In a time of scarcity our nation should rise above petty hateful assumptions for the benefit of those in need...
For this reason, I was very much elated to read about hell being raised in Santa Cruz, California over our nation's ridiculous policy banning gay men from donating blood:
A gay student prevented from donating blood because of his sexual history has stirred debate among Santa Cruz school officials over whether to continue hosting campus blood drives.
Ronnie Childers, 17, student body president at Harbor High School, said he volunteered at a blood drive at his school earlier this month for five hours and waited in line for three more before being turned away.
"I was turned away because of my sexual contacts," Childers said. "The reasoning behind me not being able to give blood is ridiculous. ... It made me feel like an outcast."
For those unfamiliar with this ban, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulates that a man who has had a sexual encounter with another man since 1977 cannot donate blood. This policy remains even in light of critical or potential blood shortages this holidays season in New Jersey, Oklahoma, Georgia, California, Virginia, Arizona, Indiana, New York and Massachusetts just to name a few states.
In light of blood shortages, I openly encourage all HIV- gay men to donate blood frequently. Make your regular blood donations a fixed habit, just as your regular HIV tests should be too. I donate blood because I believe it is wrong to ban me from donating blood even if I had gay sex months ago and have since been tested for HIV numerous times (and come out neg.) while a heterosexual can have sex with a dozen women and come in the next day to donate blood. I'm planning on working more with my university (American University) on adding to the growing pressure of voices calling for an end to a meaningless ban...
In March, the major blood-supply organizations in the U.S., including the American Red Cross, petitioned the FDA to relax the rules on gay men, saying "the current lifetime deferral for men who have had sex with other men is medically and scientifically unwarranted." The issue has not yet been resolved, the Red Cross said.