Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2000. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Bay Area Reporter - May 5, 2000
Katie Szymanski
Here in California, the government has decided once again to "save" us from those who can't be trusted, with the introduction of AB2809 by Assemblyman Robert Pacheco (R-Los Angeles). Pacheco's bill in its original form would test all newborns for HIV antibodies without the mother's consent and delete current provisions to offer the mother counseling. Because the test automatically reveals the mother's serostatus - thereby testing her own body without her consent - public services and private doctors can intervene if the mother should try anything "crazy," such as having another child.
HIV-positive potential parents - take a deep breath. Relief is in sight with an upcoming non-judgmental "Positive Motherhood" forum, sponsored by Oakland Kaiser Permanente and the Family Care Network.
The forum will be presented by Dr. Carmen Zorilla of the University of Puerto Rico, Maureen Shannon of Bay Area Perinatal AIDS Center, Ontreal Evans of Alta Bates Hospital, and the legendary Rebecca Denison, founder of Women Organized to Respond to Life-Threatening Diseases.
Topics to be addressed include the effects of HIV on pregnancy as well as the effects of pregnancy on HIV, follow-up child care, and issues for HIV-positive people who are already parents. Most of all, audience questions will be the focus of the forum, which may touch on everything from how the public views a mom who bottle-feeds to healthcare discrimination and HIV-positive parents' rights.
"Positive Motherhood" will be held this Wednesday, May 10, from 6-8 p.m. at the Oakland Kaiser building, 280 West MacArthur Boulevard. Food and child care will be provided. Interested people should RSVP to (510) 596-6848. You do not have to leave your name, but please let organizers know if you are bringing your children, and how old they are. The forum is free and open to all.
Incidentally, those who hated the 1980s AIDS hysteria and oppose mandatory HIV testing without consent should contact their state legislators to help defeat AB2809.
As Denison says, "Very little has gone into ensuring that a woman who tests positive will understand what's happening and have access to care. So it's aggravating when legislators want to pass punitive laws to do things to you and not for you. It's immoral, in fact, when we haven't addressed the deficiencies in the counseling and care that those babies and parents will need."
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