We just want to be tolerated.

Why would anyone want to donate blood when doing so puts those who might receive that blood at risk? I can think of no reason except to make a selfish, political statement.

Gay men are lobbying to donate their blood despite the fact that they account for only 2% of the population but more than 61% of all new HIV infections. The biased article I read starts off: "The U.S. gay rights movement has achieved many victories in recent years . . . Yet one vestige of an earlier, more wary era remains firmly in place: the nationwide ban on blood donations by gay and bisexual men. . . the ban is a source of frustration to many gay activists. . ."

So we are not talking about service to our fellow man here -- we are talking about a "gay rights victory."

Last June, the American Medical Association voted to oppose the ban on donations. I wonder how many of those doctors would be willing for their loved ones to receive one of those donations? When I see the needle pouring it into their veins, I might change my opinion. More than 80 members of Congress are trying to get the ban overturned. Again, I wonder how many of them will line up to say, "Let me or my children be the first to receive a donation."


The FDA says HIV tests currently in use are highly accurate, but still cannot detect HIV 100% of the time. It is estimated that the HIV risk from a unit of blood has been reduced to about 1 per 2 million in the USA, but even current HIV testing methods cannot detect all infections. For this reason, a person could test negative, even when they are actually HIV positive and infectious. Therefore, blood donors are not only tested but are also asked questions about behaviors that increase their risk of HIV infection. You put all the gay men into the blood pool, and the risk is certain to rise from the 1 per 2 million.

But even if the risk remained the same, what if you're the one in 2 million who gets the contaminated blood? While you are wasting away from AIDS, you can feel really good knowing that some queer somewhere won the gay rights victory to donate his poisoned blood.

"Gays fight to donate blood." The Dallas Morning News; September 16, 2013;  p. 4A.