Black America's Exploding Health Crisis

African-Americans Make Up 49 Percent Of New HIV Cases

(CBS)  A report tonight has some dramatic numbers about HIV and AIDS. It says that a young person with the disease, properly treated, could now live to old age. In the 1990s, a 20-year-old patient could expect to live to be 56. But by 2005, that climbed to nearly 70. An increase of more than 13 years. Heartening news - until you realize there are more than one million Americans living with HIV/AIDS, more than ever before. And a disproportionate number are African Americans. CBS News correspondent Randall Pinkston explains.

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"So, your husband knew that he had HIV?" Pinkston asked.

"Yes," Ida Byther-Smith said.

"And never told you?" Pinkston asked.

"No, never," she replied.

Byther-Smith is one of America's new faces of AIDS, an African-American woman who contracted the disease from someone she trusted.

"I always believed in abstinence until you get married. But what did that get me? It got me AIDS!" she said.

With a shoe-string budget, Byther-Smith now runs an AIDS community outreach program on Chicago's south side, teaching clients to avoid the mistakes she made. For instance, for years she refused to even admit she had the disease.

"I even had people tell me, 'oh you must have done something really bad for God to punish you like that,'" she said.

Ignorance and fear partly explain an exploding health crisis in America's black community.

Although just 13 percent of the population, the Center for Disease Control says that African Americans accounted for 49 percent of new HIV cases in 2006, the most recent year for which they have statistics.

The epidemic is also exploding among teenagers and young adults. Of new HIV cases between ages 13 and 19, 69 percent are black. Between the ages of 20 and 24, 56 percent are black.

"No matter how you look at it, through the lens of gender, sexual orientation or class, or level of education or the region of the country where you live, black folks bear the brunt of the AIDS epidemic in this country," said Phill Wilson, a Los Angeles-based AIDS activist.

Wilson's also a 27-year survivor. He says early activists sent the wrong message to the black community.

"The mischaracterization of the epidemic ... a white gay man's disease made many black folks think they didn't have to pay attention to the disease," Wilson said.

The development of new miracle drugs dramatically increased survival rates. But the drugs are expensive - and many black Americans have neither private insurance nor the funds.

"A lot of people are dying because they're on a waiting list," Byther-Smith said. "And they can't get medicine."

AIDS activists complain they can't get much attention either from the presidential candidates. When senators John McCain and Barack Obama do mention the disease, their concern is often directed toward AIDS in Africa - not AIDS in America.

[hypnotoad72]

What a pig. Having AIDS and not bothering to tell his wife?!! Is there anything less depraved than that?

Indeed, with media coverage and knowledge as to how it spreads, I cannot blame Obama or McCain for discussing Africa instead.

Drugs are bad; please get off of them and don''t share needles!

*** is NOT bad; but put self-respect and respect for your married lover into the equation. *** and love and not two disparate entities, no matter how hard you try to rationalize it. Especially with a certain part of the population, when otherwise not damning it, starts clamoring FOR marriage...

And regardless of reason for having gotten it, that''s the core problem: Lack of respect for one''s self and their immediate others.

Unless it''s via blood transfusion, but those cases are virtually nil.

[rosieod4prez]

"I always believed in abstinence until you get married. But what did that get me? It got me AIDS!" she said.


I understand this person may have been reacting in anger, but waiting until you are married to become sexually active does not give you AIDS.



"The mischaracterization of the epidemic ... a white gay man''s disease made many black folks think they didn''t have to pay attention to the disease," Wilson said.

Proof that reality is not what you think it is, not what you wish it were, and will not be forgiving if you ignore it.

Make certain you understand what Obama is before voting for him.

[l8c6]

Syndicated columnist Robert D. Novak was cited by police after he hit a pedestrian with his black Corvette in downtown Washington, D.C., on Wednesday morning.

%u201CI didn%u2019t know I hit him. %u2026 I feel terrible,%u201D a shaken Novak told reporters from Politico and WJLA as he was returning to his car. %u201CHe%u2019s not dead, that%u2019s the main thing.%u201D Novak said he was a block away from 18th and K streets Northwest, where the accident occurred, when a bicyclist stopped him and said he had hit someone. He said he was cited for failing to yield the right of way.

You didn%u2019t know you hit him? Well I guess you must have just grazed the guy, right?

Bono said that the pedestrian, who was crossing the street on a %u201CWalk%u201D signal and was in the crosswalk, rolled off the windshield and that Novak then made a right into the service lane of K Street. %u201CThis car is speeding away. What%u2019s going through my mind is, you just can%u2019t hit a pedestrian and drive away,%u201D Bono said.

I%u2019m sorry, but I think most normal people would notice a 66 year old man rolling across their windshield. I%u2019m just saying%u2026

[l8c6]

The pedestrian who was struck by prominent Washington columnist and commentator Robert Novak is in worse shape than first thought, a hospital source tells ABC 7 News.

The victim, a 66-year-old man, appeared somewhat incoherent, said the source who had seen the victim. The man appeared to have casts on his neck and back. The victim was X-rayed and a surgical team plans to evaluate him, the source said.

[xlib]

Check out the amount of government monies spent from the Bush adminstration as opposed to the clinton adiminstratio on AIDS. This is just the msm pulling out the race baiting, class envy ploy.

[libsluv2spit]

premiscious se x and reckless drug use dominates the black culture..

just ask the "tell it how it is" rapper hip hop mtv bte crowd..

what do you expect you get a culture who pretty much accepts this kind of behaviour?

[fstop100]

blacks need to be more responsible....tell them obama they are all ears.

[l8c6]

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 09:11:02

The Tintomara and the Mel Oliver collided on the Mississippi
A tanker and a barge have collided on the Mississippi river, spilling thousands of gallons of oil resulting in the closure of the waterway.

The accident took place on Wednesday when the 600-foot tanker Tintomara rammed into the 61-foot barge, the Mel Oliver, carrying 9,983 barrels of fuel oil (more than 400,000 gallons) north of the bridges that connect downtown New Orleans to the west bank of the Mississippi.

The double-hulled tanker Tintomara was loaded with about 4.2 million gallons of biodiesel and nearly 1.3 million gallons of styrene, but did not leak, said Michael Wilson, president of ship management company Laurin Maritime (America) Inc.

The tar-like fuel oil spilled from the barge, forming the slick and closing about 47 miles of river, Coast Guard spokeswoman Lt. Cdr. Cheri Ben-Iesau said.

"It''s not the largest spill we''ve ever had, but it''s a large one," said Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality spokesman Rodney Mallett after visiting the scene.

[husein_pasha]

i will be so. when there is neither moral, nor sexual culture

[libsluv2spit]

somehow..someway..someone will find a way to blame this on the ''white man''....

cant party and not to expect to pay the price...

[deacon20081]

This sounds like it should be a reality show.
Along with the "who''s your Daddy" genre of Maurry
and others. No matter what race we are, sleep with the dogs...expect to get fleas.

[husein_pasha]

it*

[erasmus81]

Anyone who has s-e-x with a person, knowing that they have HIV, needs to be thrown in jail.

[libsluv2spit]

will be so. when there is neither moral, nor sexual culture


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Posted by Husein_Pasha at 07:31 PM : Jul 24, 2008
+ report abuse


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there you go my brother, as the world gets smaller..your ''neck of the woods'' would soon have a huge bite of this sh*t sandwhich...

[adfolder]

It''s all white''s man fault!!!!!! Columbus should have turned around 1492 and called the whole thing off.

[husein_pasha]

Anyone who has s-e-x with a person, knowing that they have HIV, needs to be thrown in jail.


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Posted by erasmus81 at
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or in the grave. Many other prisoners can catch HIV if he is thrown in the prison

[libsluv2spit]

or in the grave. Many other prisoners can catch HIV if he is thrown in the prison


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Posted by Husein_Pasha at 07:34 PM : Jul 24, 2008
+ report abuse


**************

I am starting to like how you think..

[husein_pasha]

erasmus, what`s happening in British Colombia

[erasmus81]

"or in the grave. Many other prisoners can catch HIV if he is thrown in the prison" Posted by Husein_Pasha at 07:34 PM : Jul 24, 2008

That''s smart thinking!

[husein_pasha]

I`m smart, so I have smart thinking
thanks for the compliment

[erasmus81]

"erasmus, what`s happening in British Colombia"

Well, we''ve been having great weather. There was a few cloudy days but it is pretty nice now. I was beginning to think we weren''t going to have a summer. How''s everything there?

[jediservant]

The reason more Blacks contract Aids/HIV is due to the decisions they make. There is nothing our Government can do to reduce the spread of this deadly disease.

Everyone knows that having *** with multiple partners increases the risk of contracting the disease.

I feel sorry for the lady that was infected by her husband. It looks like people need to insist that their future husband or wife be tested before they say %u201CI Do%u201D.

[husein_pasha]

Good, I`m alone for few weeks, so you are welcome

[erasmus81]

"Good, I`m alone for few weeks, so you are welcome"

Where''s your wife?

[libsluv2spit]

I`m smart, so I have smart thinking
thanks for the compliment


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Posted by Husein_Pasha at 07:48 PM : Jul 24, 2008
+ report abuse


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wow that is pretty vain..maybe that is why erasmus likes you..watch out guys AIDS is an epidemic..

[libsluv2spit]

"Good, I`m alone for few weeks, so you are welcome"

Where''''s your wife?




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Posted by erasmus81 at 07:55 PM : Jul 24, 2008
+ report abuse
Good, I`m alone for few weeks, so you are welcome


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Posted by Husein_Pasha at 07:49 PM : Jul 24, 2008
report abuse


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ahhh get a room guys..and get checked every 6 months..

[husein_pasha]

Where''''s your wife?
---
in the provice

[husein_pasha]

libsluv, read carefully: I have honour.

[erasmus81]

"..maybe that is why erasmus likes you.."

"ahhh get a room guys..and get checked every 6 months.." Posted by libsluv2spit

You have it wrong. There is no need to get a room.
Erasmus "LIKES" Abdoul, but she "LOVES" AJMarine.

[husein_pasha]

My son was here but he also left

[husein_pasha]

I thought that AJMarine is a woman

[libsluv2spit]

Posted by erasmus81 at 08:01 PM : Jul 24, 2008
+ report abuse
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Posted by Husein_Pasha at 08:00 PM : Jul 24, 2008
report abuse


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dont get too defensive guys..just trying to lighten up the room.. I am a live and let live kinda guy as long as your kind of living does not get me killed.

[husein_pasha]

we are just talking, both of us have families. These jokes are unappropriate here

[erasmus81]

"I thought that AJMarine is a woman"

No. AJMarine is definitely a man.
What made you think he was a woman?

[husein_pasha]

Nothing, just decided so. There are no reasons

[bjiggs]

Anybody else notice the elevated level of ''African American Crisis'' stories coming from the media lately? CNN has been plastering these types of stories across their site and now it seems to be spreading?

What''s this all about? Have they decided that these stories will somehow help Obama? Very interesting.

[libsluv2spit]

we are just talking, both of us have families. These jokes are unappropriate here


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Posted by Husein_Pasha at 08:08 PM : Jul 24, 2008
+ report abuse
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sorry husein..i can pretty much say whatever I want..whenever I want..*tap tap* US consitution *tap tap*

enough liberals had whinned enough to guarantee me that much

[husein_pasha]

This HIV is the cholera of our century. And we must prevent it. I have warned my son who goes to Holland.

[libsluv2spit]

Husein_Pasha..you need to ligthen up..you socialize like spock on crack..

[sociald63]

black people would rather spend thier $ on cars, women (or hoes), crack, liquor, etc over health care, housing, education, etc.

[husein_pasha]

black people would rather spend thier $ on cars, women (or hoes),
---
if you want to be smart, you should tell "ladies from the craft"

[libsluv2spit]

This HIV is the cholera of our century. And we must prevent it. I have warned my son who goes to Holland.


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Posted by Husein_Pasha at 08:18 PM : Jul 24, 2008
+ report abuse


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the only way it can be prevented is by monogomous se x with a known partner...and you know *** well that does not sit well with a lot of people..
holland??? hahhahahahhahahahhahahha what is he there to do?? smell the tulips? come on..

[erasmus81]

"Nothing, just decided so. There are no reasons"

It is hard to tell sometimes. Most people think I am a guy, because of my name.

[husein_pasha]

Haha, as I see your youth has VERY poligamous s-ex. Every evening with different. No, not to smell the tulips, to break your head

[libsluv2spit]

this time..the black community found something that DOES NOT DISCRIMINATE..the AIDS virus..

have fun with it!

[husein_pasha]

erasmus, I also decided so because of "Marine" i thought that it`s a female name

[libsluv2spit]

Haha, as I see your youth has VERY poligamous s-ex. Every evening with different. No, not to smell the tulips, to break your head


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Posted by Husein_Pasha at 08:23 PM : Jul 24, 2008
+ report abuse


************

funny you say that..I am in the business of ''breaking heads''....muslim heads..arrogant muslim heads

[husein_pasha]

we will see who whose
your arms are too short

[sociald63]

attn husein pasha - is your son banging a black lady ??

[husein_pasha]

attn husein pasha - is your son banging a black lady ??
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pardon?