Some sobering, terrifying news. I'm sadly reminded that history is forever repeating. Are young gay men doomed to repeat the terrors of their forefathers?
Statistics gathered by New York City health officials show that new diagnoses of H.I.V. infection — the virus that causes AIDS — in gay men under age 30 rose 32 percent between 2001 and 2006. Among black and Hispanic men, the figure was 34 percent. Most troubling, the number of new diagnoses among the youngest men in the study, those between ages 13 and 19, doubled. [NYT]
I can't begin to tell you how much this saddens me. I'm of an age where I can remember dozens of dead friends, and have close loved ones still fighting the disease...including one friend diagnosed in 1989! (Yeah, wow!) I'm also lucky enough to count some marvelous young gay men among my friends and colleagues...and have been saddened to learn they have no understanding of AIDS as a life-threatening force. Many engage in anonymous or online-hookup sex, and few insist upon safe-sex practices. Some of them don't even know how to protect themselves. (Hint: barebacking isn't safe, even if you're really in love with the guy.) SOURCE OF THIS STORY