Quote:
Originally posted by Boom_Quack13
I have the issue and read the article. It is about the downlow brothas. Personally, I am tired of the topic. It has become so sensationalized. I understand the importance of the topic, but short of hiring a private investigator or stalking a man yourself, how will you really know if he is on the DL? Not to mention that sleeping with DL men is not the only way to contract HIV/AIDS. I had a gay friend when I was in my late teens/early twenties. He hipped us to the concept of DL brothas before it was a national topic. I was in awe at the time. He told us some of the same stories that we hear now: men on the DL infecting women, men coming from prison tuned out, and masculine men sleeping with other masculine men. All of those things contribute to the AIDS epidemic, but what about the fully heterosexual men who are sleeping around spreading AIDS? And what about the loose sistas who are contracting and spreading AIDS as well? I think that too much blame is being placed on a group of people who are already forced to practice their lifestyle on the fringes of society. Also, nobody mentions sistas on the DL. They exist also, and live just as deceptively as the men on the DL. Another thing that is overlooked is that Black men are not the only DL men. DL men come in all races. This proccupation with Black men on the DL also seems like another attempt to demasculate our brothas. I'm not saying that they don't exist or contribute to the AIDS problem. I'm just saying they are not the only factor, nor have they been proven to be the biggest factor. Okay, that's my $19.13 for that topic.
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Soror, while your opinionis well respected, the truth is that the majority of HIV cases in heterosexual Black women are a result of men who sleep with me and women or MSMW/intravenous drug users, both of which are considered to offer relativeley the same amount of risk. There are risks for contracting or transmitting HIV through heterosexual sex, however, based on anatomy, it is not as likely. Also, regarding women who do not sleep with men, the prevalence of HIV is actually very low. Again, not that there isn't exchange of bodily fluids (including blood..sorry) but the relative risk is lower than say a lesbian woman who is also an injection drug user. In which case the needle use is her primary risk factor and not her sexual activity. I actually think it's impossible to "prove" that the rise in HIV is due to DL bros for this very reason. Only a woman who never had sex with anyone sle in her life, never shot up drugs, and her husband/man NEVER shot up drugs but was on the DL can say "it's definitely the DL-ness."
Truthfully, I am also tired of hearing the DL situation. When I saw that the article was about the DL, I was actually disappointed. The article was also not interesting. It was too "matter of fact" for me.
This also happens to be my life so forgive me if I seem like a know it all. I aspire/profess to be an HIV researcher so while I am tired of the DL in tems of my personal life, professionally, it's really a problem and a serious manifestation of a larger problem that needs to be addressed.