HIV/AIDS deemed a ‘crisis’ in the South
More than 12,700 with HIV in Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole
Daniel Downer grew up in Apopka as a preacher’s kid, a “PK,” as he calls it. Faith was the anchor in his home and his community.
When it came to sex, conversations were limited.
“The only two things that were said regarding sex were, one, it was not happening until after marriage and two, that it was specifically for procreation,” said Downer on Thursday, on a national conference call organized by several organizations including the Southern AIDS Coalition. “So I kind of entered the world with just this oblivious perception about HIV. It wasn’t something that was discussed. It wasn’t something that I heard.”
In 2012, after he had moved to Atlanta for college, Downer got tested for the first time for HIV and his results came back positive.
“I learned the harsh reality of not being equipped with the information, the tools about HIV education and HIV prevention,” said Downer, 30, who identifies as a queer black man.
Southern states carry the burden of new HIV diagnoses, accounting for more than half of new infections in the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
While the South makes up 38% of the U.S. population, about 45% of people who are HIV-positive live in the South. Moreover, Afri
can Americans make up about half of the new HIV infections in the South, even thought they are a smaller portion of the population. For instance, in Central Florida, more than 37% of new HIV diagnoses are among black individuals, who make up about 15% of the population.
“We have an HIV/AIDS crisis in the South,” said Dafina Ward, interim executive director of the Southern HIV/AIDS Coalition, which has a mission to end the HIV epidemic in the South by increasing access to services and reducing stigma and discrimination. “We must draw national attention to this problem.”
On Thursday, the Southern AIDS Coalition, alongside AIDSVu, an online mapping tool that helps people visualize the HIV epidemic, and Gilead Sciences, the maker of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) medication, introduced the first Southern HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, slated for Aug. 20.
“We recognize that HIV infection does not happen in a vacuum,” said Ward. “New cases occur when you look at the intersection of the array of the systemic challenges and barriers, racism, the phobias that occur in the South. Those who are living in communities that are rural, suburban and urban in the Southern region are dealing with challenges that are resulting in increased rates of HIV in the region.”
Patrick Sullivan, professor of epidemiology at Emory University and principal scientist at AIDSVu.org, said the HIV epidemic has always been characterized by health inequities.
“So despite significant advances in diagnosis and care for people living with HIV and HIV prevention, HIV continues to be a public health crisis in the United States. And the situation is most acute in Southern U.S.," Sullivan said.
In Central Florida, more than 12,700 people with HIV live in the Lake, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties, according to AIDSVu. ZIP codes 32801, 32803, 32805, 32808, 32811 and 32831 have the highest rates of HIV infection in Central Florida, including downtown Orlando, Colonialtown, Washington Shores, Pine Hills, the Orlo Vista area and a small pocket south of Bithlo.
The Orlando region ranked No. 2 among major U.S. cities for new cases of HIV in 2017, according to AIDSVu.
It’s been seven years since Downer’s diagnosis. Today, his HIV is undetectable. In other words, he has so little of the virus in his blood that he can’t transmit it to a sexual partner.
But he has done more than manage his health.
Downer is back in Orlando now, where he has established The Bros in Convo Initiative to empower young men of color to live their best and healthiest lives.
“I realized that there are so many Daniels in this battle in the local communities throughout the South, where there is no awareness,” he said. “There isn’t HIV education. There isn’t someone sharing with them the various ways that they can be their best selves and their healthiest.”
His organization has open and honest discussion about sexuality, sexual health and wellness, HIV and how they can develop our own personal protection plan.
Through social medial campaigns, Bros in Convo has been fighting the stigma associated with HIV in Orlando. One project, called Black HIV Lives Matter, showed the intersection between HIV in black and brown individuals and their strength and resilience.
“We also specifically target federally qualified health centers in the local community as well as other ally organizations and share with them HIV stigma language guides, which encourages them to be a little bit more mindful of the dialogue and language that’s being used when discussing HIV and individuals with HIV,” said Downer.
There have been great strides to try to make [HIV] information visible in Central Florida, said Downer, “but I think there’s also an opportunity to reach even further than what has already been done.”
President Donald Trump announced earlier this year that his administration wants to to end the HIV epidemic in 10 years, under the initiative “Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America,” with a proposed budget of $291 million.
In its first phase the initative is focusing on 48 counties plus San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Washington, D.C., providing them with new resources, expertise and technology to fight the HIV epidemic, according the HIV.org. Nearly half of those counties, including Broward, Duval, Hillsborough, Miami-Dade, Orange, Palm Beach and Pinellas counties in Florida, are in the South.