September 27, 2010: National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

This coming Monday, September 27 marks the third annual National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.

Sponsored by the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA), the National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is meant to refocus attention on the HIV/AIDS crisis among this community. Men who have sex with men are still disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS. In the United States, for example, an estimated 300,000 gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men have died and more than more than half a million diagnosed since 1981. Men of color are at particular risk: a recent CDC report notes that in 2008, black men who have sex with men had the highest estimated number HIV infection diagnoses.

These infection rates are, in part, spurred by stigma and fear. In a recent Savage Love column, Dan Savage lays out his own media campaign to address these issues — “It Gets Better.” Dan and his husband put up the first video just three days ago, and already have received hundreds of videos in response.

To view the “It Gets Better” campaign, click here: www.YouTube.com/ItGetsBetterProject

For the NIH press release, click here: http://www.nih.gov/news/health/sep2010/niaid-20.htm

For the CDC’s latest surveillance report, click here:  http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/surveillance/resources/reports/2008report/.