Dear Editor,
In their article in the Jamaica Observer on Wednesday, February 6, The Love March Movement in their usual condescending rhetoric (the "we love gays" front to make them appear humble that won't work) claimed that they wanted to "warn gays of their actions".
While it is true that some people willingly make unwise choices (such as unprotected sex), when it comes to their sexual health there is absolutely no doubt that certain anti-gay attitudes (which the Love March Movement tries to downplay) in society exacerbates this problem.
HIV in the MSM (Men who have sex with men) community is a complex issue, and no single factor is responsible for the rise in the level of HIV prevalence or incidence seen in the last decade. What the religious extremist lobby will not tell you is that retaining the buggery law isn't necessary to control this epidemic, as Jamaica has an HIV prevalence rate among MSM that is higher than every country without a buggery law.
Claims that the law is a deterrent to anal sex is rooted in pure deception. HIV is spread mainly by having sex with an unprotected partner, sharing infected needles and mother-to-child transmission. The claim that all anal penetration is a "high-risk activity" and "medically unsafe" (specifically protected) isn't a finding of any major health or HIV prevention organisation, as the use of condoms in a monogamous relationship where both partners are of the same status hasn't been proven to be an activity driving HIV rate increases, but actually lowering them.
This was proven by the study ""Alternatives to Monogamy Among Gay Male Couples in a Community Survey: Implications for Mental Health and Sexual Risk" published in the Archives of Sexual Behaviour which stated: "Being in a monogamous relationship was associated with benefits in terms of reduced substance use and reduced sexual health risks. Monogamous men reported the least amount of illicit drug use compared to all other men...". However, studies like these don't play well with anti-gay politics. Telling MSM to "stop having sex" might fit the agenda well and seem logical, but the reality tells us that not only is that probably impractical as a solution, but unnecessary and insufficient.
According to Aids for Action Singapore, in 2007 Singapore's MSM HIV prevalence rate was 4.2% from a high of 6.4% in 2006. Singapore, the next year in 2008, had one of the lowest MSM HIV prevalence rates in their region when it fell to 3.1%. The organisation said that their success was due to teaching MSM to use condoms correctly as well as increased HIV testing.
There was also a sharp reduction in unprotected anal sex and less complacency about risk, unlike the situation in other countries. Singapore's prevalence rate then fell the following year in 2009 to 2.7%. In what country did the Christian abstinence programme for gays actually work again? There is also no doubt that certain negative attitudes to homosexuality, driven by certain laws, religious views and ignorance, result in low self-esteem among gay and bisexual men, which leads them to not value their health. A study quoted by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) called "Family Rejection as a Predictor of Negative Health Outcomes in White and Latino Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Young Adults" which was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics said: "Higher rates of family rejection were significantly associated with poorer health outcomes. On the basis of odds ratios, lesbian, gay, and bisexual young adults who reported higher levels of family rejection during adolescence were 8.4 times more likely to report having attempted suicide, 5.9 times more likely to report high levels of depression, 3.4 times more likely to use illegal drugs, and 3.4 times more likely to report having engaged in unprotected sexual intercourse, compared with peers from families that reported no or low levels of family rejection."
Remember when Jamaican clerics bullied televisions stations about an ad designed to reduce family rejection among Jamaicans? Religious extremism eventually trumped facts and it wasn't shown. MSM and their family and friends can take steps to reduce the effects of homophobia, stigma and discrimination and protect their physical and mental health. One way to cope with the stress from stigma and discrimination is social support. Practising safe sex with one partner is an effective way to lower the risk of HIV, regardless of what the religious extremist lobby tells or refuses to tell you. There is no doubt that all people are equal, but certain attitudes are not.
Matthew Thomas
matl1990@yahoo.com
Unprotected gay sex is medically unsafe
-->
In their article in the Jamaica Observer on Wednesday, February 6, The Love March Movement in their usual condescending rhetoric (the "we love gays" front to make them appear humble that won't work) claimed that they wanted to "warn gays of their actions".
While it is true that some people willingly make unwise choices (such as unprotected sex), when it comes to their sexual health there is absolutely no doubt that certain anti-gay attitudes (which the Love March Movement tries to downplay) in society exacerbates this problem.
HIV in the MSM (Men who have sex with men) community is a complex issue, and no single factor is responsible for the rise in the level of HIV prevalence or incidence seen in the last decade. What the religious extremist lobby will not tell you is that retaining the buggery law isn't necessary to control this epidemic, as Jamaica has an HIV prevalence rate among MSM that is higher than every country without a buggery law.
Claims that the law is a deterrent to anal sex is rooted in pure deception. HIV is spread mainly by having sex with an unprotected partner, sharing infected needles and mother-to-child transmission. The claim that all anal penetration is a "high-risk activity" and "medically unsafe" (specifically protected) isn't a finding of any major health or HIV prevention organisation, as the use of condoms in a monogamous relationship where both partners are of the same status hasn't been proven to be an activity driving HIV rate increases, but actually lowering them.
This was proven by the study ""Alternatives to Monogamy Among Gay Male Couples in a Community Survey: Implications for Mental Health and Sexual Risk" published in the Archives of Sexual Behaviour which stated: "Being in a monogamous relationship was associated with benefits in terms of reduced substance use and reduced sexual health risks. Monogamous men reported the least amount of illicit drug use compared to all other men...". However, studies like these don't play well with anti-gay politics. Telling MSM to "stop having sex" might fit the agenda well and seem logical, but the reality tells us that not only is that probably impractical as a solution, but unnecessary and insufficient.
According to Aids for Action Singapore, in 2007 Singapore's MSM HIV prevalence rate was 4.2% from a high of 6.4% in 2006. Singapore, the next year in 2008, had one of the lowest MSM HIV prevalence rates in their region when it fell to 3.1%. The organisation said that their success was due to teaching MSM to use condoms correctly as well as increased HIV testing.
There was also a sharp reduction in unprotected anal sex and less complacency about risk, unlike the situation in other countries. Singapore's prevalence rate then fell the following year in 2009 to 2.7%. In what country did the Christian abstinence programme for gays actually work again? There is also no doubt that certain negative attitudes to homosexuality, driven by certain laws, religious views and ignorance, result in low self-esteem among gay and bisexual men, which leads them to not value their health. A study quoted by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) called "Family Rejection as a Predictor of Negative Health Outcomes in White and Latino Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Young Adults" which was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics said: "Higher rates of family rejection were significantly associated with poorer health outcomes. On the basis of odds ratios, lesbian, gay, and bisexual young adults who reported higher levels of family rejection during adolescence were 8.4 times more likely to report having attempted suicide, 5.9 times more likely to report high levels of depression, 3.4 times more likely to use illegal drugs, and 3.4 times more likely to report having engaged in unprotected sexual intercourse, compared with peers from families that reported no or low levels of family rejection."
Remember when Jamaican clerics bullied televisions stations about an ad designed to reduce family rejection among Jamaicans? Religious extremism eventually trumped facts and it wasn't shown. MSM and their family and friends can take steps to reduce the effects of homophobia, stigma and discrimination and protect their physical and mental health. One way to cope with the stress from stigma and discrimination is social support. Practising safe sex with one partner is an effective way to lower the risk of HIV, regardless of what the religious extremist lobby tells or refuses to tell you. There is no doubt that all people are equal, but certain attitudes are not.
Matthew Thomas
matl1990@yahoo.com
Unprotected gay sex is medically unsafe
-->