A new study titled "Back of the Line: The State of AIDS Among Black Gay Men in America" reveals some shocking truths about HIV/AIDS infections in the African American community. One in four black gay American men will contact AIDS, despite accounting for only one in 500 of the American population.

The study, released by the Black AIDS Institute ahead of the International AIDS Society conference, to be held in Washington, DC, next week, is an easy and eye-opening read. An entire minority of people are battling a disease, often without help from their families, communities or government. 

This is what Ernest Hopkins, chair of the National Black Gay Men's Advocacy Coalition and contributor to the report, had to say about the dire statistics: 

This report focuses on one group of Americans for whom the promise of genuine equality remains unfulfilled. Today, Black gay and bisexual men are more heavily affected by HIV than any other group in the entire developed world. Indeed, it is difficult to find another population across the globe that has suffered more as a result of this epidemic than Black gay men.

Accounting for one in 500 Americans, Black gay and bisexual men represent nearly one in four new infections. Worse still, rates of new infections among Black gay men are rapidly increasing.

This report explains these shocking patterns. While Black men are at the front of the line when it comes to need, they remain at the back of the line when it comes to services. Black gay men are more likely than other gay men to have undiagnosed HIV infection, less likely to have access to life-saving HIV prevention and treatment services, and more likely to be deterred from seeking help due to the combined effects of poverty, racism, and homophobia.

The AIDS crisis among Black gay men is a problem for Black America as a whole. If this is our problem, we need to be part of the solution. We must find it within ourselves to summon the courage to confront our own prejudices; to welcome our Black gay sons and brothers into our families, communities, and churches; and to renew our commitment to the fight against AIDS, vowing to prioritize this struggle until this scourge is eradicated for good.

This report needs to be read, and its recommendations heeded. With infections rapidly rising, time is of the essence. We urge all those who ought to care about this crisis—including those who are engaged in the fight, as well as those who remain on the sidelines—to incorporate the lessons in this important report and to take action. All of us have a role to play.

I know too many people, black, white and otherwise, who don't view HIV/AIDS as cause for concern. They come from a generation that didn't live through the fear and destruction of AIDS in the late 20th century. They didn't experience the loss the same way older members of our community have. Many view the disease as manageable, and thanks to modern medicine, they don't consider it life threatening. Many more simply don't care. But apathy is delusion, and all too often, death. Although it is possible to live a happy and fulfilling life being HIV-positive, it is essential that you ask questions, take precautions and use protection for the sake of yourself and your partner.

I don't want to preach, and I know it's cliché, but it's also true -- knowing your status is the cure.

If you want to get tested, HiM gives free HIV and STD tests at their clinic at 1033 Davie St. If you have no one to go with you and can't do it alone, shoot me an email. I don't mind holding your hand! I need to stock up on lube anyway . . . 

Sal Bardo, director of the 2010 short film Requited, is currently seeking funding for his next short film, Chaser, aboout "bug chasers," a fringe of gay men who actively seek HIV infection. Talking to the Huffington Post, Bardo reveals the resistance he has faced inside the LGBT community, from individuals and organizations who feel his film will "sensationalize" a contentious issue.  

"When I made my first short film, Requited, in 2010, one of the actors, Max Rhyser, and I began sharing stories about men we’d met who are intentionally trying to become infected with HIV. They’re called “bug chasers,” and we mutually expressed our confusion and dismay about the subject. The lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community doesn’t want to talk about it. The activist community is afraid to admit it. The straight world doesn’t know about it. And so Max and I decided to make a movie called Chaser...
 
At that point I was sure the film would be more than just provocative. I told Max we should be prepared to defend it, that our decision not to condemn our main character’s behavior, but instead just tell a story and let the audience make their own judgment, would make people uncomfortable. What I didn’t expect was the pushback that came before we’d even raised the money to make the film, or that it would come from sources seemingly dedicated to eradicating HIV from our community. When we approached one of the country’s oldest and most respected AIDS organizations about partnering with us for our upcoming fundraiser on March 30, a representative accused us of “sensationalizing” the issue, decrying that it was a small “fringe” of the gay community who were engaging in this behavior…
 
We can’t make progress without asking questions. Who are these “chasers”? Why are they doing this? Some of them are men whose families and cultures have shamed them into anonymous, unsafe sex, who have devalued them to the point where they believe their lives aren’t worth protecting. Some are boys sitting in classrooms, watching videos like the one I watched, believing they have no future. These are our people. This is our community. This is our family. And if a member of your family were acting in a self-destructive way, would you ignore it? Would you deny that it was happening? Would you shun those who tried to help? Or would you confront him, find out why, and try to figure out how to stop it?”

Vancouver performer Tyrell Witherspoon's new single "Glow" is available for download. Proceeds from the sales benefit the Dr Peter AIDS Foundation. 

The organization's website says, “At the Dr Peter AIDS Foundation, every day is an inspiring reminder of what we can achieve by providing HIV treatment and other supports for people whose lives are impacted by HIV/AIDS and additional challenges of addiction, mental illness, poverty and discrimination."

Tyrell shared the song's meaning with Xtra: "I wrote this song with the intention to reach out to the younger generation out there who also have big dreams. I am a firm believer in anything is possible if you believe it will happen and work your butt off to do it. Trust me, you’re going to have more than enough people who will break you down and tell you you can’t. Sometimes you just want to quit. I know I have. But with the right support around you and persistency to do your best, you’ll always come out on top."

Take a second to listen to the track, and then download it here for a good cause. 

World AIDS Day exists because sometimes we forget to reflect. How many days of the year do you think about AIDS, besides Dec 1? In the '80s and the '90s it would have been hard to find someone who wasn't in some way connected to a person who had HIV. Everyone had a story. But for my generation, HIV and AIDS have become like a distant horror story. The monster under the bed that nobody really believes in because if Tumblr can't catch it then it doesn't exist. I even knew a guy who tried to dispute the pros and cons of HIV with me. He literally wanted to share the pros to a life-terminating disease. He said it wasn't so bad, it's a "manageable" disease now, and the government gives you money. And he was sober. Unfortunately, so was I. Sobered by the reality that for my peers, a virus your computer catches is more alarming than HIV. 

Because my generation wasn't around to see firsthand the instantaneous horror of AIDS in the 20th century, we do not understand it on the same level. There is no history class that can truly teach us what it feels like to lose someone you love in such a dark and mysterious way. Suddenly, AIDS arrived. Like a true diva. A true bitch. She took the spotlight. She demanded it. And despite our best attempts to pull the curtain on her, she still shines. 

We died first, and we died the most, and that's why the war against HIV and AIDS is personal. We, as a community, a culture, a group of really really fabulous people -- whatever the fuck you want to call us --  we need to be an example of how to live in a world with AIDS. We have to practise safe sex. That is our responsibility, whether we like it or not. Yes, it's a total mood-kill to find a rubber and to put it on. I always find it the most dramatic moment of sex. Where's the condom? Find the condom. Hunt. Hands shaking. Don't stop. Got the condom! Shit, no, just more lube. Don't need more lube. Focus. Focus. Foc-ussssss! Got it. Yay. Try to open it, fuck, fuck, fuck, hands are shaking. Damn hands. Damn. You. Hands. Got it open, put it on, shit, fuck, mother fuck, damn you hands, wrong fucking way! Blow. Blow like they taught you in high school health class. Blow to find out which way to roll the condom on your big pulsating cock . . . Got it! Thank you Mrs Callaway! 

At least that's the mental train I imagine choo-chooing through my boyfriend's mind on date night. The point is, condoms are a bitch. But so is life. Trumped only by the biggest motherfucking bitch of all: death. She'll cut you!

Put that at the end of a hash tag if it will help get it through your brain, which used to be in you, before it was on your monitor. 

The AIDS epidemic first began 30 years ago and created a worldwide panic. We've progressed a lot since the early '80s but still have a long way to go. According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, HIV infection is on the rise in Canada: there has been a 14 percent increase since 2005. In many other parts of the world, the number of infected has steadily decreased. So what are we doing wrong?

Well, we're not getting tested. We're having unprotected sex and engaging in other high-risk behaviour. We're uneducated, ignorant and just plain stupid. If we don't remember and respect our history, we are doomed to repeat it.

There is no excuse for a resurgence of HIV in a country such as Canada, which offers so many different types of support for its people. In many ways, as Canadians, we are taken care of, but that doesn't mean that we should stop taking care of ourselves.

Every eight hours, a Canadian is infected with HIV. There is a cure: knowing your status. So let's make it chic (like only the gays can) and get tested.

Stop by The Helm (1180 Howe) today from 2-8pm for The Hangout, a Sunday tea-dance with local DJs (Adam Dreaddy, Jeffery Michael, Quest, Landon James and Mumbles) and fabulous host Syren DeMille. It's a great way to honour this day and the people we've lost. All proceeds go to the Dr Peter AIDS Foundation.

See you there, dears.