HIV/AIDS is the leading cause of death for African-American women between the ages of 25 and 44.
Take a minute and let that sink in.
In her article "This era of black women and HIV/AIDS," published yesterday on The Black Commentator, feminist scholar and activist Rev. Irene Monroe points out many disturbing facts surrounding black women and HIV/AIDS. She also makes it crystal clear that this is an issue of not only race but gender disparity.
It should get everyone hackles up. Why is the prevalence of AIDS among African-American women so well hidden in our society?
Monroe pinpoints the reasons. Failed national leadership, lack of support in the church community, homophobia(you'll have to read the article to see how that fits in), and the legacy of slavery.
It's a sobering and fascinating read that I hope will open many eyes.
0 TrackBacks
Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: Black women and AIDS. Fix this!.
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://www.feministing.com/cgi-bin/movabletype/mt-tb.fcgi/10774
Wow. That did take a minute to sink in. I think our society has sort of switched from seeing AIDS as a gay, drug-user disease to a disease that's only a problem in the developing world. We assume people dying from it are not like us so we ignore it. This cannot be tolerated as an excuse. I don't really have a point to this post, I just found the statistic so upseting I couldn't keep quiet.
Wow. NO ONE in America should be dying of AIDS. That's why universal health care is needed.
Slate had a good article on this very same topic a while back.
I'm certain that when folks in "the community" finally take their heads out of their collective assess the first order of business will be to blame black women (since women are supposedly the sexual gatekeepers).
I just have to hope that now that there is new leadership in Washington this "abstinence only" nonsense will be put to rest, and we can start getting some real information into the schools. That's a start anyway.