HIV/AIDS and African-Americans: Special Action Called For: Why? The Facts Speak for Themselves
The Greatest Negative Impact of HIV/AIDS in the U.S. is among African-Americans, then Hispanics

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), for the year 2005, although African-Americans made up 13% of the total U.S. population according to the U.S. Census Bureau, they were an estimated 50% of all AIDS cases in the United States. Hispanic Americans, who represented 14% of the U.S. population in 2005, were next most negatively affected, with an estimated 8% of all AIDS cases.
 

Another way of looking at the HIV/AIDS disparity in African-Americans is the cumulative, or overall, effect of HIV/AIDS since the beginning of "The Epidemic". Specifically, in 2005, although African-Americans were 13% of the U.S. population in, they totaled 68% of the estimated cumulative total of AIDS cases.

Another striking finding in the CDC 2006 U.S. data reports was that while the age-adjusted death rate from HIV was 2.3 deaths per 100,000 population for Caucasians, the mortality or death rate for African-Americans was 20.4 deaths per 100,000, and for Hispanics it was 5.3 per 100,000. The Health Trends by Health Power Section of Health Power's web site provides additional tables related to HIV/AIDS by race and ethnicity.

African-American and Hispanic Women at Much Greater Risk

Today, women account for one-fourth of all new HIV/AIDS diagnoses:

• Of the 126,964 women living with HIV/AIDS in 2005, 64% were African-American and 15% were Hispanic;
• Further, the rate of AIDS diagnosis in African-American women was 23 times the rate in white women.

  Contributing to the very high incidence of HIV/AIDS in African-American, and then Hispanic women, is the fact that an unknown but significant number of their male partners and acquaintances also have sex with men, often without the women's knowledge. Some of these men do not consider themselves gay or bisexual, and refer to themselves as on the Down Low. The Down Low is discussed further in What It Means, Health Power's web site glossary. The various challenges for all involved associated with this practice requires that:

  • African-American and Hispanic women become better informed about how to protect themselves from HIV, and act on that knowledge;
  • The public health community, physicians and other health professionals, and researchers give a higher priority to health education, behavioral research, and the availability of support networks and related resources in disproportionately affected communities of color.

  Of the 207,810 men who reported having sex with men (MSM), 32% or one-third of the total was African-American men and 16% were Hispanic. Further, of the MSM who reported injecting drugs, another major risk factor for HIV, 39% were African-American and 14% were Hispanic.

  Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health and a widely recognized HIV/AIDS expert, noted in several interviews regarding this year's World AIDS Day, Complacency on AIDS is dangerous.

  Further, when asked Who is the face of AIDS in the U.S. today? His response, in essence, was:

  • o A young African-American woman infected by a partner who she did not know. . . was infected, and had no reason to believe she needed to, or even had the means to, protect herself.
  • A young African-American man, who is bi-sexual, and because of the stigma associated with being gay, superimposed on the stigma with being infected, does not seek counsel nor appreciate what he needs to do to decrease or eliminate.

Now, almost 50% of men with HIV/AIDS are African-American, and in women, almost 60% are in African-American women. Again, additional racial/ethnic statistics on HIV/AIDS can be easily obtained from the Health Trends by Health Power Section of Health Power's web site.

All women of color, especially African-American women, who bear the greatest burden from HIV/AIDS, need to be well informed about the Down Low, and to increase their knowledge, skills, and determination to protect themselves and their futures. Hopefully their sense of self worth will be enough to motivate them to do so. However, if not, they will hopefully do so for the good of those they love. . . or in the reverse, do so for the good of those who love them.

Participation in women's support groups (even two people can be a group), can help women better protect themselves and their futures.

(more )