APRIL 17 ¿009 JLI«
OREGON S GAY/LESBIAN/BI/TRANS NEWSMAGAZINE
NORTHWEST BRIEFS
Red Cross and Q
Center Host CPR Class
In an effort to reach out to the gay, les
bian, bi and trans community, the Portland
chapter of the American Red Cross is host
ing a CPR workshop at the Q_Center.
It might seem like the two organiza
tions make unlikely bedfellows—the Red
Cross has not allowed blood donations
from gay men since the FDA prohibited it
in 1983—yet the prohibition is one of the
reasons why the organizations are coming
together.
“This event promotes communication
and open dialogue within our community,
especially in regards to the conversations
about stigma. It also promotes the well-be
ing of our community, which we think is
a-ok,” said Glenn Goodfellow, operations
coordinator for Q_Center.
The ban on donations from any man
who has had sex with another man any time
since 1977-the beginning of the AIDS
epidemic in the United States-is intended
to curb the spread of HIV through blood
transfusions. Many European countries
also exclude donations of men who have
sex with men.
The FDA claims that its policy is based
on risk factors associated with gay male do-
. nors, and is not discriminatory. The policy is
“based on the documented increased risk of
certain transfusion transmissible infections,
such as HIV, associated with male-to-male
sex and is not based on any judgment con
cerning the donor’s sexual orientation.”
The FDA states that gay male donors
have an HIV prevalence over 15 times
greater than the general population and
over 2000 times greater than current repeat
blood donors (i.e., those who have been
negatively screened and tested) in the U.S.:
“Men who have sex with men continue to
account for the largest number of people
newly infected with HIV.”
Because the FDA is the regulatory
authority over the entire blood-banking
industry, the American Red Cross—and
all blood banks in the nation—has no op
tion but to follow its policy.
“I am an openly gay man who worked
in HIV/AIDS and GLBT rights for
20 years, and am currently the regional
executive for American Red Cross in
Oregon. I agree that the lifetime ban on
gay/bi men being able to donate blood is
a needless, discriminatory policy adopted
by the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) years ago during the peak of
HIV/AIDS-phobia in this country,” said
Thomas Bruner, executive director of the
Portland chapter of the Red Cross.
“The American Red Cross continues
to oppose this policy, and will continue to
educate the FDA and others on the need
to reverse this ban.”
In addition to making sure that the class’
instructor is ready for the potential barrage
of questions that participants may ask, the
Red Cross is using a gay instructor for the
course.
The CPR class is not the first partner
ship between the gay, lesbian, bi and trans
population and the Red Cross—last June,
Q_ Center hosted a lesbian blood drive.
But it’s the first event open to the entire
community.
The class, which takes place 1-5 p.m.,
Sat., May 2 at Q_ Center’s new location
(4115 N Mississippi Ave.), costs $37. $5 of
the fee will go directly to Q_C enter.
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