Black Gay Men And AIDS

By Keith Boykin, in sexuality
Thursday, January 16 2003, 6:00AM

An unprecedented and influential group of black gay doctors, educators, advocates and activists have written to U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson calling for "focused attention" on the health and wellness needs" of black men who have sex with men (MSM).

Citing HIV statistics that show black MSM "bear a heavier burden than their white counterparts," the ad hoc group called on Thompson to take four specific steps not only to fight AIDS but to "develop a comprehensive health promotion and wellness plan" for the community.

The group urged Thompson to fund multi-city pilot projects, study new behavioral interventions, conduct a black men's health survey and convene a national meeting on the health status of black gay men.

It's about time.

A Porn Star Launches A Debate

Following a highly publicized incident last November where a black St. Louis AIDS agency lost its funding after hiring an ex porn star to speak at a safe sex event, New York activist Maurice Franklin sent an email to a group of black AIDS leaders asking what HIV prevention efforts are effective and appropriate.

"When the whole BABAA thing happened, there was sort of a collective silence on the part of black gay men," said Leo Rennie of the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors. No one really spoke up from the black gay community.

After the incident, a lengthy dialogue took place online, followed by a series of conference calls and a face-to-face December meeting in Atlanta. The conversation took place just months after Secretary Thompson expressed interest in engaging the black gay community about the government's AIDS statistics.

Sending a letter to a government official may not appear to be a major story until you consider that black gay men have never before worked together on this scale. The letter is signed by nearly two dozen of the most prominent African Americans in the HIV field, some of whom have openly disagreed in the past. The signers include George Bellinger, Jr. of AIDS Action, Dr. David Malebranche of Emory University, Cleo Manago of AmASSI, Dr. John Peterson of Georgia State University and Phill Wilson of the Black AIDS Institute.

Created in an unusual process, the letter was drafted and revised on a listserve, where members debated a number of issues online, including an extraordinary semi-public dialogue about the use of the term "gay." Some who did not identify as "gay" objected to the term, forcing the group to work out a rare compromise for the use of the words "MSM" and "gay."

Not An Attack on the Administration

Despite recent efforts by the Bush Administration to question the effectiveness of condoms and to promote abstinence-based health policies, Franklin and Rennie say that their letter's purpose is not to attack the Administration but to begin a dialogue with it.

Rennie said he hoped that HHS could help "to fill some questions we have about gaps and knowledge around research" and both Franklin and Rennie want the Administration to know that black gay men are knowledgeable about the epidemic. Rennie called the letter a matter of "community mobilization" while Franklin described it as "a wake up call for black gay men."

Twenty-two years into the AIDS epidemic, we still don't know a lot about preventing the disease among black gay and bisexual men. Unfortunately, very little research has been conducted, and much more needs to be done. Studies have shown that black gay men are just as informed as white gay men and engage in no more risky behavior than their white counterparts, but HIV infection rates continue to skyrocket among black MSM. What explains the disconnect?

To help understand some of these issues, the CDC is launching a new major epidemiological study of African American and Latino MSMs, but the study will be limited to 1,000 men in 4 major cities. But what works in New York and Philadelphia may not work in Atlanta and Houston. "We need to be looking at all possible prevention and intervention strategies," Franklin said. "Different community norms support different types of methods," he said, discouraging "a one-size-fits-all model."

The letter steers clear of some political controversies, but Rennie and Franklin both acknowledge that the political issues concern them. According to Franklin, "it wouldn't matter which administration was in power," citing "some policies that were in place long before the Bush Administration." However, both men felt it important that the government utilize the services of black gay leaders to assist in AIDS research and policymaking.

"We're no longer going to sit around as silent partners," Franklin said. "This letter is our first shot to the Administration around shaping that dialogue."

After years of watching black activists fight among themselves for a shrinking portion of the federal pie, it's encouraging to see the community's leaders finally moving proactively to set the agenda and engage with the government we hire to represent us.

© Copyright 2003 by Keith Boykin.