News
2006-03-17
Illinois group
opposes waiver for HIV-positive Gay Games athletes
Illinois Family
Institute claims presence of HIV-positive athletes would
pose public health threat.
Last month the
Bush administration approved a blanket waiver allowing
foreign HIV-positive athletes to enter the United States to
compete in the Gay Games in Chicago this summer. But
now a conservative group in Illinois is asking the
president to rescind the approval, reports the
Chicago Sun-Times.
Although federal law prohibits HIV-infected
foreigners from visiting the country without special
permission, the Department of Homeland Security agreed
to the blanket waiver after Chicago mayor Richard Daley and
Illinois congresswoman Jan Schakowsky requested it. A
similar waiver was granted for the Gay Games in New
York City in 1994.
But the head of the Illinois Family Institute
claims that allowing HIV-positive athletes into the
country is a public health threat and says he is
getting assistance from prominent national conservative
groups like Concerned Women of America to have the
waiver revoked.
"The people of Chicago should know we have a ban
on HIV travelers, it's there to protect citizens, and
it's not a wise move to remove the ban," Peter
LaBarbera, executive director of the Illinois Family
Institute, told the Sun-Times. "People on
the pro-family side are not too pleased with it, and we're
putting pressure on to reinstate the ban."
He added that he was particularly concerned
about a gay bathhouse that is among the sponsors of
the Gay Games, saying that it can be "very dangerous"
for spreading the AIDS virus.
However, a spokesperson for the Gay Games called
LaBarbera's comments "abhorrent and irresponsible...fearmongering."
"The Illinois Family Institute strategy is to
paint the Gay Games as nothing more than a series of
stereotypes of gay sex. It's a strategy that's not
true," Kevin Boyer said. "It's a sports and
culture festival, and no amount of stereotypes and bigotry
can change that."
More than 12,000 athletes from 100 countries are
expected to come to Chicago for the Gay Games,
scheduled to begin July 15 at Soldier Field. (The
Advocate)
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