HIV and its effects on African Americans are growing topics of conversation in the Black community. People living with HIV, those who are at risk, and organizations are coming together to bridge the gap of education and community to help the Black community stay informed. Ahead of World AIDS Day, the organization Native Son and biopharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences held an online virtual panel discussion called “Beyond the Headlines: Empowering Black Voices in HIV Prevention.”
The discussion panel included prominent HIV activists, educators, and content creators such as Dominique Morgan, Byron Perkins, Shaley Cobb, and David Malbranche. Native Son’s founder, Emil Wilbekin, guided the discussion as a moderator.
“Sometimes we get caught up with the different dynamics [of who is affected by HIV]. As a Black same-gender-loving man, I have been hearing about this forever. At the end of the day we have disproportionate rates of HIV in the Black community that affect all of the sub-populations,” said Malbranche, senior director of Global HIV Medical Affairs at Gilead.
Various sub-populations within the Black community are at risk, such as Black elders, Black women, Black gay men, Black youth, and Black transgender women, resulting in the overall population being at higher risk of HIV in comparison to other racial groups.
African Americans only make up 12 percent of the population, according to KFF.org. In the total population of the U.S., Black people account for 39 percent of HIV diagnoses and 40 percent of the people living with HIV, more than other racial and ethnic groups in the U.S. HIV represents a major disparity in the Black community; experts suggest it is because of a lack of representation and overall awareness of the disease’s impact and social stigma.
According to a study by the National Library of Medicine, Black elders are at a disproportionate risk of contracting HIV and suffer from higher rates of HIV mortality and morbidity than older adults of other racial and ethnic groups.
Statistically, Black women represent 50 percent of HIV diagnoses among all women and 41 percent of all transgender women, according to KFF.org. The data also showed that Black women have lower PrEP intake rates, as PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) is a medication used to prevent people from acquiring HIV before being exposed to it. Black MSM—an acronym that stands for Black men who have sex with men—one of every two Black gay, bisexual, and MSM is expected to be diagnosed with HIV in their lifetime, a report from hiv.gov illustrates.
Football player and queer activist Byron Perkins said, “Not only should everyone know their status but also know the realities of their circumstances. HIV questionnaire forms ask questions such as ‘Are you exchanging your body for monetary compensation? Are you exchanging your body for housing?’ We’ve come to the reality of some of the situations that people have to deal with in the real world, which is why we can’t shame people… The stigma of HIV needs to be detached overall.”
Sexual health expert and writer Ashley Cobb spoke about what she wants people to know ahead of World AIDS Day. “People feel so much shame about having sex, and particularly if a person isn’t heterosexual, there’s another stigma that comes with that.” She further added, “We cannot prevent HIV if people feel like they have to hide who they love and how they love.”
Dominique Morgan, a prominent transgender activist and content creator, spoke about the urgent need for Black transgender women to continue to be normalized in the conversation. She also said incarcerated people need access to PrEP, and overall collaboration within the Black community will help combat the stigma.
“I don’t think we will get to a space [of progress] in the HIV epidemic if we don’t realize how everything that we do is connected. For example, we can’t focus on making sure people are compliant with their [HIV] medication if they are unhoused. We live in a world now where people are worried about not getting access to food stamps; in order for people to adhere to their HIV medication, they need to be able to eat something in order for them to take their medication.”
She continued, “We also cannot forget to think about incarcerated people living with HIV and them being able to gain access to PrEP inside of federal prisons. It is about doing the work to acknowledge that these tendrils create true opportunity for transformative change.”
World AIDS Day is on Dec. 1. For more information about Native Son and HIV resources visit www.nativeson.us.
