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Sunday, February 28, 2021
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Homosexual Men Continue To Have High HIV Infection Risk

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Homosexual Men Have The Highest Population Chance Of Being HIV Positive

Homosexual men have a higher risk of getting infected with HIV due to the still present stigma.

A new study has shown that even after decades of awareness and spreading of information, the risk of HIV infection is still very high in the case of homosexual men or in the case of any men who have unprotected sex with other men.

Homosexual Men Have A Greater Risk Of HIV Infection Than Prostate Cancer

The grim truth is that, worldwide, homosexuality is still not well received. Old faiths and customs brand gays as outcasts and there are still common cases of persecution and violence against anyone suspected of being a homosexual.

The data from the study reveals minor improvements when it comes to the decrease in the percentage of worldwide gay men infected with HIV. The numbers are still quite large when compared with the statistics for heterosexual individuals.

Not using protection during intercourse continues to be an issue in countries with low and medium education or low and medium economy. Of course, the risk of contracting HIV will increase considerably in the case of individuals who change sexual partners often and do not practice safe intercourse.

The homosexual men who do want to test for HIV are not always able to do so, due to the ongoing stigma of many nations. Apart from the indirect breach of doctor-patient confidentiality, even in 2016, many homosexual men were assaulted, beaten, or even arrested.

These forms of treatment, in turn, discourage gay men from further trying to get tested for HIV.

This issue is also present in the United States, in 2016. The rate of HIV among homosexual men has not decreased in past decades as it was initially expected.

Medical specialists are aiming to continue increasing public awareness, as well as set up several education programs and campaigns which promote safe intercourse.

Nevertheless, gay men diagnosed with HIV in the United States will have the option of treatment. HIV is no longer a horrifying death sentence but a burden with which individuals have to live with for the rest of their lives.

Treatments against HIV are not as accessible in other countries, mostly due to a poor economy which makes them unaffordable. There have been cases where hate against homosexual men has denied them access to the medicine.

Nevertheless, while the study was based on data surveyed in the last decade, the following ten years could have an entirely different outlook. An increasing number of countries is putting more and more effort into raising HIV awareness specifically for homosexual men, as well as promoting measures for safe sex.

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Kentucky Could Issue Separate Marriage Licenses for Gays and Straights

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The Kentucky Senate recently approved a bill that would request separate marriage license forms for gay and straight couples.

The state’s Senate approved legislation Feb 17 that requires authorities to issue separate marriage licenses for gays and straights. Moreover, the new marriage license forms for straight couples would require that spouses are described as ‘bride’ and ‘groom.’

A Senator said that replacing those terms with first and second party as ex-Gov. Steve Beshear has decided in 2015 does not respect the traditional family.

Initially, Kentucky regulators planned only to change legislation to get rid of the bureaucratic hurdles emerging when a county clerk refuses to issues marriage licenses to gay or lesbian couples for reasons of conscience or religion.

But the Republican majority in the Senate changed the legislation to show their respect for the traditional family, as well. Sen. John Schickel explained that having two forms was not an attempt to discriminate anyone. Instead, it is a natural move approved by the vast majority of Kentucky residents who still nurture a deep respect for traditional marriage.

Sen. Morgan McGarvey of the Democratic party tried to change the bill to request one form that would allow people getting married to choose between various options including ‘spouse,’ ‘bride,’ and ‘groom.’ Though McGarvey argued that this option would trim costs and be more efficient, his proposal was not approved.

The American Civil Liberties Union criticized the move saying that it would create a precedent for discrimination. The group’s executive Michael Aldridge noted that different forms would motivate communities to discriminate against the LGBT.

Sen. Stephen West, the initiator of the bill, noted that there is no discrimination set in place since gay couples are not forbidden to put ‘bride’ and ‘groom’ besides their own names. Two Republican senators were against the amendment saying that two forms would just complicate things up. One Democrat said that the new legislation would just ‘reinforce bigotry’ in the Bluegrass State.

Under the revamped legislation, the names of the county clerks that issue the licenses are removed from the form. This could clear future deadlocks when clerks decline to issue marriage license to gay couples.

Sen. West also told reporters that he wasn’t personally against having one form. He explained that the County Clerks Assn requested the multiple form solution because many voters would rather see the traditional bride and groom wording on their licenses.

The bill is currently on its way to the House of Representatives, where the Democratic majority pledged it would pass it after proper adjustments.

Image Source: Wikipedia

Record Number of LGBT-friendly Cities

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More and more cities are granting equality for their residents

Human Rights Campaign released their 2015 Municipal Equality Index (MEI) which reveals a record number of LGBT-friendly cities. These are the cities which granted protection to their LGBT citizens even if the state doesn’t guarantee it.

Since the first release of the Municipal Equality Index in 2012, the number of cities obtaining a perfect score for LGBT rights has raised about four times. These cities are providing a better life for about 32 million gays, lesbians and transgenders.

The cities with a perfect score awarded by the MEI are proving that equality can be aimed for even if the state doesn’t grant fully-protective legislation and laws against discrimination.

There is a total of 31 “All Stars” –cities, with a perfect score, across the U.S. The cities newly added to the top this year are Bloomington, Indiana; Detroit, Michigan and Louisville, Kentucky.

MEI has particularly looked at progress on transgender rights, which are on a positive trend since the first year of the report. For a perfect score, the laws and policies defending the rights of transgender people must be comprehensive and add to the protections offered by both the state and the federal government.

The report, issued by Human Rights Campaign and the Equality Federation provides a snapshot of LGBT rights and equality in 408 municipalities of different sizes in every state of the U.S.

The research included the 50 state capitals, the 200 most populous cities in the U.S, the top 5 largest cities of each state, the cities hosting the largest two universities in each state and other 75 cities of different sizes and from different states which host the highest numbers of same-sex couples.

The Municipal Equality Index also includes two major guidelines. The first one refers to the actions which should be taken by the cities to address violence against transgender persons while the second one focuses on the importance of offering domestic partner benefits to the city employees.

MEI uses 41 criteria to rate cities, which are part of five large categories: laws against discrimination; municipal employment policies, which should include insurance coverage for transgender people; inclusiveness of the city services; enforcement of the law, including the reporting of hate crimes and finally, the municipal leadership on equality matters.

However, there is still a lot to be done in terms of protection and equality of LGBT population, especially in the southern regions and states where an overwhelming amount of municipalities fail to protect their LGBT citizens and employees.

Image source: freeimages.com

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