World AIDS Day 2020 - HIV and COVID

I've had a lot of emotions and anxiety during this global pandemic.  The problem is someone can genuinely ask: WHICH global pandemic?  And that question would not be wrong to ask.  As an HIV positive man, I normally live in a world where health is certainly a concern but throw in an invisible NEW global pandemic that hits the immune system hard and, well, you have someone who didn't leave his New York apartment for 51 days.

This is supposed to be a piece about World AIDS Day (December 1), why bring COVID into this?  There are many people with many comparisons and correlations to make but here's the angle I want to share here.  

When AIDS came onto the scene in the U.S. in the early 80s, we had a leader who didn't want to address the crisis and as a result, tens of thousands of people died from his inaction.  Sound familiar?  Sadly, it does.  Let me go on to say that early in the spread of HIV, medical professionals were urging people to use protection - wear a condom.  Seemed simple enough however the message from the administration was rather - just refrain, be abstinent.  The point: appropriate early messaging enforced by the leader would have saved the lives of (again) tens of thousands of people who died in the early years of HIV and AIDS.  Imagine, they might still be alive today.  Some of our greatest artists and creatives all gone too soon.  Why?  Why wasn't anything done?  Well, there are theories and unfortunately, we may never know the "why" of it all.  And that is yet another tragedy.

My heart aches every time I think of those early days when those who were in power decided to ignore what was going on.  But here's the good news: WE do not.  We can think for ourselves and act for ourselves.  We can wear protection of all kinds whether in the bedroom during intimate acts or on the subway in public.  Each of those actions is as important as the other.  Each protects yourself as well as the other person you're with.  To put a dramatic point on this, both are literally a matter of life and death.  

December 1 is World AIDS Day, a day of remembrance.  We need to remember that HIV is still spreading.  But how and why is it still spreading after all these years and after all these great medicines that have been created?  I dare say because of two reasons: reluctance or inability to get tested and reluctance to wear protection.  Again, sound familiar?!  We are all living through this pandemic and seeing the need for TESTING and the need for PROTECTION.  They BOTH WORK!  I use our current, horrifying circumstances to remind everyone that this has happened before.  But let's learn from what has come before to do better today and tomorrow.

This year World AIDS Day falls on Giving Tuesday.  GMHC, one of the first organizations to provide support for people living with HIV and AIDS, is hosting their own version of Giving Tuesday to dovetail with fundraising efforts coinciding with World AIDS Day.  

Click here for information on how to contribute to GMHC.  And click here to learn more about World AIDS Day and how to contribute.