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Why Blacks Fear Government Medical Programs, Infamous Tuskegee Study (1932-72) Created Legacy of Distrust
Despite dramatic advances in the fight against HIV/AIDS, African-Americans continue to suffer disproportionately - at least in part - because they don't trust government medical programs.
The reasons for the huge toll of the epidemic among minorities are explored in detail in the 1998 Medical and Health Annual, published by Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
The new class of drugs called protease inhibitors accounts for the recent decline in AIDS-related deaths in the U.S. AIDS deaths declined nationally by almost 19% from January to September 1996 compared to the corresponding period in 1995. In New York, the figures were even more dramatic: AIDS deaths dropped by more than 30% in 1996 from 1995.
HIV/AIDS Decimates African Americans
At the same time, however, there has been an alarming increase in HIV/AIDS among African Americans, the Annual reports. "Blacks constitute 12% of the U.S. population, yet they represented 41% of reported AIDS cases in 1996. Some 55% of women with AIDS are African-American, while 58% of pediatric AIDS cases are among African-American children. Since 1991 AIDS has been the leading cause of death in African-American men aged 25-44, and in 1994 the disease became the number one killer of African-American women of the same age group."
"At a time when new HIV infections are declining among white people," the eye-opening report "Spreading the Gospel of AIDS Prevention" continues,"... blacks are dying from the disease at an alarming rate. The question is, why?
Blacks Fear AIDS is a Form of Government Genocide
The answer is disheartening. Public health messages about HIV/AIDS are falling on deaf ears among African-Americans. Some simply distrust the government; others believe that AIDS is a form of genocide aimed directly at them. Abdul Alim Muhammad, a physician and minister of health for the Nation of Islam, goes so far as to charge that: "Genocide is the policy of the U.S. government."
History plays a large part in this distrust. Past policies of involuntary sterilization and coercive birth control are viewed by many blacks as clear evidence of genocidal government policies. But, as the Annual points out, "...the most notorious example of medical abuse of black people in the U.S. is the Tuskegee Study of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male."
Government Fails to Treat Alabama Sharecroppers With Syphilis
This infamous government experiment used black male syphilis patients in rural Alabama to "study" the natural course of the untreated disease. Without their knowledge, the men were treated with placebos instead of penicillin. They were even given burial money so their bodies would be available for autopsies. Disclosure of the study outraged African-Americans and created an atmosphere of suspicion that now clouds AIDS education, prevention and treatment efforts in the black community.
"Indeed," the Annual continues, "because the researchers who conducted the Tuskegee study patently withheld information about syphilis from participants, black people today may believe that they are not being told the full truth about AIDS."
Black Church Leaders Respond to AIDS Epidemic
Although they were late to respond to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, black church leaders have begun a vigorous campaign to fight the disease. Respected and trusted in their communities, these individuals will be instrumental in educating the African-American public.
Perhaps an even more important influence is gospel radio, with more than 150 radio stations reaching as many as 90% of U.S. black households. Public health professionals are now actively working with gospel stations to disseminate information about AIDS.
The effort cannot come too soon. At a recent conference at the Harvard AIDS Institute, experts predicted that by the turn of the millennium more than 50% of U.S. AIDS cases would be among blacks. Henry Louis Gates, chairman of Afro-American studies at Harvard, issued a stirring call to action, characterizing AIDS in the black community as ... "a human tragedy of monstrous proportions, which could have been avoided."
The report in the Annual concludes on a somber but somewhat optimistic note. "If one thing is known with certainty about the experience of black people in America, it is that they know how to draw upon an endless reservoir of love and hope in the face of adversity. Churches and gospel radio are wellsprings that are just beginning to be tapped. But many more voices must lift up and sing for the healing of AIDS in the African-American community before anyone can say, Amen.(1)"
"The article is an example of how our editors put health issues into perspective for the reader," says Paul Hoffman, publisher of Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. "The editors bring enormous energy and skill to stay current with issues that are challenging all of us." Other articles of interest from the Medical and Health Annual:
--"Sickle-Cell Disease Update" describes the latest treatment advances for a genetic blood disease that afflicts more than 60,000 people in the U.S., primarily African-Americans.
--"The Fabric of Their Lives" is a photo essay on the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, which began a decade ago as two hand-sewn fabric panels commemorating two early AIDS victims and now approaches the size of 26 football fields.
--"Traditional Chinese Medicine Under Scrutiny" analyzes age-old Chinese healing practices that are growing in popularity, at least in part because of a growing disenchantment in the West with technology-based medicine.
--"Carotenoids: Can Carrots Prevent Cancer, Cataracts, and Coronaries?" explains how fruits and vegetables like oranges and spinach can help pre-vent a variety of chronic diseases, including cancer and heart disease. Mother was right after all.
The Medical and Health Annual retails for $34.95, plus $3.95 for shipping and handling, and U.S. customers can purchase it by calling 1-800-747-8503. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc., publishes the most authoritative and comprehensive reference works in the English language, including Britannica CD(R) on CD ROM, Britannica Online(R) on the Internet, and the famous 32-volume Encyclopaedia Britannica(R). The company has its head-quarters in Chicago and can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.eb.com.
Please note: If you would like a review copy, please contact Nick Farina at Encyclopaedia Britannica, 312/347-7102, and a copy will be sent overnight.
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CONTACT: Encyclopaedia Britannica Nick Farina, 312/347-7102 nfarina@eb.com
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