IT IS THE AIDS accountability story - or scandal - that just won t go away. I m talking about the $357,447 compensation package that Food & Friends generously awarded its executive director, Craig Shniderman, for his services in 2007 and the community s reaction to such a handsome salary at an AIDS charity. Three m
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama s decision to pick Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) as his vice presidential running mate drew immediate praise from gay activists in Delaware, who called Biden a strong and reliable friend of the gay community. After more than two months of deliberation over selecting a vice presi
-- Lifting of HIV travel ban is an overdue victory in fight we never should have had to fight. It s a relic of 80s anti-gay stigma and an embarrassment. TWO WEEKS AGO, through the twists and turns of the legislative process, President Bush signed a five-year authorization on one of his landmark overseas programs, the P
Gay and bisexual men have always been at the center of the HIV/AIDS crisis in America, but the global epidemic is typically framed as most affecting heterosexuals in developing nations. Data unveiled last week at the 17th International AIDS Conference show that around the world, men who have sex with men, like their U.
Whitman-Walker Clinic has revealed the number of its clients testing positive for HIV jumped from 80 in the first half of 2007 to 266 in the first half of 2008 - an unprecedented increase of 232 percent. Clinic officials said the new findings are especially troubling because the total number of people it tested for HIV
Posted by Rebecca Armendariz, RArmendariz@washblade.com
In response to our last Q question, How often do you get tested for HIV? 33 percent of Blade readers said that it s a yearly thing. However, an alarming 29 percent said they have never been tested. Twenty-four percent check up every six months, while eleven percent get tested after risky sex. HIV estimates keep rising
A commission in Alexandria, Va., is calling on the city to levy a $5,000 penalty on the company that owns TGI Friday s for allegedly firing a gay employee for being HIV positive. The recommendation is part of a report released by the city s Human Rights Commission late last month. The document says the commission unani
A Congressional Budget Office report suggests the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention favors lifting a 1987 regulation that bans HIV-positive people from visiting or settling in the United States . The regulation remains in effect after President Bush signed a sweeping global AIDS bill July 30 that includ
The U.S. government s HIV-prevention programs came under sharp criticism this week at an International AIDS Conference in Mexico City following the release of data showing 40 percent more Americans were infected each year with HIV than previously thought. Compiled by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Preventio
The Whitman-Walker Clinic has revealed the number of its clients testing positive for HIV jumped from 80 in the first half of 2007 to 266 in the first half of 2008 - an unprecedented increase of 232 percent. Clinic officials said the new findings are especially troubling because the total number of people it tested for
President Bush signed a sweeping global AIDS relief bill at a White House ceremony Wednesday afternoon that includes language repealing the U.S. ban on HIV-positive foreign visitors and immigrants. The bill-signing ceremony took place less than a week after the House of Representatives voted 303 to 115 to approve a Sen
President Bush was scheduled to sign a sweeping global AIDS relief bill at a White House ceremony Wednesday afternoon that includes language repealing the U.S. ban on HIV-positive foreign visitors and immigrants. The bill signing ceremony was set to take place less than a week after the House of Representatives voted 3
The House of Representatives voted 303 to 115 late Thursday to approve a sweeping global AIDS relief bill that includes language repealing a 1993 U.S. immigration law that prohibits HIV-positive visitors from entering the country and bars most foreigners with HIV from obtaining legal immigrant status. The action by the
A global AIDS relief bill that includes language calling for the repeal of a law that bans foreign visitors and immigrants with HIV from entering the U.S. cleared a major hurdle last week when the Senate voted 65 to 3 to end a filibuster that had blocked the legislation for more than two months. The move cleared the wa
Jesse Helms, a man whom critics called an ardent homophobe and someone who tarnished the Republican Party, died last week at age 86. A five-term U.S. senator from North Carolina, Helms routinely opposed efforts to fight the spread of HIV and AIDS. He also championed in 1987 the nation s ban on foreign visitors and immi
THE COLLECTIVE AMNESIA and revisionist history that happens when hateful public figures die can be galling to digest. In the case of former Sen. Jesse Helms, who died July 4, the mainstream media were too often up to their usual tap-dancing around the hard facts. Helms has variously been remembered as a conservative ic
A commission in Alexandria, Va., has unanimously ruled in favor of a gay man who alleges that the company that owns TGI Friday s restaurants fired him for being HIV positive, meaning a lawsuit against the business could be imminent. The Alexandria Human Rights Commission on June 30 announced its decision in favor of Ja
An effort by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to secure passage before the July 4 holiday of legislation to repeal the U.S. ban on foreign visitors and immigrants with HIV broke down last week when at least two Republican senators refused to allow a vote on the legislation. The two senators, Jim DeMint (R-S.C
The Gay & Lesbian Activists Alliance (GLAA), the local gay group credited with persuading the D.C. government to adopt far-reaching gay and transgender rights legislation since the 1970s, added to its 2008 election year agenda a call for legalizing prostitution in the District. In a development likely to create a s
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said today that there is a troubling rise in HIV among young gay men. Tomorrow is National HIV Testing Day, and event sponsored by the National Association of People With AIDS. The day started in 1995, and every year on June 27, organizations across the country come togeth
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced Wednesday night that Democratic and Republican leaders appeared to have settled differences over a global AIDS relief bill that includes a provision repealing a 15-year-old law banning foreign visitors and immigrants with HIV from entering or seeking permanent reside
The Washington area s largest provider of food and nutritional services to homebound people with AIDS and other serious illnesses has announced a reduction in services for most of its 1,400 clients due to a cutback in government funding and skyrocketing costs for gasoline and food. Food & Friends, a non-profit grou
U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Monday released a statement on San Francisco s 38th annual LGBT Pride. Read the full text below: In this year s Pride Month, we have much to celebrate. The California Supreme Court s historic decision recognizes that our state constitution provides for equal treatment for all of Calif
The Whitman-Walker Clinic announced Tuesday that it has sold its headquarters building at 1407 S Street, N.W., to a real estate developer for $8 million and will use the proceeds to pay off debt and other liabilities, build a working capital reserves fund for future needs, and make needed improvements to client service
Legislation calling for the repeal of a controversial U.S. ban on foreign visitors and immigrants with HIV has been stalled in the Senate since March and its chances of passing this year are in doubt, even though it enjoys widespread bipartisan support. Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers agree that the repeal mea
The Whitman-Walker Clinic announced today the sale of its administrative building property at 1407 S St., NW, for $8 million, according to a press release. Whitman-Walker will keep its other property, the Elizabeth Taylor Medical Center, at 1701 14th St., NW. The money from the sale will allow the clinic to pay off $5
Literature, whether fiction or non-fiction, connects us to our history in a way that no textbook or Powerpoint presentation can. A newly released essay collection Chronicle of a Plague, Revisited: AIDS and Its Aftermath, by renowned gay author Andrew Holleran, brings us viscerally back to the sights, sounds and smells
Hey, Woody! I met this guy I m really hot for. We had a blast talking, and when the subject of sex came up, I told him I was very concerned about safe sex, and that I was terrified of AIDS. He basically clucked and agreed it s always good to play safe and get tested often. Later that night we had sex - safe, of course.
ATLANTA - Gay and bisexual men have been at the epicenter of the domestic AIDS crisis since the first cases were reported in 1981. But over the past few years the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention created funding structures that dramatically reduced the number of HIV/AIDS prevention programs targeting the po
AS A FOUNDING member of Black Pride D.C., I always feel nostalgic and reflective this time of year as thousands of black gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender men, women, youth and their families travel to the nation s capital for Memorial Day weekend. In 1990, the creation of Black Pride D.C. was a direct response to
To commemorate D.C. Black Pride weekend, the Blade asked several local leaders for their thoughts on the importance of the celebration. Alexander Robinson, executive director, National Black Justice Coalition What is your fondest memory of a Black Pride event? I don t think I have one single moment that stands out. I v
The Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League (SMYAL) is facing financial setbacks and staff turnover, prompting some of those familiar with the organization to conclude that it no longer has adequate resources to conduct its mission. SMYAL, an organization dedicated to serving gay youth in the Washington area, has lost
An HIV-positive gay man is alleging discrimination and wrongful termination against the company that owns TGI Friday s restaurants, prompting the Office of Human Rights in Alexandria, Va., to schedule an open hearing May 31. James McCray, a Woodbridge, Va., resident, says he was fired from his position as general manag
Two new events are joining the Pride season lineup in Washington - one marking an acrimonious split with a local institution, the other a first for the Latino community - while the region s largest celebration undergoes major changes. Capital Pride continues its gradual change in management. Under an agreement announce
A Washington clinic that provides free health services for the Latino community has spent only a fraction of the funds it received through two unprecedented 2006 Centers for Disease Control & Prevention grants, raising concerns among some local trans activists that the money is being mismanaged. La Clinica Del Pueb
IN HIS NEW York visit, Pope Benedict addressed the pedophile scandal, met with pedophilia victims and became the first Pontiff to visit a synagogue in the United States . These were important acts of contrition, outreach and reconciliation. But the Pope missed a historic opportunity to similarly reach out to gays and l
Rev. Jeremiah Wright reignited the controversy over his inflammatory sermons at an event at the National Press Club Monday and his remarks on the origin of AIDS drew fire from Sen. Barack Obama and some AIDS activists. Wright, with whom Democratic presidential hopeful Obama broke ties this week, said Monday in response
THIS WEEK AN Egyptian court sentenced four men each to three years in prison because they are gay and HIV-positive. Taken into custody during a sweep of recent arrests of suspected homosexuals, the men were publicly shamed, forced to submit to HIV tests and tortured by Egyptian authorities. This type of treatment not o
REGARDLESS OF WHO is elected the next president of the United States , he or she will come into office facing a persistent and increasingly complex AIDS crisis here at home. The Centers for Disease Control recently estimated that approximately 1.2 million people are living with HIV in the United States and new infectio
As the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force continues searching for its next leader, an acting executive director has been named. Rea Carey, the organization s deputy executive director since February 2004, will take the helm next week and help guide the organization as long as needed. There will be consistency in lea
The proposed fiscal year 2009 budget released by Mayor Adrian Fenty last week calls for increasing the city s share of funding for the D.C. HIV/AIDS Administration from $14.7 million in the current year to $16.4 million next year, an increase of $1.7 million. At the same time, federal government agencies involved in AI
The number of people in the United States newly reported to have HIV increased by about 50 percent from 2005 to 2006, according to data released this week by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. In 2006, at least 52,878 Americans were newly diagnosed with HIV, compared to 35,537 in 2005, according to the C
ATLANTA - After reaching its deathbed at the turn of the century, syphilis is once again a significant burden in the U.S., with gay and bisexual men making up the majority of domestic syphilis cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. In 1999, the CDC announced that only 6,657 cases of syphi
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama s controversial ex-pastor in Chicago has largely supported gay rights and has welcomed gays into his 8,000-member congregation at Trinity United Church of Christ, according to activists who know him. The Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who recently retired as the Trinity Church past
The influential Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week voted 18-3 to approve legislation calling for repeal of a controversial travel and immigration ban on people who test positive for HIV. A bipartisan group of senators backing efforts to eliminate the HIV ban added language securing its repeal to a sweeping an
The White House and a group of Republican and Democratic senators announced support this week for a bill reauthorizing President Bush s multi-billion dollar global AIDS relief program that includes a clause repealing a controversial U.S. ban on foreign visitors and immigrants with HIV. Sens. Joseph Biden (D-Del.) and R
Mark King worked as an actor, became a phone sex star and tricked with Rock Hudson, all of which is detailed in his recently released memoir A Place Like This. However, that s not the only reason why his debut book deserves to be on your nightstand. You might come for the lurid details of King s life in 80s Los Angeles
Gay rights activists have been contemplating an unprecedented windfall following Sunday s announcement that late philanthropist Ric Weiland earmarked $65 million of his vast estate for 11 gay and AIDS organizations. Weiland was a high school classmate of Microsoft Corp. founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen and one of the
The State Department on Feb. 15 ended its longstanding policy of automatically rejecting candidates for the U.S. Foreign Service if they test positive for HIV, saying officials will now assess each candidate on a case-by-case basis to determine if their HIV status enables them to be deployed for overseas assignments.
Ric Weiland, a Seattle man who helped launch Microsoft, has left $65 million to the Pride Foundation of Seattle. This is the largest single gift ever bestowed on the gay movement, according to a press release from Renna Communications. Weiland committed suicide in 2006 at the age of 53. He is survived by his partner an
Whitman-Walker Clinic is reviewing proposals from four groups, including the company that owns Metro Weekly magazine, to determine whether one of them should replace it as the controlling entity behind Capital Pride, the non-profit organization that produces Washington s annual Gay Pride parade and festival. Whitman-Wa
David Phillips is despondent when he considers how Bush administration officials view HIV patients. I m sure in the back of their minds, they just wish we would die and go away, said Phillips, a gay Virginia man who s HIV positive. That s the only way to explain Bush s proposed 2009 budget, Phillips said. We know the
A previously announced staff shake-up at the Whitman-Walker Clinic that resulted in layoffs of nearly 50 employees last month has disrupted services for some of the clinic s clients and lowered employee morale, sources familiar with the clinic said this week. A clinic official said the layoffs are part of a major reorg
Swiss experts suggest unprotected sex safe in some situations GENEVA (AP) - Swiss AIDS experts said last week that some people with HIV who meet strict conditions and are under treatment can safely have unprotected sex with non-infected partners. The proposal astonished AIDS researchers in Europe and North America who
WASHINGTON - A coalition made up of HIV/AIDS groups and human rights organizations will commemorate the end of the congressional ban on allowing the District of Columbia to use locally raised revenue to finance syringe exchange programs on Feb. 13 in the Rayburn House Office Building. Groups involved include AIDS Actio
Greg Marzullo, Washington Blade Features Editor's Blog
Feb. 7 is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, and yesterday I attended a press conference on the event at the National Press Club. A number of speakers were there, including Janet Cleveland, the deputy director for prevention programs in the division of HIV/AIDS prevention at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
A drug-resistant strain of flesh-eating bacteria afflicting gay communities in several major U.S. metropolitan areas is also affecting some patients at the Whitman-Walker Clinic, according to a Clinic spokesperson. But Chip Lewis said in each case the Clinic has been able to treat the clindamycin-resistant MRSA infecti
LAST WEEK S AIDS town hall meeting was a sobering, eye-opening experience. It raised a bounty of murky, dire issues and offered no easy answers. Maybe it bolted me to attention more than some because this was the first AIDS event I ve attended since moving to Washington a little more than a year ago. Residents who ve b
Whitman-Walker Clinic has hired a new chief medical officer, filling a position that had been vacant for more than a year, and put in place a new, state-of-the-art electronic record-keeping system for patient medical records, its chief executive officer announced this week. Don Blanchon, who assumed the Clinic s top le
Joey DiGuglielmo, Washington Blade News Editor's Blog
I take issue with a recent comment made by Savage Love sex guru and advice columnist Dan Savage about HIV prevention. The comment was made to the New York Times but also included in the Blade s On The Record column this week. Savage said, in part: But so long as gay health educators refuse to level with gay men - there
ATLANTA - College years are filled with memories, none more exciting for Louis Rahim than the first time he laid eyes on an uncircumcised penis while attending one of the schools that make up the Atlanta University Center. He remembers every detail of the encounter, from the screen name of the guy he hooked up with, to
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