Our infections almost equal the HIV rates in sub-Saharan Africa because of language difficulties, cultural barriers and issues of legal status.
Posted on 07/23/2008 8:12:22 AM PDT by Zakeet
A recent survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation concluded that the number of Hispanics infected with HIV/AIDS is on the rise, with as many as one in four gay Hispanic men having HIV, almost equaling HIV rates in the sub-Saharan Africa.
Although Hispanics make up about 14 percent of the US population, they represent 22 percent of new HIV and AIDS diagnoses in 2006. Hispanics in Washington DC appear to have the highest rate of new AIDS cases in the country.
The 22 percent was the result of analyzing HIV rates in 33 states and Puerto Rico, but not California, where more than 40 percent of the population is Hispanic.
What has led to these rates? It appears that language difficulties, cultural barriers and in many cases, issues of legal status make the Hispanic community avoid seeking diagnosis and treatment.
“Migrants tend to be lonely, separated from their family or partners. They do not have health insurance. They may turn to drugs or alcohol. All of these put a migrant at higher risk,” CDC epidemiologist Kenneth Dominguez, said. The findings should trigger alarm signals among health authorities.
"Hispanics are overrepresented in this epidemic, and we need to target our efforts to them," Dominguez, according to MSNBC.
If US health authorities do nothing to stop the HIV epidemic among Hispanics, Frank Galvan of the Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles warns that the HIV crisis “will continue to spread to other populations.”
Our infections almost equal the HIV rates in sub-Saharan Africa because of language difficulties, cultural barriers and issues of legal status.
I’m not the least bit surprised. Illegals come here and live together in very close quarters in a shadow underworld culture. They don’t know the language and rely heavily on each other. Alcohol is a large part of that culture as well, partly because they are a part of that shadowy underworld and do not have the same access (language, culture, interest, etc) to entertainments that legal Americans have. Lots of single teens and early 20’s live together... where there is opportunity and boredom.
I’m not defending the choices made about which this article speaks. But I teach ESL where I listen and observe.
Honestly, I can’t say I really care ...
“Our infections almost equal the HIV rates in sub-Saharan Africa because of language difficulties, cultural barriers and issues of legal status.”
That does seem like a silly excuse, but it is because of awareness that the black community in the U.S.A. didn’t suffer more from this virus.
Illegals go unchecked....this means more Americans are in danger of getting sick from some unknown disease. It is utterly irresponsible for our government to NOT fence up our country and check ALL who enter.
No, its because you don't keep it covered when you play around and because you share dirty needles. My best friend lost her brother in law to AIDs. Before he died he said there was nothing like the commeraradery of sharing a needle with a fellow addict.
No, its because you don't keep it covered when you play around and because you share dirty needles. My best friend lost her brother in law to AIDs. Before he died he said there was nothing like the commeraradery of sharing a needle with a fellow addict.
I can understand why Barney Frank wants an amnesty bill passed, but is McCain that way too? Or is Juan just stupid!
“Before he died he said there was nothing like the commeraradery of sharing a needle with a fellow addict.”....
astounding waste of a mind.......
Gee, people who engage in high-risk sexual practices are gonna have higher rates of sexually transmitted diseases than people who don’t. In other shocking news, Obama proposes another big government spending program.
You stole my line ;)
Maybe I should learn Spanish.
So “Si” doesn’t mean “No?”
By Cliff Kincaid - July 17, 2008
"Only 16 Senators, all conservative Republicans, voted against the massive $50 billion global AIDS spending bill (S. 2731) when it came up for a final vote on Wednesday night.
Any notion of this being a partisan matter was completely shattered by the Bush Administration’s active lobbying for the bill. In this legislative showdown, the Republican White House collaborated with liberal Senate Democrats and actively opposed the efforts of conservative Republican senators such as Jim DeMint, David Vitter and Jeff Sessions to reduce the size and scope of the bill.
Bush -- 'King' of AIDS Immigration?
Chad Groening - 7/1/2008
"At a recent White House press briefing, Press Secretary Dana Perino was asked if President Bush agrees with a call by Senators John Kerry (D-Massachusetts) and Gordon Smith (R-Oregon) for the lifting of a ban on immigration into the U.S. for those who have HIV or AIDS.
Perino said the president has directed the Secretary of State to request that the Secretary of Homeland Security initiate a rulemaking to propose a categorical waiver for HIV-positive people seeking to enter the United States on short-term visas, which will provide a more streamlined process."
I agree. I really like the ones I’ve met, but I still disagree with our government’s policy concerning them. I meet the ones who like it here enough that they are committing to learn our language.
What has led to these rates? It appears that language difficulties, cultural barriers and in many cases, issues of legal status make the Hispanic community avoid seeking diagnosis and treatment.
What logic. They represent 22% of the new cases of HIV/AIDS diagnosed and the reason for the high rate is the Hispanic community avoids seeking diagnosis? If this is true, the actual rate is even higher.
“astounding waste of a mind.......”
A mind addled by years of drug use.
So, heroine use is up in the hispanic community?
AIDS could be eliminated in a single generation if people exercised behavioral self control and if the infected subcultures realized it’s nobody’s fault but their own.
Assimilation is good...good for the country. I agree.
Opening up immigration to HIV infected foreigners as Gordon Smith and John Kerry and the Bush administration want to doesn’t help a bit either.
WASHINGTON, July 22 — A long-standing ban that prevents people infected with HIV from entering the U.S. may soon be lifted.
The House of Representatives is expected tomorrow to accept the Senate’s version of a bill to re-authorize the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and send it to the White House. It includes the end of the travel ban.
The House in April approved $50 billion over five years for PEPFAR, widely seen as one of the undisputed foreign policy successes of the Bush administration.
The Senate also added a rider, sponsored by Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), that would lift the ban on HIV-positive visitors, approved by Congress in 1987.
http://www.medpagetoday.com/PublicHealthPolicy/PublicHealth/tb/10219
Aren’t they the fabulous Mexican musical group, `Ferdinand Fartknocker y Los Pendejos Grabassticos’?
If you are careless enough to contract AIDS in the first place, I guess that attitude is not entirely unexpected.
I’ll bet nearly every person who expresses that opinion is an Obama voter. Just my opinion...
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