Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1996. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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The Miami Herald, Inc.; a Knight Ridder publication. One Herald Plaza, Miami, FL 33132-1693 - Miami Herald (MH) - Saturday, November 23, 1996 Edition: Final Section: Editorial Page: 26A Word Count: 447
Herald Staff
TEXT: Two disturbing studies report gay youths are blithely putting themselves at risk.
A just-released report by AIDS expert William Darrow is disturbing enough: On South Beach, considered the nerve center of this region's gay community, nearly two of every five older gay or bisexual men are infected with HIV; among those under 30 -- who came of age amid heightened awareness about the disease -- one in six is infected.
Moreover, an ongoing study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is just as unsettling. Preliminary evidence finds that among still-younger gay and bisexual men, between 15 and 22 years of age, 7 percent are infected -- seven young men in each 100, nationally and in Miami. In that study's local sampling, one in three men -- about 540 have been interviewed -- had unprotected sex within the past six months. The numbers are higher for African-American and Hispanic men in this group.
The generation of gay men that made AIDS a political issue and that modified its risky sexual behavior is, sadly, giving way to a generation that is indifferent or feeling invulnerable to the disease.
The reasons are complex. Some solutions already are in practice; others will be harder to enforce. Researchers and social workers concur on many of them.
The culture of youth, sexual orientation aside, encourages taking risks, not precautions. Add the rejection from mainstream society that gay youths confront, a sense that getting AIDS is inevitable, and the plethora of new drugs that stave off the disease's debilitating effects, then fatalism and complacency take hold. It is a vicious sequence.
Health advocates rightly stress that AIDS is a killer stalking South Florida and many other communities across the country. Al Bay, of Miami's Health Crisis Network, says that his study projects that, at current rates of infection, one-third of the young men having sex with other men will be HIV-infected by the time that they are 30. He emphasizes, however, that proper intervention could prevent that.
AIDS is a serious public health concern. Public health agencies, public schools, and advocacy organizations have coalesced around a variety of educational programs targeting youth. That's good, and bound to have a beneficial effect.
However, grass-roots education efforts must work to re-emphasize that abstinence is a viable choice, and if it is not the one that youths opt for, that there are safe-sex choices. Those efforts must also stress the role of drugs and alcohol in dangerous behaviors. Just as important, gay youths must be helped to achieve a sense of self-worth and value if they are to understand and believe that their lives too are worth living.
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