Too little progress on HIV

GREENSBORO -- When I think back to the world in which I lived 20 years ago, I am astonished by everything that has changed. Back then, an HIV diagnosis meant certain death, and treatment and care options were extremely limited. Today, we have access to powerful medicines and treatment that can give those with HIV/AIDS a quality of life that was previously unimaginable.

I am equally astonished, however, by what has not changed since then: the rate of new HIV infections in this country, which has not fallen in nearly two decades.

On Friday, I attended An Evening Without Politics, a benefit reception hosted by the National Minority AIDS Council and members of Congress. The event helped raise awareness about the HIV/AIDS crisis in this country and in Washington and launched a new historically black colleges and university HIV/AIDS Peer Education Initiative.

Never has this nationwide awareness and student involvement been more imperative. Though HIV/AIDS is an entirely preventable disease, it continues to devastate communities across the United States. Last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that the U.S. HIV incidence rate is 40 percent higher than previously estimated. African-American communities alone account for nearly 50 percent of all new HIV infections annually and for over half of AIDS deaths since the epidemic began nearly three decades ago.

Washington, the very city in which our legislators meet to try to address crises like this, now has the highest rate of new HIV infections in the country. At least 3 percent of District residents are living with HIV or AIDS, surpassing the CDC's 1 percent threshold for a "generalized and severe" epidemic. Furthermore, 81 percent of all AIDS cases in D.C. are among African-Americans. Unfortunately, other states are following D.C.'s lead. The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services reports that black North Carolinians are eight times more likely to contract HIV than whites.

I am particularly alarmed by the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS among African-American girls and women. AIDS is a leading cause of death among black sisters of all ages and is the No. 1 killer among those aged 25-34. Black women in North Carolina are over 14 times more likely than white women to be infected with HIV.

We must work together to reverse these trends. First, we need a comprehensive and coordinated national strategy to address HIV/AIDS in the United States, a plan that requires the same level of accountability and transparency that we demand of other countries when we give them funding to combat HIV/AIDS. As part of that strategy, we must continue to address the socioeconomic disparities such as poverty, homelessness, lack of access to care and limited opportunities for education that have helped fuel the epidemic in underserved communities nationwide.

Another fundamental component of this strategy includes full funding for programs that facilitate access to HIV/AIDS treatment and care. And we must support cutting-edge approaches to HIV prevention that bring together different partners, including government, community groups, businesses and young people, and especially young people of color.

As our future leaders, young people who experienced a 42 percent increase in AIDS cases between 2000 and 2004 must play an integral role in stopping the spread of HIV in our communities. The very future of our communities depends upon our students' ability to teach each other, their families and their friends about the importance of HIV prevention, treatment and care.

Most of all, we need our young people to demand a different future for themselves, because without them, our efforts will surely fall short.

Recently, we have heard about a successful HIV vaccine trial in Thailand. I am heartened by such advances and believe strongly that we must continue our scientific research in this area. But until we have a viable, market-ready vaccine, we can make the most difference by working to educate our brothers and sisters in our own communities.

As someone who is fortunate to work every day with our future leaders, I know that the next 20 years hold much promise. But what will our legacy on HIV/AIDS be? I am confident that by joining together now, we can stop the spread of this disease in our communities.

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