[Viva] Man who withheld his HIV-positive status from his partners sentenced | CTV Calgary News

[Shannon Olson]

I too am grateful to live the Fraser Valley/Lower Mainland. The stigma even in other areas of our province, can be very different than here.

This is such a complex issue. On one hand, PLWHIV who have low viral loads and on meds, we argue, should not need to disclosure their status. I believe the majority of our community would even so far as to say, having a low viral load and on meds, has virtually no realistic possibilty of infecting someone else, and, should not need to disclosure or use a condom.

BUT, I have found with my experiences, there is often an attitude in our community that a person who has become infected should have been more careful themselves, and it is essentially the person who has become infected's own fault for not protecting themselves.

I would say yes and no. We have some personal responsibility to protect ourselves, BUT, when you are in a situation where someone tells you they love you, when you expect the majority of people in our society are trustworthy, when you believe most people in our society care about other human beings and expect people to do the right thing, when you are an idealist or perhaps are naive or have rose coloured glasses that are thicker than they should be; dam it --- I expect that the HIV-positive person to care enough to protect the HIV-negative person, in the case there is a realistic possibility of infecting someone else. I believe people who are HIV-positive, or think they could be HIV-positive, do the right thing and protect others, regardless of fear of stigma or discrimination or rejection. This disease can have an end, but it starts with us.

In the case where we do have a viral load and there is a realistic possibility of infecting someone else; where a condom and disclosure. I don't think very many of us consented to acquiring HIV.

My rant for the day...

Shannon

------ Original message------
From: shelly tognazzini
Date: Sat, Apr 28, 2018 1:10 PM
To: viva;
Cc:
Subject:Re: [Viva] Man who withheld his HIV-positive status from his partners sentenced | CTV Calgary News

Absolutely Denise, I agree. However, having lived there for 5 months in the past year I can attest to the degree of stigma associated with HIV that already exists, and the culture of Alberta is far more damning of persons living with HIV than B.C. I am entirely back in B.C. because of the medical care, supports, and the ability to be confidently out with my status. I didn't feel as safe to do so in Calgary. I was working front line and the stories around the table were filled with secrecy and fear of someone finding out their status. It was not easy to find persons to be out, for fear of some form of retribution, ranging from being shunned off reserve, to violence, stalking and beyond. The HIV community in Calgary has a long road ahead with the press.

Grateful to live in B.C.

On Sat, Apr 28, 2018, 12:30 PM Denise Wozniak <deniseswozniak at gmail.com<mailto:deniseswozniak at gmail.com>> wrote:
This Calgary case where he had a viral load and was infectious. He had been previously told not to engage in sex without telling his partners by medical staff since he was already reported once.  It should be a health problem but he obviously didn't care. Thankfully the women were not infected.

Anyone who still engages in sex when they know they are a risk and are asked of they have a sexual disease, as this man was, should show some caring for those he has sex with. I believe we all remember the day we found out we were infected.

This man just makes the public stigmatize everyone with HIV.

Denise

On Sat, Apr 28, 2018, 11:45 AM shelly tognazzini <shetognazzini at gmail.com<mailto:shetognazzini at gmail.com>> wrote:
https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/man-who-withheld-his-hiv-positive-status-from-his-partners-sentenced-1.3906096

Our neighbors to the east are sadly much much further behind.
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