Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report Summarizes Editorials, Opinion Pieces Marking World AIDS Day.
Several newspapers recently published editorials and opinion pieces on HIV/AIDS following World AIDS Day, which was Dec. 1. Some of the pieces are summarized below:
Editorials
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Akron Beacon Journal: "No society can afford to allow HIV/AIDS to become a woman's disease" because the "odds are high" that the "face" of the disease would be "young, low-income, heterosexual and a minority," a Beacon Journal editorial says (Akron Beacon Journal, 12/5).
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Arizona Daily Star: The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has made "remarkable progress in a short period" in the fight against HIV/AIDS since it began operation in 2002, according to a Daily Star editorial. While the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief is "admirable," the fund targets "far fewer countries than need the money" and the United States "should not pull back programs that have shown to be effective," such as the Global Fund, the editorial concludes (Arizona Daily Star, 12/5).
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Jackson Clarion-Ledger: HIV/AIDS "breaks all stereotypes" and the "biggest killer with this incurable disease is ignorance: how it's spread, how it's treated, how it's prevented," according to a Clarion-Ledger editorial (Jackson Clarion-Ledger, 12/3).
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Raleigh News & Observer: North Carolina, which has "struggled" to provide antiretroviral drugs to low-income HIV/AIDS patients and did not spend enough on prevention education, "ought to be prepared to do more," according to a News & Observer editorial. Funding for HIV/AIDS treatment should come first, followed by a "more vigorous" public awareness campaign, the editorial says (Raleigh News & Observer, 12/5).
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Sioux Falls Argus Leader: World AIDS Day is important because "it keeps this killer in front of the public," which often has dismissed it as a "gay" and "druggie" disease even though evidence is "clear" that it is not confined to either group, according to an Argus Leader editorial (Sioux Falls Argus Leader, 12/3)
Opinion Pieces
- David Bryden, Oregonian: Criticism of the Bush administration's involvement in the fight against HIV/AIDS is warranted and needed, Bryden, communications director for Global AIDS Alliance, writes in an Oregonian letter to the editor in response to a Dec. 1 Oregonian editorial. While Bush deserves credit for launching the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, he has simultaneously cut funding for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which is needed to "tackle" the HIV/AIDS pandemic worldwide before it "overwhelms" more countries, Bryden concludes (Bryden, Oregonian, 12/6).
- Cathleen Falsani, Chicago Sun-Times: "Too many of [evangelical Christians'] allegedly kindred spirits have remained inert" in the fight against HIV/AIDS, Falsani, a Sun-Times religion writer, says in a Sun-Times opinion piece. She concludes by asking "instead of giving that weekly tithe to the local church to build a new fellowship hall, how about sending it to Africa to buy antiretroviral drugs that will keep somebody's parents alive or send an orphan to school?" (Falsani, Chicago Sun-Times, 12/3).
- Charisse Grant, Miami Herald: The "sense of urgency" surrounding the HIV/AIDS crisis has "dissipated," but the "need is still critical" and the "concern is still high," Grant, director of programs for Dade Community Foundation, writes in a Herald opinion piece. Health officials and organizations should make HIV/AIDS a "priority" in "policy and resource allocation," and the community "must recognize the urgency, build on the progress made and resolve not to lose ground in saving lives," Grant concludes (Grant, Miami Herald, 12/5).
- Kohar Jones, Washington Post: The United States needs to provide more than just funding to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS in developing countries, Jones, a Yale University School of Medicine student, writes in a Post opinion piece. The U.S. government also should "apply political leverage" to ensure that other nations address issues such as property rights, education and employment opportunities for women and girls to help empower them to protect themselves from HIV/AIDS, Jones concludes (Jones, Washington Post, 12/5).
- Chris Norwood, New York Times: The United States has "completely failed to confront the realities of youth and AIDS," and the "serious consequences" already are being felt, Norwood, founder and executive director of the New York City peer-education group Health People, writes in a Times opinion piece. So far, there has been "almost nothing" in the way of community outreach and mobilization for children with HIV/AIDS, but young people need "for all of us to see and care for them," Norwood concludes (Norwood, New York Times, 12/5).
- Carey Roberts, Washington Times: UNAIDS' "safe sex" campaign may be dangerous to women because it advocates condom use over sexual abstinence, which it views as too "puritanical," Roberts, a Washington, D.C.-based writer, says in a Times opinion piece. UNAIDS also "pit[s] women against men" in a "radical feminist mindset" and should take a "practical approach based on science, not ideology" in the fight against HIV/AIDS, Roberts writes (Roberts, Washington Times, 12/5).