Targets Gay & Bi Men Under 30

June 29, 2008

This year ACT UP/NY focused their LGBT Pride message on getting the word out about their new print and web harm reduction campaign. Infection rates in NYC are up by 33% since 2001 among young gay and bisexual men under 30 years of age. ACT UP claims prevention efforts are hampered by years of abstinence only teaching, which has affected even AIDS organization’s educational materials they describe as “often timid”. ACT UP published in Gay City News a full page ad showing an inviting young man starting to dress himself by opening a condom, with the following text:

“Infection Rates are UP! The only thing you need to wear are condoms!”

The CDC’s recently released statistics for 2005 show that, men who have sex with men accounted for 71% of all new HIV/AIDS diagnoses among men. ACT UP is attempting to create “an edgy, gay-sex-positive, safe-sex promotional campaign in response to this alarming rise in new infections among young gay and bisexual men under 30”. ACT UP distributed 4000 condoms to enthusiastic march goers and is looking for help creating materials for its multimedia campaign as well as coalition partners. While the epidemic faces a number of sectors of the communities that comprise New York City, because of limited resources, we have to focus our efforts. Join us to help create a larger campaign. Call 917-653-7267 for details.