The Tens: 10 Horrifying Statistics To Know On World AIDS Day
Today marks the 22nd Annual World AIDS Day. With urban communities and young people among the most vulnerable to contract the disease, it is important to know the statistics, know your own status, and understand how your individual actions can protect you and others from being infected.
Here is a look at the disease:
1. 33.4 million people worldwide live with HIV/AIDS
2. More than 1 million people are estimated to be living with HIV in the United States
3. 56,300 Americans become infected with HIV each year
4. African Americans, who represent 12 percent of the U.S. population, made up 52 percent of all diagnoses of HIV in 2008. African Americans encompass 46 percent of people living with HIV in the United States.
5. African Americans experienced the largest increase in rates of HIV diagnoses by ethnicity or race from 2005 to 2008—with the rate increasing from 68 per 100,000 to 74 per 100,000.
6. AIDS is the number one killer of black women between the ages of 25 and 34.
7. At least 3% of residents in DC have HIV/AIDS, which is higher than the percentage of those in West Africa, and on par with Uganda & parts of Kenya.
8. The HIV/AIDS rate in Washington D.C. is up 22% from 2006
9. Almost 7% of black men in Washington D.C. are infected with HIV/AIDS.
10. Washington, D.C. is the first city in the nation to provide free HIV testing at the Department of Motor Vehicles, with an added bonus of participants receiving $15 to defray some of their DMV cost just for getting tested.
For more information on World AIDS Day visit http://www.cdc.gov/features/worldaidsday/
To find a testing site near you visit http://www.hivtest.org/
I’m from DC & even w/ all these statistics, ive the heard words “i don’t use a condom b/c i only have sex w/ clean ppl” way 2 many times…& “clean” never means tested. clean means they look nice so they couldnt have the monster right? who cares if u just met them yesterday, cuz OF COURSE theyll tell u if they hve HIV. of course. wake up folks. if ur 2 ignorant or 2 busy smokin 2 ever tke 2 urself 2 1 of the many many free clinics 4 a 15 min test, y wld u expect tht tht boy or girl ur about 2 go in/let go in raw has any idea of their status? thats right. u cant. cuz obviously w/ those kind of #s sme1 is spreadin HIV & statistically speaking its prob u if ur 2 lazy 2 use a condom. & regardless of whether it “feels better” is tht feeling worth dying & killing for? cuz thts exactly wat ur doin. luckily i hvent become 1 of those 1 in 20 but thts only b/c the Lord protected me durin my stages of sexually immaturity b4 i finally woke up & realized tht u can never think it wont happen 2 u cuz im sure every1 w/ HIV thought the same thing.