African American History:
Reflections on AIDS and Race
By Paula Toynton 1
February 18, 2001
obally,
an estimated 36 million people are living with HIV/AIDS.
By June 2001, more than 60 million people
worldwide will have been infected with HIV since the epidemic began.
In the former Soviet Union, the epidemic is
explosive, with a 410% increase in incidence in 1998 - 1999, fueled largely by
injection drug use. Sub-Saharan Africa
contains 70% of the world's people living with HIV/AIDS with 85% of the deaths
from AIDS occurring in this region. The
large number of orphans in sub-Saharan Africa will have a serious impact on
political stability in the region.
For
the United States, the steep declines in AIDS mortality seen 1996-1997 have
reached a plateau, largely because of the failure to reduce the occurrences of
new cases. New Infections in the United
States have remained constant at 40,000 cases per year. A disproportionate
percentage of cases are found in minority communities.
84.7 and 37.8 of 100,000 people diagnosed with
AIDS in the United States are African American and Latino respectively. Only
9.7 And 9.9 of 100,000 people with AIDS are Alaskan/Native American and
Caucasian. (CDC 1998)
198 and 375 of 100,000 women and men,
respectively, are African American.
73.4% of all AIDS cases in Newark are African
American. African Americans make up only 25.8% of the total population of the
Newark metropolitan area. (CDC 1998) African Americans only make up 13.5% of the general population of the
United States.
1 in 50 African American men and 1 in 160 women
in the United States have HIV. (CDC 1998)
20% of all AIDS cases reported among men in the
United States in 1998 were Latino. Latinas represented 19% of all US AIDS cases reported in 1998. (CDC
1998)
The largest percentage increases in new
infections are now among people under 25 years old and women of racial and
ethnic minorities, injecting drug users and their partners.
Over 50% of New Jersey's AIDS cases stem from
injection drug use.
New Jersey leads the nation in the incidence of
HIV among women.
In New Jersey, African American women now
account for most new infections.
Among the state's youth, 63% of new infections
are among people of color.
world leadership is finally taking note of what is happening in Africa, largely
because they have figured out “what's in it for them”. Recognizing the weight of the AIDS epidemic
will ultimately result in social, economic and political chaos the epidemic has
been called “a threat to national security.” Unfortunately, the lessons recently learned in Africa are not being
heeded quickly enough here at home.
The
AIDS epidemic challenges us all. It is
particularly challenging due to the psychological and social context in which
it occurs. Unlike other diseases, the
methods by which one acquires HIV, through sexual behaviors and drug use, are
embedded in moral and criminal constructs, rather than simple public health and
medical models. This condition has
impeded our ability to respond objectively and humanely to the needs of our
brothers and sisters. Reactions to AIDS
range from believing that it is “God's punishment” of those infected to quiet
discomfort to personal and political rage directed at those who seem not to
care. It is the spiritual challenge of
our time.
However,
in this epidemic and crisis, we have the opportunity to realize the ambiguity
of our faith; to embrace the morality of non-judgment, unconditional love and
compassion for others while holding close moral beliefs that govern our
personal behavior. We can learn to look
beyond the labels of “good and bad” and see the divine soul that is in each of
us – lost and found.
The question is, how do we put our faith into action?
1
Paula Toynton is a member of the Christ Church congregation and
works with the Hyacinth AIDS Foundation
of New Jersey.
© 2001 .
All rights reserved
