AIDS epidemic hits African Americans
The HIV/AIDS epidemic is a problem in the African American community. I feel that people should be aware of the dangers of having unprotected sex.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated that in 2001, HIV/AIDS was among the top three causes of death for African American men ages 25 to 54 years and among the top four causes of death for African American women ages 20 to 54 years. It was the No. 1 cause of death for African American women ages 25 to 34 years.
It is important that we, as citizens, speak out about the HIV/AIDS epidemic in our community. CDC states that the leading cause of HIV infection among African American females was heterosexual contact.
The second-leading cause was injection drug use. The leading cause for African American males was sexual contact with other men. The second-leading cause was heterosexual contact and injection drug use.
One way that this epidemic could be addressed is by having more HIV/AIDS prevention programs and substance abuse programs. It is important that African Americans be tested to decrease the risk of putting not only their lives but also the lives of others in danger.
Margaret W. Burnett
Greensboro
Comments (2)
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It is tragic that we are still finding ourselves having to have huge events to warn of HIV/AIDS.
The information has been around for 20+ years. Yet people still do their "own thing" and then expect the common taxpayer to pull them out.
In the early 21st century, for one to contract HIV/AIDS due to one's own stupidity, that one needs to take responsibility for his/her actions.
While I agree that there is a problem, the education efforts seem to be useless as people are still doing the things that they are told not to do. Drug users sharing needles, people not practicing "safer" sex, these are the actions that are leading to the increase in HIV/AIDS cases. Who is to blame for this increase?
When when we as a society stop enabling people to make poor choices? When are people going to have to face the consequences of their own poor choices?
Regardless of the information dissemminated, if people do not heed the information, then the rate of increase is not going to stop. People have to begin using their brain in a positive way.
In this country, every person is guaranteed an education. What the equality is not complete, it is an education. That education provides the basic tools for a person to lead a life that helps them to make positive choices. It is time that money stop being wasted and put to much better uses!
Posted on April 2, 2005 1:40 PM
"One way that this epidemic could be addressed is by having more HIV/AIDS prevention programs and substance abuse programs"
Yeah. More taxpayer supported programs, that's the answer. Here's a cheap fix. Stop doing drugs and stop screwing around. That would get rid of a LARGE number of these cases. And as the epidemic goes down, it would also help prevent some of these no-fault contractions of AIDS (babies born with it, blood transfusion victims, etc). They are the saddest cases, because they did nothing irresponsible to contract the disease.
As far as folks contracting the disease from needles or casual sex, I feel about the same responsibility for them as I do for smokers who won't heed years and years of warnings and then end up with lung cancer.
Posted on April 4, 2005 12:41 PM