Australia’s gay aboriginal men have a high HIV risk

Australia’s National Center in HIV Epidemiology and
Clinical Research says that aboriginal gay men in the
Queensland area of the country are at a much higher
risk of HIV infection than other gay men or heterosexual
aboriginals, reports the Sydney Star Observer.
About half of the gay aboriginal men interviewed by the
agency reported unprotected anal sex with a casual
partner within the previous six months, a considerably
higher rate than reported by other gay men in the
country. The study also found that about 60% of the
aboriginal gay men were unaware of their current HIV
status.

The researchers
also learned that gay aboriginal men report a high level
of discrimination from other aboriginal people and racial
discrimination by other gay men. More than one third
of the gay men surveyed said they had been
discriminated against by other members of the aboriginal
community; more than half said they had been racially
discriminated against by other Australian gay men.
(Advocate.com)