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February 10, 2005
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GUEST COMMENTARY By Phill Wilson
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Blacks can’t afford
to ignor
gnore AIDS
As someone who has lived with HIV/AIDS for more than
20 years, nothing alarms me more than the growing number
of my brothers and sisters who are becoming infected with
HIV everyday. With all the challenges confronting black
America today, the last thing we need is an exploding AIDS
epidemic. Yet, an exploding AIDS epidemic is exactly what
we have before us. While AIDS may not be a battle any of us
would have chosen to iight. its one we cannot walk away
from — nor one we can aftord to lose.
More than half of all new HIV diagnoses reported in the
U.S. in 2003 were black. Black men now face rates of diag
nosis that are higher than any other group. We are seven times
more likely than white men, and three times more likely than
Latino men to be diagnosed with HIV. Black women are also
severely impacted. Among women in the U.S., black women
represent 72 percent of all new HIV/AIDS cases.
Black women are 18 times more likely to be infected with
HIV than white women and five times more likely than Lad
nas. These statistics and disparities are outrageous and must
be addressed. To change the course of this epidemic will
require black America to declare National black HIV AID
Awareness Day — which was observed on Monday, Feb. 7 -
everyday. We have always found ways to protect ourselves
from harm and fight injustice, despite the enormous odds
against us. Today, HIV is the harm and injustice that we must
fight. And there are simple ways for us to improve the odds.
First, we all need to get informed about HIV. Even in 2005,
too many of us arent protecting ourselves. A recent CDC
study showed that many infected women did not recognize
their risk for infection. It’s time for black women and men to
wake up to reality: We need to know the facts about this dis
ease. Not just the bits and pieces. Thoroughly understanding
what AIDS is and how the disease works can help save your
life. What you don't know can kill you.
As individuals, we must take every step we can to prevent
the spread of HIV. For some, that means using condoms.
Others may decide not to be sexually active at all. Under no
circumstances should you share dirty needles. If you're sexual
ly acuivevor injecting drugs, you can be exposed to HIV -
unless you protect yourself.
Second, we all need to get tested. Knowing your HIV sta
tus and the status of your partner is your right and responsi
bility. Testing is widely available, often for free. To find an HIV
test site near you, or to talk with someone about HIV pre
vention, call CDC’s toll-free National AIDS Hotline at 1-
800-342-2437.
Thirdly, we must get treated, if we are infected with HIV. It
is no longer the automatic death sentence it once was. There
are effective treatments available. 1 should know; I'm alive
today because of those treatments. Every one of us, infected
or not, should advocate for greater access to anti-retrovirals for
people living with HIV/AIDS.
We must also get involved. We are losing the battle against
the AIDS epidemic because too many of us are MIA (miss
ing in action). You cant win a war, if you don't show up. We
also need to take responsibility for discussing HIV with the
people who matter to us — friends, family, and especially sex
ual partners. We must discuss our sexual history with our
partners before sex. Yes, this can be difficult and embarrassing,
but no one has ever died from embarrassment. Approximate
ly 23 black men and women die everyday from HIV/AIDS.
A few minutes of honest talk about sex might just save your
life.
Above all, we must once and for all shatter the stigma asso
ciated with HIV/AIDS. In the face of derision, fear, and
sometimes even hostility, people won' get tested and seek
treatment for HIV. In the fg:e of homophobia and anti-drug
hysteria, people wont disclose their risk factors. Surveys show
that African Americans see HIV/AIDS as the nation’s most
urgent health problem. Stigma is one of the primary obstacles
that stop our community from responding appropriately.
AIDS is the greatest health threat ofP:ur time and a major
obstadle to our survival. We need to be committed to solving
it.
Phill Wilson is the Executive Director of the Black AIDS Insti
tute, a national HIVIAIDS Training, technical assistance and
mobilization center focused exclusively on Black people. He can be
reached at Phillw@blackaids.org.
Charles W. Walker
Publisher
WQQ!!S Theresa Minor
== . ditor-in-Chief
Since 1981 :
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Laney High school is simply the best
During the month of
February 1 am blessed to
visit many of our local area
schools to do Black History
Month programs. This year
has been like all others, |
am out almost everyday in
one of the schools. Thus far
one school has stood out-
Lucy Craft Laney High
School in Augusta, Geor
gia. This wasn't my first
time at Lucy C. Laney. |
had been there many times
before, but never have |
been more impressed with
our young people, their
teachers and administra
tors.
Prior to going over to
Laney that afternoon I was
at Augusta State University
teaching my classes. 1 was
talking with my students
about me going to Lucy
Laney to do a program
later that day. Some of my
students moaned and
groaned and made deroga
tory comments. | told
them I was doing my inter
active lecture on hip hop.
This lecture includes tons
of music, video clips, is
high energy and begs for
audience participation.
Many of my students
Bush is plotting social insecurity
The Bush administration
has figured it out. If the
goal is to make voters more
sympathetic toward Repub
licans, all you have to do is
to fool them into thinking
they are members of a
phony “ownership society,”
create a non-existent crisis
around Social Security, and
hammer news organizations
until they adopt your lan
guage rather than words
that would more accurately
reflect reality.
First, let’s describe reality.
Contrary to President
Bush's assertion, there is no
crisis. ~ Social Security
trustees report that if left
unchanged and using the
most pessimistic economic
forecasts, the program can
pay all scheduled benefits
through 2042. The non
partisan Congressional
Budget Office projects that
the program can continue
as is until 2052, a decade
longer.
AUGUSTA FOCUS
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black in the city il
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looked at me like I was
crazy.
“Those kids at Laney are
going to go crazy.” The
Laney graduates who were
in my classes were quick to
defend their alma mater. 1
was comfortable with the
presentation and felt it was
something that would
interest students.
When 1 arrived on
Laney's campus, 1 felt
something was different. |
walked in the office, and |
was greeted by the princi-
Bl I Hawthorne
Welcher Sr. and his admin
istrative staff. Dr. Welcher
immediately took me
around the school and
began to introduce me to
every person we ran into,
faculty, staff and students.
As he toured me around
the school he pointed out
what was going on in every
o
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A
Geor&é Curry
Does the program need
tweaking? Absolutely. But
that could be done with a
single stroke — repeal a third
of the tax cuts Bush wants
to make permanent.
Why change Social Secu
rity to make it riskier for
future retirees? A worker
who is now 20 years old will
experience a cut of one
third in his or her benefits -
approximately $160,000 —
throughout their retire
ment, according to esti
mates by the Washington
based Center for Economic
Policy Research (CEPR).
Theoretically, this could be
made up through the pri-
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part of the building. What
impressed me was his pro
fessionalism and the fact
that it appeared the he
knew everyone. It was like
he was introducing me to
his family and this was
their house. This spirit of
professionalism and family
breathed through the
entire school.
As the program began,
Dr. Welcher directed the
students to their seating
areas by grade level. On
the floor of the gymnasium
scated in the chairs were
the juniors and seniors in
the bleachers. On each
side, respectively, were the
freshmen and sophomores.
Dr. Welcher called the
group to attention, and he
directed the underclassmen
to look at the juniors and
seniors as examples of how
they should behave.
At that moment the jun
iors and seniors were
standing at attention. The
teachers were seated with
the students, not away
from them. The family we
call Lucy C. Laney High
School was assembled and
ready to learn.
The students were the
vate investment component
of retirement. But that’s not
a sure bet, either. Remem
ber how the dot-com frenzy
became the dot-gone deba
cle in 19702 No one can
guarantee that we won't
experience a repeat of that
riches to rags reversal.
Not enough attention is
being given to the high
administrative cost that will
be associated with privatiza
tion.
“The administrative costs
of Social Security are just
0.6 cents of every dollar
that gets paid out in bene
fits,” the CEPR paper
notes. “By contrast, the
administrative costs of sys
tems of private accounts,
like the one in England,
eats up 15 cents of every
dollar in benefits. Social
Security also has a mini
mum amount of fraud and
abuse, as numerous govern
ment audits have repeatedly
documented.”
most attentive and bright
group I have worked with
this year. They were
engaged, and they pulled
everything out of me.
Their desire to learn
more about their history
and culture is a direct
result of the great work the
teachers, staff and adminis
tration is doing with them.
Laney is a model school.
Where others give excuses
of what can’t be done, Dr.
Welcher and his team' of
educators are doing what
has to be done. 1 have
never been as impressed
with a high school as I was
with Lucy C. Laney. Ifyou
want to see a great high
school in the making, I
point to Lucy C. Laney
High School. When was
the last time you visited
your old school and gave
something back? Is it time
for us to go back to our
alma mater and see what is
going on?
Dr. Watkins is a sociology
professor at Augusta State
University and the founder
of Unity Council Inc.. He
can be reached via his web
site at
www.ralphwatkins.org.
The paper also observes,
“Virtually everyone agrees
that Social Security is a
great system. It provides
tens of millions of workers
with a guaranteed, core
retirement income. It also
provides disability insur
ance to people during their
working years. In addition,
it provides survivors™ insur
ance to the children of
workers who die at any
early age.”
Why would anyone want
to change the one federal
program that nearly every
one agrees is working?
In a word: Politics. By
drastically altering Social
Security, Bush would be
dismantling the crown
jewel of the Democrats’
New Deal program that
provided a safety net for the
neediest of Americans. By
shifting funds from the fed
eral government, Bush also
would be simultaneously
"~ See Soclal, page 10A