San Francisco Chronicle - September 17, 2006
Christopher Heredia, cheredia@sfchronicle.com.

Lee said the legislation was needed to reduce the spread of life-threatening illnesses and ought to be supported by a broad coalition, because 90 percent of the prison population is released, and many go home and resume relationships with spouses and partners.

"When an inmate gets infected, we're all affected," Lee said Saturday, during an interview after a town hall forum she hosted at Merritt College on HIV/AIDS in the African American community.

The rate of AIDS cases among prisoners is triple that of the general population, Bureau of Justice Statistics show.

Furthermore, African American inmates are 3.5 times more like than white inmates and 2.5 times more likely than Latino inmates to die from AIDS-related causes.

San Francisco is one of a handful of jurisdictions across the nation to allow condoms in jails. In most states, condoms are still deemed contraband. An effort similar to Lee's is already under way in the California Legislature. Assemblyman Paul Koretz, D-West Hollywood, has a bill -- awaiting Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's review -- to permit condom distribution in state institutions.

Lee's bill also calls for prisons to allow community organizations to come into institutions to conduct HIV and sexually transmitted disease counseling, testing and treatment, as well as distribute condoms.

Speakers at Saturday's forum addressed the disproportionate toll HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections have on African Americans.

AIDS remains the leading cause of death for African American women ages 25-34 and the second leading cause of death for black men ages 35-44, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.

In 2004, the rate of AIDS cases in the United States among African Americans was 56.4 per 100,000 population, more than triple the rate for Latinos (18.6 per 100,000) and nine times greater than the rate for whites (6 per 100,000).

People living with HIV talked about the need for African Americans to have frank, nonjudgmental conversations about HIV and the need to be tested with their friends and relatives.

Cynara Chapman-Dillon, who tested HIV positive in 1993, said women should insist on using condoms with their sexual partners. "Trust no one," she said. "Safe sex. We can demand it, or we don't have it."

Studies show HIV is spreading rapidly among blacks, because other undiagnosed and untreated sexually transmitted diseases in that population can increase the odds of infection. Also, too few African Americans are getting tested.

Clergy at Saturdays' meeting said churches and other religious institutions in the African American community are hampering efforts to slow the rate of infection by not talking about HIV.

"We were hoping to put ourselves out of business," said the Bishop Yvette Flunder of San Francisco's City of Refuge United Church of Christ, speaking of a decadeslong effort to wipe HIV/AIDS off the map. "The reality is 25 years into this epidemic we are our greatest enemy. Religion is not a friend to stopping HIV/AIDS."

Flunder and other speakers addressed the need for clergy to take the test for the AIDS virus and encourage their parishioners to do the same and to engage a nonpunitive discourse about sex and risky behavior. "We need to struggle against fear. For African Americans, HIV/AIDS prevention is a for-us, by-us principle. If we are to conquer this disease, it is going to be a for-us, by-us task."

For more information about HIV testing, call AIDS Project of the East Bay at (510) 663-7974.

060917
SC060901

Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2006. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.

AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.

Copyright ©1980, 2006. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .