Black AIDS Institute report says no Republican candidate has a plan
A new report by the Black AIDS Institute rocks Republican presidential candidates for allegedly not having a plan or commitment to address HIV/AIDS in the Black community, while commending most of the leading Democratic candidates for making the issue a priority. Lead by the Balm In Gilead and Black Leadership Commission on AIDS, a group of Black AIDS advocates developed a list of directives that would gauge a candidates’ commitment to preventing and stopping HIV/AIDS. Among them was a pledge to reduce infection rates, get Blacks tested, support appropriate care and stop the stigma associated with the disease. The directives were then sent to all 16 presidential candidates. The group concluded that all eight Democratic candidates have robust public records on the core questions; however, there is scant information from Republicans on any of the questions. The Republican response, the institute says, does not bode well for the Black epidemic. Among the top-tier Democrats, all agree on basic principles of targeting resources to address the disease, putting science ahead of ideology and politics, and building a national strategy with accountable goals, the Institute says. Six Democrats have committed to drafting a national strategy to end AIDS; only one Republican has done so. All three front-running Democrats – Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) and Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill,) – have published AIDS plans that stress the importance of addressing the epidemic’s racial disparities; no Republican has done so. “Ending AIDS is about leadership-personal, professional and political leadership,” said Phill Wilson, the Institute’s CEO. “We have aggressively called upon Black America to take responsibility for our own health and that of our communities. And part of that responsibility is insisting that our elected officials also do their part to help us end this epidemic.” There are, however, notable differences among the leading Democrats: — Obama’s record on encouraging HIV testing among Blacks far outstrips all other candidates: He and his wife, Michelle, have been publicly tested and have spoken forcefully about testing’s importance. — While Edwards and Obama have vowed to end funding for abstinence-only sex education, Clinton has stated only her support for comprehensive sex education. Click here more on the report.

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