LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
Leather Beach |
I have a serious topic to discuss, one that I want each and every person reading this to consider. There is a disturbing trend emerging in our entire gay culture. There are people out there who want to have anal sex with a variety of people without using condomsoften referred to as bare backing. For those of you thinking of trying this yourselves, I have one thing to say to youTHINK TWICE! And, I have some very good reasons for saying this. I am not going to preach, nor would I suggest that I am better than anyone else. I am writing this because I care about youeach and every one of you. I don't want to see you ill and suffering. The new AIDS drugs have, however, made some of us complacent. We see people surviving now who would not have survived ten years ago, but this has lulled us into a false sense of security. These are the some of the facts as I understand them. There's still no cure for AIDS. The most recently tested vaccines have failed, new ones are still being tested and won't be on the market for years even if successful. Even when a vaccine is available it probably won't help people who are already infected with HIV. The AIDS drugs can prolong life, but not everyone can tolerate them either initially or indefinitely. Once off the drugs the virus has been shown to make a come back. The drug regimen is difficult and expensive. Anal intercourse is the leading way AIDS is spread among gay men; not using a condom is like playing Russian Roulette. Everyone who knows me will tell you that I am a sexual liberal, I am not preaching celibacy or even monogamy, just some common sense. When I came out in 1981 at the age of 19, it was believed that herpes was the worst thing you could get from sexother venereal diseases were curable. In a few short years that has changed. First were rumors of a strange disease afflicting gayseven poppers were blamed. The straight population didn't seem to care, some were even happy that gay men were dying for our supposed "sins" and the gay community went into denial until the first wave of deaths occurred. These initial deaths occurred and the crisis was suddenly personal. People started taking precautions, but it was already too late for some. I was living in Reading, PA and watched as a group of men who had all been together fell like dominoes. It was horrible. AIDS patients were treated like lepers due to irrational fear. Many were spurned by friends, family and health care professionals. Many of you are old enough to have similar stories I'm sure. If you are very young and just out you may not even know of anyone who died of AIDS. To those of you who fall in the latter category I encourage you to talk to your older male friends and see what it was like, visit the AIDS quilt if you have a chance, but think about it before throwing your condoms away. There are people who have been through all this before who can offer guidance; try to listen to them. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 9, No. 10, July 30, 1999 |