HIV Affecting Latinos

Many individuals have this malnourished ideal that HIV/AIDS is a disease based on race. “AIDS; which has ravaged minority community in disproportionately large numbers, must be viewed as racial issue, the national commission member on AIDS said yesterday” (Priest). Years ago Yale University law professor Harlon Dalton said this about HIV/AIDS, “We cannot approach the AIDS problem in a color blind fashion” (Priest). With this being said we need to stop pointing fingers at blacks’ for the disproportionate factor of HIV in this country. And also stop pointing fingers at black homosexuals.

HIV and AIDS is affecting the latino community in a negative way. It’s causing the quality of life in the United States to drop, but why is that. In 2015, Hispanics/Latinos made up about 23% of the countries new HIV diagnoses despite only being 18% of the population. The stigma that comes from the Hispanic/Latino culture, factors being economical or personal are major factors that makes HIV/AIDS thrive in the latino community. The young Hispanic/Latino community are at risk since, they are being deprived from showing their sexuality because of their cultures stigma. The gender power imbalance in these communities, and their stigma against homosexuals. Statistics from new HIV infections, gender ratios, death rates, education and so on.

One of the big factors early on is that no one wanted to be associated with AIDS due to the fact that it was considered a homosexual man’s disease. There was a lot of fear, denial and anger surrounding this disease. In 1981at the CDC Dr. Guinan asks that a report about an epidemic with gay men had broken out and he wanted it published in the medical journal. The fear of the word “homosexual” was marked off and not used for that article. It took a long time for the realization that this disease could affect everyone from homosexual males, IV drug users, blood transfusion patients, women and even babies. Even though it was initially considered the disease came from gay men and their sexual practices it crossed all borders as time went on. Still today there is some prejudice regarding AIDS. (Spelling, Vincent &

Hispanic and Latinos have been the nation's fastest-growing ethnic population in the past several decades. HIV diagnoses in Latino and Hispanic populations have been rising in the past decades. In 2011, Latinos and Hispanics represented 17% of the total population in the US, but however, they also accounted for 21% of the estimated adults diagnosed with HIV infections in the United States. In fact, in 1985, Latinos were at 15% of all diagnosed HIV cases and in 2010, it increased to 22% in the U.S. National Latinos AIDS Awareness day is observed each year to increase awareness of that impact of HIV on the Hispanic and Latino population. The recent slogan—To End ADS Commit Act—was chosen to mobilize Hispanics to commit ending HIV in their communities.

This history of HIV/AIDS as a blurry timeline before the 1980’s since that was around the time reports came in which eventually become an HIV report. The origin of HIV can be traced back to the early part of the century. Some believe that in the 1920’s chimpanzees from the Congo came into contact with humans (Avert, 2016). Though reports were not identified as HIV until the 1980’s, the belief that HIV was already scattered throughout four other continents may have been incident (Avert, 2016). Even though for the past 30 years the world has been diligently working to find a cure and pushing prevention, we are still struggling each year with increasing diagnosis. The beginning of HIV did end with lots of death, but now with our improved antiviral medication there is hope for many.

​African-Americans are the ethnic group most affected by HIV/AIDS. Ironically african-americans represent 14% of the population of the United States , but represent 44% across the gender line. African-american men represent 70% of HIV infections among the ethnic group, however african-american women are also highly at risk of HIV infection. Indeed they have a rate of infection that is 15 times greater than the rate for caucasion women (HIV among African-Americans, 2012). Most African-american women (85%) are infected with HIV through heterosexual sex, often with partners, who claim to be

It is often cited that the HIV/Aids epidemic that hit the United States in the 1980’s (though there is some evidence that it started even before then), came into light due to several high profile incidents and the eventual loss of several thousand lives. Many believe that due to

Continuing this further, we can see that the rates of new HIV infections amongst the Hispanic population has skyrocketed, particularly in the male group as well. So what does this mean? Why do homosexuals have a higher chance of being infected, and why are there more homosexual men with HIV? Now, I’m not here to say that homosexuals are to blame for HIV, and I don’t intend to say this with any derogatory remarks or hostility, but it is shown that men who have sex with men have significantly higher chances to be infected by various factors. First, quite terrifyingly, the average HIV transmission rate, specifically during anal sex is estimated to be a whopping 18 times higher in comparison to the rate during vaginal intercourse. This is because some homosexual couples have sex without having any sort of protection during anal intercourse, leading them to be

As a disease, HIV, or the Human Immunodeficiency Virus is a blood-borne virus that is transmitted from person to person via sexual intercourse, mother to child, or intravenous drug paraphernalia. The virus itself causes, usually over a period of time, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, or AIDS. AIDS actually targets the immune system and causes an immunosuppression which makes people who have the virus more susceptible to cancers and infections. This is the most unique feature of the HIV/AIDS virus and is the most deadly since its implications are destructive if not properly treated (Moore 51). The significance of this disease is one that began in the 1980’s and initially was thought to be a virus only found within homosexual communities and was even originally called Gay-Related Immunodeficiency Virus. However, in 1981, it was found that the virus was spreading beyond the gay community when Blacks accounted for 25% of the HIV/AIDs population and a trend began where Blacks continued to contract HIV significantly more than

According to recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control, approximately 1.2 million individuals in the United States have HIV (about 14 percent of which are unaware of their infection and another 1.1 million have progressed to AIDS. Over the past decade, the number of HIV cases in the US has increased, however, the annual number of cases remains stable at about 50, 000 new cases per year. Within these estimates, certain groups tend to carry the burden of these disease, particularly the gay, bisexual, and men who have sex with men (MSM) and among race/ethnic groups, Blacks/African American males remain disproportionately affected. (CDC)

The first thought to be patient zero was Gaëtan Dugas, but the disease turned out reach further back than that. HIV mutates at a predictable rate so scientists were able to track it back to around 1908 when they think a spillover event involving SIV occurred. This strain of SIV dates back less than 1 million years ago and is thought to have originated from a chimp. This chimp probably ingested ate monkeys that had two different SIV virus that somehow created a mosaic virus. From here, the cut hunter theory comes in that explains that blood to blood transfer probly occurred between the hunter and a SIV positive chimp. When this occurred, a spillover took place that would eventually lead to what we know as the HIV/AIDS

Since it is a disease contracted on one’s own, it is oftentimes seen as the fault of the person living with HIV or AIDS, therefore causing others to feel as though they should not be held responsible for such accomodation. Furthermore, there is a strong correlation between the stigma of HIV and other marginalized groups, such as queer and people of color. For a long period of time there was a general misconstrued idea that this disease only affected gay men or those who were economically disadvantaged and seen negatively, including minority groups.

It is believed that the first case of HIV/AIDs was first recorded somewhere in West Africa somewhere in the beginning of the twentieth century. Since then, it has spread across central Africa, undetected for a long time. But the question that has bewildered many, is how HIV spread in the first place. According to “Natural Transfer Theory”, HIV was spread to humans through chimpanzees. “Africans have been killing and eating monkey for at least fifty thousand years” (43). It was common for small African communities to hunt and eat chimpanzees. Chimpanzees were said to have “SIVs, simian immunodeficiency viruses that closely resembles HIV” (41). The virus is said to have spread to humans through these infected chimpanzees. The blood of these chimpanzees could have

HIV is a detrimental disease in the African-American community. During the 1980s HIV was on the rise as many people were uneducated about the virus itself and how the virus was contracted. Precious contracted HIV from her mother's boyfriend, which is more difficult to handle when you live in a state of poverty. Precious had limited funds and limited health care options. If an individual contracts HIV in 2016 there are medications that can prolong their life and keep them comfortable unlike the resources available in the 1980s. According to Rao and colleagues, African-Americans face many downfalls with HIV due to difficulty accessing proper care and medication (2016). Rao address that there is a stigma associated with HIV, as well as African-Americans,

HIV and AIDS have affected millions of people throughout the world. Since 1981, there have been 25 million deaths due to AIDS involving men, women, and children. Presently there are 40 million people living with HIV and AIDS around the world and two million die each year from AIDS related illnesses. The Center for Disease Control estimates that one-third of the one million Americans living with HIV are not aware that they have it. The earliest known case of HIV was in 1959. It was discovered in a blood sample from a man in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Looking further into the genetics of this blood sample researchers suggested that it had originated from a virus going back to the late 1940’s or early 1950’s. In 1999,