I'm taking on 2 articles today, A & B. These articles are about the same issue even though one's in the South & the other's in D.C. They both take on the disproportionate rates of HIV in these communities. According to the 1st article the rate of HIV in black women in some areas of D.C. has doubled in the last 2 years. The other articles shows that 50% of all new HIV cases in the USA are people living in the South.
Besides HIV, what do these communities have in common?
- They are areas with high ethnic populations, most often Black/African American
- They are areas of excessive poverty
- They are area that have had little focus on them regarding HIV
- They are still low in areas of testing, education & treatment
Most of the women in the 1st article were heterosexual & for whatever reason, unaware of their risk factors. The 2nd goes on to show that even though the Black community is just over 10% of the population, they are accounting for over 40% of the new southern HIV cases.
What's going on here? There is a definite disconnect as to who is at risk from HIV. There is severe lack of screening & education. Then there is still the hurdle of funds for treatment. Some people categorize these numbers as still being at the epidemic levels.
These are truly appalling & scary statistics.
Cya...
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