Schorer Monitor

Reactie van Poz & Proud op start Schorer Monitor 2009

Begin deze week is het jaarlijkse onderzoek van Schorer gestart naar de seksuele gezondheid van de Nederlandse homo: De Schorer Monitor. In de vragenlijst van de Monitor 2009 ontbreken opnieuw essentiële vragen die belangrijk zijn voor een goed inzicht in de seksuele gezondheid van homo’s met hiv. Ook heeft Schorer tot op heden geen concrete toezeggingen gedaan om zijn stigmatiserende communicatiestrategie aan te passen.

Schorer heeft in diverse gesprekken getoond open te staan voor kritiek en heeft ook toezeggingen gedaan om de Monitor in de komende jaren te verbeteren. Op belangrijke onderdelen heeft Schorer echter volgens Poz & Proud nog te weinig met deze kritiek gedaan. Poz & Proud mist vooral een helder signaal van Schorer dat de communicatie in de toekomst zorgvuldiger zal gaan verlopen. De uitkomsten van de Monitor dreigen hierdoor opnieuw door een onzorgvuldige communicatiestrategie een negatief beeld van homoseksualiteit in het algemeen en hiv in het bijzonder bij het algemene publiek op te roepen. Het instellen van een commissie op persoonlijke titel om de uitkomsten van het onderzoek te duiden is geen garantie voor een goede communicatiestrategie. Een onderzoek dat opnieuw op belangrijke punten de plank misslaat is geen goed onderzoek in de ogen van Poz & Proud en schaadt bovendien de belangen van hiv-positieve homo’s.

Poz & Proud ontraadt daarom aan het onderzoek deel te nemen.

i.e. DO NOT TAKE PART IN THE ON-LINE SCHORER MONITOR!!!!

The T-Mobile Dance

Wonderful!

Bio-hazard

The Bio-hazard symbol as used by Gay Poz Men is a self-designated symbol of discrimination. In much the same way that the Gay Liberation Front re-claimed the pink triangle in the 70's.

But the bio-hazard symbol is used in many different ways for many different reasons. On profiles, on T-shirts, on skin.

My ink is personal, and therefore I thought at the time that it was time to 'brand' myself with the bio-hazard (artistically of course) ....

What for?

A declaration for myself, a message to others, a warning, an invitation.

The Pope and Condoms

Nothing I could say could make the Pope more ridiculous than he's making himself.

Unfortunately he has more power than I do ....

Learning

I never realised that learning something new at my age would be so difficult. I used to be able (when I was young) to pick up new languages at the drop of a hat. It was common knowledge at university that if somebody dropped out of a play, opera, ballet I could be trusted to learn the part within a few hours and deliver a more than passable performance.

But learning to sing in Spanish is doing my head in ....

AMEN and out

Well, that was a disappointment to say the least, but not a surprise.

You can't compete with Rapido ....

You can't compete with a huge event which offers almost 3000 male bodies in various states of undress, with music so loud you can't hear yourself worry, with drugs so heavy that everyone else loves everyone else including their husbands, 

10 hours of mind numbing, 

worry alleviating, 

virus forgetting joy.

Concertgebouw

"Life is too short to waste it listening to Schubert".

Testing testing 123 ....

Sent from my iPhone

The Denver Principles Project

Way back in 1983 Hiv+ people in Denver got together and created a kind of Declaration of Independence for Hiv+'ers - The Denver Principles.

At that time all over the world Hiv+ people were getting their second wind and starting to challenge their medical and political status.

The Denver Principles Project is an attempt to blow life into that particular flame at a time in America where hope seems to be tempering the economic crisis in the shape of Barack Obama.

Here's the link to the original - 

http://www.napwa.org/denverprinciplesproject/denver-principles.shtml

- and because its (unfortunately) just as relevant today as 25 years ago here's the full version.

The Denver Principles Statement from the Advisory Committee of People with AIDS (1983) We condemn attempts to label us as 'victims,' a term which implies defeat, and we are only occasionally 'patients,' a term which implies passivity, helplessness, and dependence upon the care of others. We are 'People With AIDS.' RECOMMENDATIONS FOR HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS 1. Come out, especially to their patients who have AIDS. 2. Always clearly identify and discuss the theory they favor as to the cause of AIDS, since this bias affects the treatments and advice they give.  3. Get in touch with their feelings (e.g., fears, anxieties, hopes, etc.) About AIDS and not simply deal with AIDS intellectually.  4. Take a thorough personal inventory and identify and examine their own agendas around AIDS.  5. Treat people with AIDS as a whole people, and address psychological issues as well as biophysical ones.  6. Address the question of sexuality in people with AIDS specifically, sensitively and with information about gay male sexuality in general, and the sexuality of people with AIDS in particular. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ALL PEOPLE  1. Support & Membership in our struggle against those who would fire us from our jobs, evict us from our homes, refuse to touch us or separate us from our loved ones, our community or our peers, since available evidence does not support the view that AIDS can be spread by casual, social contact.  2. Not scapegoat people with AIDS, blame us for the epidemic or generalize about our lifestyles. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PEOPLE WITH AIDS  1. Form caucuses to choose their own representatives, to deal with the media, to choose their own agenda and to plan their own strategies.  2. Be involved at every level of decision-making and specifically serve on the board of directors of provider organizations.  3. Be included in all AIDS forums with equal credibility as other participants, to share their own experiences and knowledge.  4. Substitute low-risk sexual behaviors for those which could endanger themselves or their partners; we feel that people with AIDS have an ethical responsibility to inform their potential partners of their health status. RIGHTS OF PEOPLE WITH AIDS  1. To live as full and satisfying sexual and emotional lives as anyone else.  2. To receive quality medical treatment and quality social service provision without discrimination of any form, including sexual orientation, gender, diagnosis, economic status or race.  3. To obtain full explanations of all medical procedures and risks, to choose or refuse their treatment modalities, to refuse to participate in research without jeopardizing their treatment and to make informed decisions about their lives.  4. To ensure privacy and confidentiality of medical records, to receive human respect and the right to choose who their significant others are.  5. To die--and to LIVE--in dignity.