Is There Still an AIDS Crisis in the U.S.? It Depends on Who You Are

[xchrom]

http://www.theatlantic.com/life/archive/2011/12/is-there-still-an-aids-crisis-in-the-us-it-depends-on-who-you-are/249304/

As three decades of AIDS were marked in 2011, it was startling to see the degree to which Americans' notoriously short memories had already begun to airbrush away the experience of their gay countrymen's devastation and defiance in the plague years. Used by now to thinking of the "face" of AIDS as that of an impoverished, dark-skinned African woman or baby, even the nation's best-educated young people seem not to be aware of the plague's impact here in their own homeland, beginning in the very decade when many of them were born.

"The de-gaying thing really worked," said author and Dartmouth College professor Michael Bronski. "For better or worse, we did our jobs." As evidence, Bronski described a class about AIDS he taught, called "Plagues and Politics." He said his students couldn't understand why he spoke of AIDS as a "gay disease." Even a lesbian student told him, "I thought it was a little weird you were talking so much about 'gay.'" She believed AIDS "was Africa and inner-city drug users, but mostly Africa." Another student said, "I was wondering how you were going to bring in the U.S. part."

Young gay men can be forgiven for not knowing the details of their community's recent travails. They didn't live through the nightmare, after all. At the start of the millennium, the New York Times noted that a generation of young gay men had by then already come of age without seeing their peers suffer and die from the horrific and disfiguring effects of HIV before Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) brought such dramatic change for many of those living with the virus.

Older gay men, many having lost lovers and friends and possibly living with HIV themselves, seem to prefer more pleasant subjects than the horrors we lived through. It's understandable, to an extent. Like returning war vets, the grief and shock sustained by our wounded warriors keeps so many of us silent.

[William769]

1. Young Gay men today are so screwed (not living what we lived, or misinformation)

I saw two post right here in this forum that made me want to cry. The ignorance of this disease and what it can do of some is astounding.

Recommended.

[beyurslf]

2. So very true. I came out in 1994 as a young adult. I quickly had friends who had lost someone to

AIDS and had POZ friends. I have lost friends to the disease. I always said those who came out in the 80's and before always knew someone who had died. Those who came out in the 90's always knew someone POZ and eventually would know someone who had died. But those kids coming out today--they don't see AIDS and they don't know people with HIV. My son just turned 18 and is queer (as he likes to be called). He says HIV is mostly in older guys and his generation is safe unless you go "sleeping with creepers." It just freaks me out!

[closeupready]

4. "safe unless you go 'sleeping with creepers'" - that's what many said back then, too.

I hope he realizes that HIV doesn't infect in a fashion as discriminating as some younger guys do when choosing sex partners. Infection takes a single exposure to happen.

and by the way, what is a 'creeper'??? I've never heard that term before. Someone older than 25?

[TheWraith]

3. It also depends on where you are. The southeast is worse off than any other area. t

[w8liftinglady]

5. We were talking about this today

I lost hundreds of patients in the 80's and 90's to AIDS.We are seeing a new generation of young gay men in Dallas who forget,or never knew,People who died in the prime of their life.
My HIV patients live a lot longer and better these days,but not any cheaper.I Dread the disregard I see in our communities for the new generation.We were making real progress.