8 - The Michigan Daily - Monday, July 22, 2002 i I 1 1 College students still likely to cross patis with HI, AIDS AID munity realistically in a way that's by gay or bisexual men aged 15 to tion Project, said in Michigan alone , extremely devastating, but at the 29 and reported that of the 573 who there are approximately 15,550 peo- "I think it would I Continued from Page 1 same time, I'm really troubled when tested HIV positive, 440, (77 per- ple living with HIV and AIDS, with stem the tide of new infections." other communities don't identify cent), said they did not know they a majority of those cases being in easy to go back But he said he does not think the themselves as potentially affected were infected with the virus. southeastern Michigan. issue boils down to an issue of gay because of their perceived distance But many people are affected And he said more cases are naming thi as a or straight identity. Rather he thinks from the gay community or because nationwide, statistics show. The becoming apparent in younger peo- it is important for everyone to rec- of their idea that it might not be number of cumulative AIDS cases ple. The median age, he said, is gay issue, a gay ognize the realities of the disease realistic for them," he said. reported to the CDC is 793,026, and starting to drop, indicating that indi- a and the difficulties people living A study conducted in several as of June 2001, there were 130,965 viduals are contracting the disease disease .b t with the disease face. major U.S. cities by the Centers for cases of AIDS reported in individu- at a younger age. thik ms- "I think it's especially important Disease Control and Prevention sur- als ages 20-29. "Where we were talking about pen- Ink most peop for gay men to be aware of this epi- veyed 5,719 men at dance clubs, Mark Peterson, outreach coordi- ple in their late 20s and 30s, now we're know that this is demic because it affects our com- bars and other locations frequented nator of the Midwest AIDS Preven- moving down that age gap to people in 4 be 4 e the michigan daily $250 A NIGHT potenia/bartending training provided 1-800-293-3905 ext 607. GARDENWORK FOR JULY/AUG. Flexi- blehous,10hrs/wk. CallJohn995-0986. BABYSITTER WANTED for a 5 yr old & 2 yr old. Needed for summer & fall. Flexible hs,5-10/wk. S1/hr. Call 975-1454. FREE APT. IN oar Horns Pork home is ox- charge for 20 hrswk.Bbaysisttig oar children, ages 3 1/2 and 1 1/2. Call Katie at 213-0889. announCementS ADOPTION: HAPPILY MARRIED couple wishes to adopt newborn. Full-time mother & successful father to love, care & nurture. Ex- pensespaid. CallTerry&Bob. 1-800-652-6183. Oppenheimer Properties, Inc. 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"Each person can cross the path of HIV in their own way, as far as the specific risks each group has to look at," he said, adding that he hopes continuing the discussion on HIV will have positive long-lasting results. "It's all based on behavior and if we could do a good job of continu- ing to talk to people about what's happening for them and designing prevention messages that work specifically for them, then hopefully we'll decrease the number of HIV cases in Michigan." Kelly Garrett, program coordina- tor for the Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Affairs, hopes to continue the conversations through providing educational pro- gramming, particularly to the LGBT community. The programs, she said, though focused on the LGBT com- munity, are open to everyone as a resource. She stressed the need to recognize HIV as an issue everyone needs to be The /ichigan Daily Display Staff is proud to announce ... -ds O tt as/e of the weak ' Conzgrats and thanks hard >rk I. Sponsored by: T)' mato's worried about and said though there has been a rise in the infection levels among gay men, it is important that they not be targeted as the only group affected by the disease. "I think it would be easy to go back to naming this as a gay issue, a gay disease," she said. "But I think most people know that this is some- thing that affects everyone." Garrett said she would urge peo- ple to get tested and learn how to protect themselves, as opposed to subscribing to the notion that it just couldn't happen to them. "It's just a common characteristic of people in their late teens and early 20s - they feel like nothing bad is going to happen to them and might even deny that they're at risk," she said. She added that she feels people are taking more chances because they see HIV as a treatable disease, though that isn't really the case. Rather, she said, it can be manage- able, but individuals should focus their attention on prevention, on protecting themselves and educating themselves to avoid contracting the disease. "It is of concern - it seems like young people are a little less con- cerned than they should be," she said. "...There are a lot of people who think they're not at risk when they are." RECORDS & USED CDS 617 Packard Upstairs from Subway Paying $4 to 06 for top CD's in top condition. Also buying premium LP's and cassettes. Open 7 days 663-3441 > The selection is ENDLESS something that affects everyone." - Kelly Garrett Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Affairs program, coordinator 4 4 4 VISITING STUDENT NEEDS single room for fall semester with parking. Call 248.681.2702 or 248.388.7004. 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