African Traditional Herbal Research Clinic STD's ... - Blackherbals.com

African Traditional Herbal Research Clinic STD's ... - Blackherbals.com African Traditional Herbal Research Clinic STD's ... - Blackherbals.com

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Continued from page 61 – The LOW DOWN on HIV/AIDS and “Living on the DOWN LOW” • Sperm deposited in the rectum can cause an immune system response. • HIV positive patients “recover” after they stop taking drugs - both “legal” and “illegal”. • Condoms (made from polyisoprene) have holes in them much larger than HIV • Intravenous drug users who consistently used a clean needle exchange program were 10.2 to 22.9 times MORE likely to test HIV positive than drug users not in a clean needle exchange program. • After many billions of dollars of research effort over 20 years, HIV scientists still cannot explain how HIV causes AIDS. When you make sure folk do not know the truth about HIV/AIDS, you can create a new way to “catch” it. If that new way causes Black men and Black women to stop trusting each other - again, so much the better. When Black men and Black women are fighting between ourselves, global white supremacy wins because Black folk have to be united to win this war. Black folk have to be careful not to let our attention wander. We are becoming more politically aware. We are studying our relationship to global white supremacy. We recognize the dynamics of the Black Holocaust. We say we understand clearly that the plan is to remove Black folk from the planet. We must keep in mind what we know. The health care industry is an active part of the global white supremacy machine. We cannot rely on those who plan to annihilate us for information that concerns our health. There are many folk in our community that we respect and look to for advice who do not take the time to research an issue before they spread the message put out by the mis-education system and the tell-lie-vision. Some of these people mean well. However, that does not change the fact that, because of mis-information, folk suffer and die when they don’t have to. All over the Black world the threat from HIV/AIDS is more psychological than physical. As stated in the document "CASTRO HLONGWANE, CARAVANS, CATS, GEESE, FOOT & MOUTH AND STATISTICS" which the leaders of South Africa’s African National Congress circulate among themselves: “Given that our minds on this matter have become thoroughly clogged by the information communicated by the omnipotent apparatus, a miracle will have to be achieved to get all our people to use their brains, rather than perish on emotional responses based on greatly heightened levels of fear.” “The healing power of a person lies within the person, not within the doctor, a pill, or a knife. The healing power of a community lies within the community, not within a ballot box, an executive order, or a referendum.” Sistah Qaraandin’s work has appeared in several newspapers and magazines. Her highly acclaimed first book, “Maintaining Our Temples,” is a top seller. You can contact her at pantherpawproductions@hotmail.com www.blackherbals.com/low_down_on_hiv.htm ☻☻☻☻☻☻ Africa: New Light Shed on Male Sex Work June 20, 2011 IRIN Johannesburg — Commercial sex work, dominated by a focus on women, could be redefined as new research launched today in Nairobi, Kenya, sheds light on the complicated HIV prevention needs of what may be Africa's most deeply underground group at high risk of HIV - male sex workers. The report co-authored by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and South Africa's Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT) seeks to better understand the social contexts, sexual practices and risks, including that of HIV, among these men. The professional debut of many of the 70 male sex workers surveyed in Kenya, Namibia, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe was often prompted by the family rejecting the men's sexual orientation; for others, it was a way to survive in a foreign country. Men reported being at risk of HIV in many ways, including the unavailability of specialty health services, the premium clients placed on unprotected sex, violence and the lure of substance abuse. Although the work often placed them at risk of substance and physical abuse as well as HIV infection, the researchers found that it also provided the men with a sense of freedom and empowerment. The report cautions that mitigating these risks may require specialised HIV prevention services unlike Continued on page 63 -62- Traditional African Clinic October 2011

Continued from page 63 – Africa: New Light Shed on Male Sex Work those targeted at female commercial sex workers or men who have sex with men (MSM). A series of interviews with male sex workers at a fivecountry workshop in Johannesburg, South Africa, and country visits to Kenya and Namibia has produced a significant addition to the paucity of data on male sex workers, according to Paul Boyce, a UNDP researcher. While data on MSM from Malawi, Namibia and Botswana indicated that about 17 percent were HIV positive - almost twice the national prevalence rates of their respective countries - not much has been written on the specific HIV risks of male sex workers, which may be higher than those of MSM. While male sex workers reported working at a range of venues, including Namibian truck stops and Zimbabwean mines, most of the available information on male sex work has come from those operating in the sex tourism hot spot of Mombasa, Kenya, with limited data from a 2009 study in South Africa that showed male sex workers were twice as likely to engage in anal sex than MSM who were not selling sex. Not necessarily the same old risks Unprotected receptive anal sex carries almost 20 times the HIV risk associated with unprotected vaginal sex. Interviewees told researchers that the unavailability of water-based lubricant, which reduces the risk of condoms breaking during anal sex, and the higher financial reward of unprotected anal sex, made consistent condom use difficult. Some clients forced unprotected intercourse on sex workers, while others admitted to practicing unsafe sex due to the disinhibition often brought about by the drug and alcohol abuse that is reportedly part of the social scene in sex work. Drugs and alcohol also helped the men mentally cope with the omnipresent risks of this lifestyle, including police harassment. South African male sex workers said substance abuse - not HIV infection - was the greatest threat to their health. Those who tried to access health services for HIV testing and treatment, or the diagnosis of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), reported being ridiculed and stigmatized by health workers, even in countries like Kenya, where the Ministry of Health has introduced new guidelines on MSM and sex work, and health and HIV. "[At the] government hospital, the nurses just [stand] in front of everyone and shout out loud to the people waiting for assistance: 'If you have HIV, go to room nine, TB room 12, STD [sexually transmitted disease] room 8,'" said one man quoted in the report. "Nurses often call each other when they find out about someone being a male sex worker, saying: 'We have never had such a case' or 'come look at what his type of STI, we have never had it at this hospital before.'" According to Boyce, while there is a growing trend to provide MSM with targeted HIV prevention and health services, such as the Health4Men clinics set up in South Africa, there may be a need to establish separate, specialized services for male sex workers apart from these. "There's not always a close collaboration between MSM and men who sell sex because [MSM] often stigmatize them, so they're not really natural bedfellows," Boyce told News. "Sex workers face specific issues... and male sex work can be more invisible and blurred within male-to-male sexualities and politics in ways that have not always helped to highlight the specific needs and issues of male sex workers." Although SWEAT and the African Sex Workers Alliance (ASWA) have begun to address the issues of female sex workers in Africa, these organizations have largely ignored male sex workers. Yet Boyce noted that many male sex workers thought there was political power in being identified as a 'sex worker', because they believed it aligned them to these larger sex work organizations. Male sex work can be more invisible and blurred within male-to-male sexualities and politics in ways that have not always helped to highlight the specific needs and issues of male sex workers. Risk and reward In recent years here has been a greater focus on the social power of vulnerable groups in the HIV response, including the role of women in initiating sexual relationships and the fact that for some, sex work was a career choice. Similarly, the new research showed that while male sex work was fraught with risks, the men derived a sense of freedom and independence from the increased access to cash and the ability to set their own working hours. It also helped build their self-esteem, establish social networks, and understand their own sexuality. "The report highlights ways in which risk and safety are not dichotomous in the lives of male sex workers, but rather the contexts of sex work are associated with both vulnerability and protection, rejection and belong- Continued on page 64 -63- Traditional African Clinic October 2011

Continued from page 61 – The LOW DOWN on HIV/AIDS<br />

and “Living on the DOWN LOW”<br />

• Sperm deposited in the rectum can cause an<br />

immune system response.<br />

• HIV positive patients “recover” after they stop<br />

taking drugs - both “legal” and “illegal”.<br />

• Condoms (made from polyisoprene) have holes<br />

in them much larger than HIV<br />

• Intravenous drug users who consistently used a<br />

clean needle exchange program were 10.2 to<br />

22.9 times MORE likely to test HIV positive<br />

than drug users not in a clean needle exchange<br />

program.<br />

• After many billions of dollars of research effort<br />

over 20 years, HIV scientists still cannot<br />

explain how HIV causes AIDS.<br />

When you make sure folk do not know the truth about<br />

HIV/AIDS, you can create a new way to “catch” it. If<br />

that new way causes Black men and Black women to<br />

stop trusting each other - again, so much the better.<br />

When Black men and Black women are fighting<br />

between ourselves, global white supremacy wins<br />

because Black folk have to be united to win this war.<br />

Black folk have to be careful not to let our attention<br />

wander. We are be<strong>com</strong>ing more politically aware. We<br />

are studying our relationship to global white<br />

supremacy. We recognize the dynamics of the Black<br />

Holocaust. We say we understand clearly that the plan<br />

is to remove Black folk from the planet.<br />

We must keep in mind what we know. The health care<br />

industry is an active part of the global white supremacy<br />

machine. We cannot rely on those who plan to<br />

annihilate us for information that concerns our health.<br />

There are many folk in our <strong>com</strong>munity that we respect<br />

and look to for advice who do not take the time to<br />

research an issue before they spread the message put<br />

out by the mis-education system and the tell-lie-vision.<br />

Some of these people mean well. However, that does<br />

not change the fact that, because of mis-information,<br />

folk suffer and die when they don’t have to.<br />

All over the Black world the threat from HIV/AIDS is<br />

more psychological than physical. As stated in the<br />

document "CASTRO HLONGWANE, CARAVANS,<br />

CATS, GEESE, FOOT & MOUTH AND<br />

STATISTICS" which the leaders of South Africa’s<br />

<strong>African</strong> National Congress circulate among themselves:<br />

“Given that our minds on this matter have<br />

be<strong>com</strong>e thoroughly clogged by the information<br />

<strong>com</strong>municated by the omnipotent apparatus, a<br />

miracle will have to be achieved to get all our<br />

people to use their brains, rather than perish on<br />

emotional responses based on greatly heightened<br />

levels of fear.”<br />

“The healing power of a person lies within the person,<br />

not within the doctor, a pill, or a knife. The healing<br />

power of a <strong>com</strong>munity lies within the <strong>com</strong>munity, not<br />

within a ballot box, an executive order, or a<br />

referendum.”<br />

Sistah Qaraandin’s work has appeared in several<br />

newspapers and magazines. Her highly acclaimed first book,<br />

“Maintaining Our Temples,” is a top seller. You can<br />

contact her at pantherpawproductions@hotmail.<strong>com</strong><br />

www.blackherbals.<strong>com</strong>/low_down_on_hiv.htm<br />

☻☻☻☻☻☻<br />

Africa: New Light Shed on<br />

Male Sex Work<br />

June 20, 2011<br />

IRIN<br />

Johannesburg — Commercial sex work, dominated by<br />

a focus on women, could be redefined as new research<br />

launched today in Nairobi, Kenya, sheds light on the<br />

<strong>com</strong>plicated HIV prevention needs of what may be<br />

Africa's most deeply underground group at high risk of<br />

HIV - male sex workers.<br />

The report co-authored by the United Nations<br />

Development Programme (UNDP) and South Africa's<br />

Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce<br />

(SWEAT) seeks to better understand the social<br />

contexts, sexual practices and risks, including that of<br />

HIV, among these men.<br />

The professional debut of many of the 70 male sex<br />

workers surveyed in Kenya, Namibia, South Africa,<br />

Uganda and Zimbabwe was often prompted by the<br />

family rejecting the men's sexual orientation; for others,<br />

it was a way to survive in a foreign country.<br />

Men reported being at risk of HIV in many ways,<br />

including the unavailability of specialty health services,<br />

the premium clients placed on unprotected sex,<br />

violence and the lure of substance abuse. Although the<br />

work often placed them at risk of substance and<br />

physical abuse as well as HIV infection, the researchers<br />

found that it also provided the men with a sense of<br />

freedom and empowerment.<br />

The report cautions that mitigating these risks may<br />

require specialised HIV prevention services unlike<br />

Continued on page 63<br />

-62- <strong>Traditional</strong> <strong>African</strong> <strong>Clinic</strong> October 2011

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