IN THIS ISSUE

Injection Drugs, HIV and Black America; Assessing Midterm-Election Fallout

While Black America wasted years obsessed with a misplaced and unproven belief that the down low was fueling high HIV/AIDS rates among Black women, we failed to educate ourselves about a far more menacing threat: injection drug use (IDU). Since the early days of the epidemic, researchers have warned America that injecting illegal drugs or having sex with someone who has injected them is a significant risk factor for HIV/AIDS. In this issue Black AIDS Institute board member Angela Bronner-Helm examines the role that injection drugs play in spreading HIV/AIDS in Black communities.

With Republican leaders threatening to repeal or delay President Obama's signature achievement, health care reform, and reduce spending on discretionary programs such as the Ryan White CARE Act, we must ensure that our federal, state and local elected officials understand the devastating impact that HIV/AIDS is having upon their constituents and that we expect them to address the needs of the most vulnerable among us. We reprint two articles from Kaiser Health News evaluating the impact of G.O.P. gains in governorships and Congressional representatives, as well as an one from ColorLines describing the role that low turnout among young voters of color played in the Democrats' loss of political clout.

Yours in the Struggle,

Phill