espay, JANUARY 12,1993 --. .

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- AIDS, which has ravaged minor- ©

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ue. Washangton Post Stat Writer 07

ity communities in. disproportion-
_ately “large .numbers, must be

- Dalton, a Yale University law pro-

viewed as a racial issue, the Nation-

al Commission on AIDS said yes--
terday. © .

“We cannot approach the AIDS

~ problem in a colorblind fashion,”

said commission member Harlon

fessor.

. ‘To combat the disease effective-
“ly, government and health care

agencies must look beyond individ-
ual behavior to the economic and
social context in-which AIDS is in-
cubating so quickly, the commission
reported.

“We cannot continue to teach in-

| dividuals about the dangers of cer-

fain behaviors as if they choose to

‘engage in them indiscriminately,”

' cases last year although they make’

the report noted. “We would do well
to take account of social forces and
institutions that undermine individ-
uals’ capacity to adopt and sustain a
healthy lifestyle.” .
African Americans and Hispanics
accounted for 46 percent of AIDS

up 21 percent of the population, ac-
cording to the federal Centers for
Disease Control.

“It’s getting worse, and it is rap-
idly getting worse,” said Don C,

_ Desjarlais, a commission member. .

The report noted that unemploy-
ment, poverty and illiteracy, for ex-
ample, are correlated with de-
creased access to health education

_and health care. “These factors,

” combined with high rates of sexu-

ally transmitted diseases and injec-
tion drug use, favor the spread of
HIV"—the AIDS virus—in minor-

~ ity communities, it said.

Prevention programs. designed

for a- general population often are

useless within groups with specific
cultural or sexual habits, it said. For

" example, it noted that, while half of

-- black and Hispanic adult males with —

AIDS have sex with men, HIV ser-
vices in their communities “are of-
ten not designed to reach them

" -e-- Gay men of color frequently

eet meen ee oe.

" "By Dana Priest” 2%... . “such as the “America Responds. to ,:
.AIDS” campaign “have been gen-"’

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“formation is often vague and tar-

 

‘Tuesoay, January 12, 1993 A3

UsS.As Urged to View~}
AIDS as Racial Issue

Panel Points to.Social, Economic Factors’ #34

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National _ education programs *:

erally ineffective in reaching com-:'
munities of color,” it said. “The in-".

geted toward an anonymous gen-
eral public.” . ‘
The commission recommended
that public health professionals
work with researchers and health
providers with links to specific com- ;

wee Om

munities to design prevention pro- ©

and services. a
Dalton, who is black, said he had .
“a lot of fear releasing this report,” ;
titled “The Challenge of HIV/AIDS ;

“in Communities of Color,” because ;

it might cause whites to feel that :
the disease afflicts people with |
whom they have little incommon.

“[ am terribly worried that, as -
soon as it becomes understood that .
the face of AIDS has darkened,”..
that resources for combating it will ;
dwindle, he said. *

While AIDS affects minorities in ;

disproportionate numbers, the cost :

of treating AIDS drains health care :

‘resources for the entire country. :

“AIDS has given the health care cri- ‘
sis in this country a new meaning,”
said District Del. Eleanor Holmes’.
Norton (D). - - 3