HIV Criminalization

In May 2008, a homeless, HIV+ man was sentenced to 35 years in prison for assaulting a police officer with a "deadly weapon, his saliva! Willie Campbell, who was clearly intoxicated at the time, has been HIV+ since 1994 and has a history of aggressive behavior with public servants, will have to serve at least 17.5 years to be eligible for parole. The police officers were not infected. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), although there have been a few rare cases of transmission through severe bites, “contact with saliva, tears or sweat has never been shown to result in transmission of H.I.V.”

Thirty four states, 2 U.S. territories and numerous other countries (including Russia, Finland, Australia, England and 20 countries in Sub Saharan Africa) have HIV specific criminal statutes. Other U.S. States and some other countries have used non-HIV specific charges such as assault with a deadly weapon and attempted murder. Many of these laws and prosecutions do not differentiate between whether an HIV+ person used a condom or even whether the virus was transmitted. All of this begs the question: Should we even be on this slippery slope?

Being HIV+ is not a crime. With the new developments in treatment, it is no longer a death sentence. Moreover, recent studies have demonstrated that one of the most effective methods of prevention is aggressively treating individuals with HIV, thereby lowering their viral load so that they may be less infectious. Studies have also shown that people who know there status tend to behave more responsibly. Unfortunately, the CDC estimates that as many as 1 in 5 people who are HIV+ are unaware of their status. Therefore it is crucial that people know their HIV status.

I understand the fear and demagogory that has dogged the HIV epidemic. And, I am certainly not making the case for irresponsibility when it comes to having sex. I get it! But we have made significant gains in this country, not just in treatment, but in making HIV testing a routine part of medical care. The last thing that we need is to arm prosecuters with powerful laws to 'punish the victim,' eg... to lock away hundreds, if not thousands of HIV+ people to protect us from them. And what responsibility does the 'partner' have in all of this. Does a person have to be told that their potential partner is HIV+, before they will use a condom?

Unfortunately, this issue is much more complex that the time and space that I will currently give to it. Perhaps the greatest concern is that these laws, which were no doubt designed to prevent infection, will more likely have the opposite effect of scaring people away from getting tested. After all, what is to stop a scorned ex-lover from pressing charges, stating that they WERE NOT TOLD of their partner's HIV status. Haven't we learned that punitive action is not always the answer. In other words, in our efforts to prevent the spread of HIV, the shield is mightier than the sword.

AIDS Denialism

Recently, someone named Curtis Cost wrote an article assailing the importance and validity of African Americans knowing their HIV status. Since the first widely reported cases in 1981, HIV has been mired in controversies, ranging from its origin to the possible existence of a cure. Sadly, over thirty years later, we continue to have many of the same conversations. What should NOT be in doubt any longer is that HIV disease is having a devastating impact on the African American community. Although African Americans represented only 14% of the US population in 2009, we accounted for 44% of all new HIV infections in that year. Overall, African Americans account for a higher proportion of HIV infections at all stages of disease—from new infections to death, than any other racial of ethnic group. Moreover, as many as 21% of people living with HIV are unaware of their status and, consequently cause up to 70% of the new infections. So why then, would Mr. Cost write such an impassioned plea for African Americans to NOT get tested for HIV? In short, we refer to people like Mr. Cost as AIDS Denialists. AIDS Denialists represent individuals or groups who deny that the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is the cause of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). While the link between HIV and AIDS has long been established in the scientific community, AIDS Denialists continue to dismiss HIV as a harmless passenger virus and assign the cause of AIDS to anything from malnutrition to the drugs used to treat it. Now, before you dismiss the Denialists as just foolish or uninformed, let me remind you about Thabo Mbeki, the former President of South Africa and once a poster child for AIDS Denialism. By some estimates, his alleged 'fiddling while Rome was burning' may have led to as many as 330,000 AIDS deaths as well as almost over 200,00 new HIV infections.

The greatest weapon against AIDS Denialists is knowledge, ours. AIDS Denialists prey on our own cynicism, ignorance and, yes, our denial. It always amazes me how willing we are to jump on the bandwagon of someone offering very little in the way of proof and disavow decades of scientific evidence. Healthy skepticism can be a good thing. However, use that cynicism to motivate yourselves to seek more information. In other words, do your own homework!