TIGblogs TIG | TIGblogs GROUP TIGBLOGS LOGIN SIGNUP
Bahamas Blog International
Bahamas Blog International
Men's Health and HIV/AIDS in the Black Communities of Africa and the Caribbean
Related to country: Bahamas

Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Men's Health:
By Kermit B. Fernander, Guardian Lifestyles Reporter -
Nassau, Bahamas:



Wow! World AIDS Day is here again! And, while HIV/AIDS is very much a problem the world over, it is highest in the black communities of Africa and the Caribbean, which geographically speaking, of course, includes The Bahamas.

Sadly, despite the heroic efforts of HIV/AIDS Program director Nurse RosaMae Bain and her team to get Bahamians to become serious about this very preventable disease, Bahamian people - our men especially - continue to believe that HIV/AIDS could never happen to them. They remain "in denial" of the reality of HIV/AIDS while they continue to become infected and to infect others - particularly their female partners.

It is worth noting that people in denial of HIV/AIDS tend not to want to discuss HIV/AIDS, or read or hear about it. Perhaps this is their way of coping with their underlying fear of HIV/AIDS. It also helps them not to think about their powerlessness at practicing self-control, which is absolutely vital to the prevention of all sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.

Below are some of the more common reasons why many Bahamian men continue to remain in denial. At first glance, they may appear ridiculous but they are very real, nonetheless. They have become part of the belief system of men, particularly working class men with little formal education and little interest in becoming more educated, better read and better informed about the things that really matter. Like their future, their health and the future and health of their families.

So what do our Bahamian men really believe about HIV/AIDS?

1. They believe God will protect them.

2. They believe HIV/AIDS affects homosexual men only.

3. They believe HIV/AIDS affects weak, sickly people only.

4. They believe HIV/AIDS affects people who inject drugs and share dirty needles only.

5. They believe only nasty, dirty people get HIV/AIDS.

6. They believe HIV/AIDS is God's way of punishing wicked people whose lifestyles are unnatural or abnormal.

7. They believe their sex partners could not possibly be infected with HIV.

8. They believe they will be lucky enough never to get infected.

9. They believe they could always recognize a person living with HIV/AIDS.

10. They believe Bahamian health care officials lie about statistics to scare the Bahamian people.

11. They believe their immune system is powerful enough to protect them against HIV/AIDS.

12. They believe few persons in The Bahamas are infected so they are unlikely to get infected.

13. They believe there are now drugs to cure them should they get infected.

14. They believe the athlete, Magic Johnson, has been cured of AIDS.

15. They believe AIDS only affects people living on the continent of Africa.

16. They believe AIDS is only caught through so-called homosexual acts like anal intercourse.

17. They believe sexual intercourse is absolutely necessary to life and they will die if they abstain from it.

18. They believe safer sex is nonsense.

19. They believe their masculinity and sexual superiority are proof of their strength and invincibility against HIV/AIDS.

20. They believe that, if they eat well and bathe or shower regularly, they could never get AIDS.


These are only some of the reasons why HIV/AIDS continues to be a problem throughout the world but especially in the black communities of sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean.

But, this is not the whole story. Underlying these false beliefs is an even greater fear of actually getting infected. However, their fear of getting infected is superseded by their compulsion to do what they believe God created men - especially black men - to do: have sexual intercourse until their very last breath!

This compulsion to have sex is so powerful that the idea of not having sex - even if this means saving their lives - is simply not an option. They will have sex, come what may.

Nor should we imagine that these men agonize over the choice of not having sex or at least engaging in safer sex, which, naturally, they believe is a waste of time. No way! As long as they can get their hands on something to drink (alcohol), something to smoke (marijuana or crack) or something to snort (cocaine), the game is over. They WILL have sex . End of story.

This is why so many of our men are being impacted by alcohol or drugs or both. These substances go hand in hand with their need to engage in risky sexual behaviors without the nuisance of a nagging conscience.

This is also why alcohol and drugs are classified as "mood altering" substances. They all act upon the brain of the user in such a way that his judgment becomes impaired. That's why people say that, when they become drunk or high, everything - and everyone - looks good. Mood altering substances like alcohol and drugs also work on a person's inhibitions that naturally protect us from engaging in risky sex.

In a far more serious context, our natural inhibitions prevent us from engaging in crime and especially the taking of a human life. It is very possible that drugs and alcohol are in part responsible for the high rate of violent crime afflicting the nation since.

When drunk or high, they are not bothered by such details as whether their partner has crooked teeth, or is a blood relative, or could possibly be infected with HIV or some other sexually transmitted disease. Thanks to the power of alcohol or drugs or both, they are too caught up in the throes of sex - without a doubt the most powerful force of the human condition!

Dec 3, 2007

December 3, 2007 | 6:27 PM Comments  0 comments

You must be logged in to add tags.


Dennis Dames's Profile


Latest Posts
Meatless Mondays: Do...
Regional integration...
Call for unity as the...
Slow Down: How Our...
The situation in Honduras

Monthly Archive
December 1969
October 2005
November 2005
December 2005
January 2006
February 2006
March 2006
April 2006
May 2006
June 2006
July 2006
August 2006
September 2006
October 2006
November 2006
December 2006
January 2007
February 2007
March 2007
April 2007
May 2007
June 2007
July 2007
August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007
January 2008
February 2008
March 2008
April 2008
May 2008
June 2008
July 2008
August 2008
September 2008
October 2008
November 2008
December 2008
January 2009
February 2009
March 2009
April 2009
May 2009
June 2009
July 2009

Change Language


Tags Archive
america american bahamas bahamians bush caribbean crime cuba development economic enfusion engagement global health ict4d individualeconomy international investment networkbuiding obama organisationalchange people personaldevelopment political president socialentrepreneurship trade war world

Links
A+ Links Int'l
Bahamas Blog
Bahamas Dames
Bahamas Hotels
Bahamas Search
Bahamian WebRing
Blog Directory
Blogadr
BlogExplosion
Cheap Int'l Calling Cards
Crooks Blog
Dating Network
Free Paid Web Directory
LS Blogs
Politics Blogs
Top 100 Women Websites
Top Web Blogs
Vote For Me


695834 views
Important Disclaimer