Gays demand answer to AIDS epidemic

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2 SOCIALIST ACTION FEBRUARY 1985 drome (AIDS) continues to take its toll. Gays are one of the four population groups suffering most from the AIDS crisis. In fact, 98 percent of current cases are gay men.

Last year alone, 229 gays died of the syndrome. The national total of AIDS cases stood at 6931 and 48 percent of these resulted in death. The gay community is organizing in response.

"Mobilization" is a new grass-roots action group working to compel the government and medical establishment to wage an all-out campaign including massive research, education, and medical treatment. According to Morris Kight, Southern California convenor of the group and co-founder of Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Community Services Center, Mobilization is demanding congressional hearings and "a full-scale investigation of the sadly inadequate effort to defeat AIDS."

On Jan. 7, 50 members of the new group marched into the offices of federal and state representatives in San Francisco with signs, banners, and petitions. The petitions, containing thousands of signatures, demanded that the officials denounce the use of AIDS as a political weapon and call investig ¡ative hearings on the lack of response 1 o the AIDS epidemic. The legislators were given two weeks to respond to the community in a town-hall meeting.

Threat to civil liberties While some research continues, gays are concerned about their civil liberties. According to the Bay Area Physicians for Human Rights, the gay community has become more hesitant to participate in medical studies. The reasons for this are several.

For one thing, research is at an early stage. A possible causitive agent, the HTLV-3 virus, has been isolated. However, positive test results for the presence of antibodies for this virus can take an emotional toll while the meaning of the results is unclear.

In addition, there is concern over the confidentiality of test records. Without confidentiality, test records could be used to discriminate against gays. Violations of insurance, housing, and employment rights based on test information could possibly occur. The Bay Area Physicians for Human Rights point to repeated talk of maintaining lists of names of AIDS victims.

The Gay Rights Chapter of the Northern California American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) believes that there is the possibility of a quarantine. The group stated, "The epidemic may get far worse before a vaccine or a cure is available, and a quarantine of gay and bisexual people may be hard to distinguish from house arrest or imprisonment."

Navy uses AIDS to discriminate The use of AIDS as a means of identifying gays and deepening the discrimination against them is also at work in the U.S. Navy. AIDS-sufferer Daniel Abieta informed his Navy doctor he was gay. The Navy is now seeking his discharge based on a 1981 regulation against homosexuality.

The ACLU is challenging this discharge since the Navy's own regulations require that a seriously ill person be given a medical discharge. A medical discharge entitles a person to health care and medical benefits at a veterans' hospital.

In the guise of fighting AIDS, political repression is continuing in San Francisco's gay bathhouses and sex clubs. These institutions are now under court order prohibiting most sexual activity and requiring that they hire people to monitor the sexual behavior of their patrons.

Mobilization spokesperson John Wahl summarized the political issues at stake: "This is really a war not only against AIDS, but also against those right-wing fanatics who would use the AIDS epidemic to take away civil rights of at least gay and bisexual men. AIDS, because of its political exploitation by people who want to oppress gay, lesbian, and bisexual Americans, has become a very real threat to the health of the Constitution of the United States."

Mobilization can be reached at 647A Castro Street, San Francisco, CA 94114.

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New underground railroad: SociAlist Action