United Kingdom 14 vs. 0.2
Netherlands 10.5 vs. 0.2
Cape Verde 30 vs. 0.1

I'm well aware that "poverty" varies from place to place as do crime, sexual mores, etc., but poverty is not responsible for the absurdly high rate of HIV infections in Black Americans. The poverty rate for African-Americans is 20%, a little more than twice that of white Americans. That doesn't account for the HIV infection rate being damn near 4 times higher. Another factor that bothered me is tat more than half the new AIDS cases are in the South. Why on earth should that be?

Judging from many of the responses to this post, i'd say DENIAL is big part of why HIV affects black americans disproportionately.

after all these comments, i must say #1 sums it all up:

No. 1 · *M*

Oh for f*ck sake people. Its called a damn condom!!! They are free at the clinic.
Its really not that hard. Jesus, its 2008 you can not tell me no one noes what a condom is?
Posted: Jul 29, 2008 at 3:44 pm

why is there so much discussion?

@Daria- I agree with you. I just made mention that what some women do to survive(tp) others give away so freely. I don't get the three date rule either, if he is that hard up let him go on. This is my body, and I make the rules.

@Chic Noir: yeah, but you've thought about it. There are 30-something and 40-something year old women out there who follow that rule religiously just like the 18-25 "young and stupid" category that I'm in. If you go to a somewhat busy place that does bikini waxing, you'll see these women lined up, getting their Brazilians and what not for their 3rd date. Um, by the 3rd date, I don't even think I could pick my date out of a big enough crowd so why, after 3 free meals and/or activities (early on, it's not a date if you go Dutch in my view) would I go yank of my pubes ($45-$60), buy new lingerie ($80) and a new dress ($150) and hop into bed with him?

@Solitaire:

I know as an HIV+ person, seeing rising infection rates in *any* community is incredibly frustrating… It's bad enough that I made the poor decision(s) that led to my becoming infected, but to watch my friends and extended social network make essentially the same decisions–and to be unable to intervene in any effective way that I've found yet–is like being forced to watch a train wreck.

In response to some of the commenters who've essentially said "use a condom, dumb*sses," I'll simply say: You're right. Yes, it is 2008, and you can get condoms fairly painlessly at the drugstore, or at any one of the various places in every community that will distribute them for free. The issue is not whether or not people KNOW how to protect themselves from HIV and other STD's, but why they are choosing not to put that knowledge into action. The HIV-prevention/public-health communities are kinda stumped on it.

Sure, denial is a (small) part of it; the "it can't/won't happen to me" mindset. But I know that a lot of it comes from the incredible amount of misinformation and stigma that still surrounds HIV/AIDS, especially in the African-American community. I've had clients and coworkers tell me that AIDS isn't a problem anymore because "Magic [Johnson] said he was cured." He didn't say that, but when rumors like that get started–and that particular one seems to be very well-entrenched in certain parts of the community–it's almost impossible to quash them.

On the subject of stigma: having worked in a retail "adult" store before, I've heard an incredible amount of prejudice towards men who use condoms. "Why're you buyin' rubbers? What, you gay or somethin'?" or "You got AIDS? What're you buyin' those for?". I think it's almost seen as a sign of weakness on the man's part–that if he's worried about contracting an STD, he either can't control "his" woman, or is engaging in high-risk behavior (i.e. male-male sexual contact).

How do you fight that sort of social view of protection and safer sex? It's like trying to un-brainwash an entire planet.

None of this is limited to the African-American community–I've seen similar behaviors and attitudes amongst gay men as well as heterosexual Caucasians. While there may be a disproportionate rate of infection amongst American blacks now, in a few years a similar spike in infection rates will probably show up in other populations as well.

Maybe once the "general public" starts being affected, something will happen. It's like the 1980's all over again.

*Co-signs Ryan* There's also prejudice toward women who purchase condoms — the idea that if you have them handy, you're particularly "loose" or "fast" instead of "adequately prepared and health conscious".

Daria- I've never thought about it to please or to hold onto a man. The times it's crossed my mind was because I wanted to or had an urge to. I'm just to much of a chump, to go all the way.

cont:

My pleasure and comfort always comes first.

@Ryan- Do your friends and family know that you are HIV+? If so, I would think that they would wisen up.

@ChicNoir You would think, yes. It's one of the reasons I am very open and upfront about my serostatus with everyone in my life, to try and serve as a physical reminder of the reality of this disease. However, it doesn't seem to have much effect, since I find myself providing counsel and support to newly diagnosed friends on far too regular of a basis.

Like I said, I think the disconnect is somewhere between the education/knowledge part, which I think most people have down, and the actually putting that knowledge into action. Whether they just don't care enough about themselves to take protective measures, or there are other social pressures at work, something's not working out for people.

Ryan, sometimes I think some people really don't give a damn. They just look at it as another part of life. The same way that some people who have type 2 diabetes but keep eating jumk food and not exercising or lung cancer and continue to smoke.

Ryan, thank you for teaching others about this disease.