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Compton, California rapper Game took to his Twitter over the weekend to address comments he made about the gay community.
Game made headlines last week, after he gave an interview with VladTV, stating that he had an issue with gay men who “pretended” not to be gay while sleeping with straight women.
"The #1 issue with that is you could be fooling somebody and you could give them AIDS and they can die...and that s**t spreads because that girl you might be fooling might leave you and go find another dude who ain't gay and give him the disease," Game told VladTV in the interview.
On his Twitter account, Game explained that he had no problems with the LGBT community and even stated that he was a "fan" of noted gay activist and world renowned singer, Elton John.
"S**t I be surprised when I see someone who's not GAY," Game tweeted. "My girl hair stylist is GAY & he kool. @50cent GAY n we was cool."
But Game's statements continue to draw outrage from the LGBT community, as well as activists who work within the community.
Charles Stephens is a product specialist at AIDS Atlanta, a nonprofit that was founded in 1982 to combat the impact of HIV/AIDS in the city.
The organization has since grown to be the largest and most comprehensive AIDS Service Organization in the Southeast United States.
"Being in the closet is not exclusive to the black community, and certainly not the hip hop community; portraying closeted gay men as such is inaccurate and runs the risk of further alienating people," Charles Stephens told AllHipHop.com. "The reality is that HIV/AIDS can affect anyone, regardless of their orientation."
In February of 2011, the Black HIV/AIDS Institute released its 2011 state of AIDS in black America report titled “Deciding Moment.”
The organization is the only national HIV/AIDS think tank focused exclusively on the black community in the United States.
The scientific study directly counters the stereotype that gay black men are responsible for the increasing rate of HIV/AIDS in the African American community.
“Despite their disproportionate vulnerability to HIV, black Americans as a whole do not engage in higher levels of risk behavior that other groups. This is vividly reflected with respect to black gay men. Although black gay men are significantly more likely to become infected than white gay men, they did not engage in greater levels of risk behavior. Indeed, some studies suggest the black gay men are less likely than white gay men to take sexual risks, even though they are several times more likely to become infected.”
The study stated that a number of other issues could be impacting the HIV/AIDS rate within the community, including high rates of sexually transmitted infections in black communities, the makeup of sexual networks and the effects of disproportionate rates of incarceration among black people.
"It’s more useful to look at actual risk behaviors and structural factors such as poverty and access to health care that drive the epidemic in our communities," Stephens concluded. "We all have a responsibility, whether straight or gay, to ask questions and communicate openly with our partners."
Source: allhiphop.com
Game made headlines last week, after he gave an interview with VladTV, stating that he had an issue with gay men who “pretended” not to be gay while sleeping with straight women.
"The #1 issue with that is you could be fooling somebody and you could give them AIDS and they can die...and that s**t spreads because that girl you might be fooling might leave you and go find another dude who ain't gay and give him the disease," Game told VladTV in the interview.
On his Twitter account, Game explained that he had no problems with the LGBT community and even stated that he was a "fan" of noted gay activist and world renowned singer, Elton John.
"S**t I be surprised when I see someone who's not GAY," Game tweeted. "My girl hair stylist is GAY & he kool. @50cent GAY n we was cool."
But Game's statements continue to draw outrage from the LGBT community, as well as activists who work within the community.
Charles Stephens is a product specialist at AIDS Atlanta, a nonprofit that was founded in 1982 to combat the impact of HIV/AIDS in the city.
The organization has since grown to be the largest and most comprehensive AIDS Service Organization in the Southeast United States.
"Being in the closet is not exclusive to the black community, and certainly not the hip hop community; portraying closeted gay men as such is inaccurate and runs the risk of further alienating people," Charles Stephens told AllHipHop.com. "The reality is that HIV/AIDS can affect anyone, regardless of their orientation."
In February of 2011, the Black HIV/AIDS Institute released its 2011 state of AIDS in black America report titled “Deciding Moment.”
The organization is the only national HIV/AIDS think tank focused exclusively on the black community in the United States.
The scientific study directly counters the stereotype that gay black men are responsible for the increasing rate of HIV/AIDS in the African American community.
“Despite their disproportionate vulnerability to HIV, black Americans as a whole do not engage in higher levels of risk behavior that other groups. This is vividly reflected with respect to black gay men. Although black gay men are significantly more likely to become infected than white gay men, they did not engage in greater levels of risk behavior. Indeed, some studies suggest the black gay men are less likely than white gay men to take sexual risks, even though they are several times more likely to become infected.”
The study stated that a number of other issues could be impacting the HIV/AIDS rate within the community, including high rates of sexually transmitted infections in black communities, the makeup of sexual networks and the effects of disproportionate rates of incarceration among black people.
"It’s more useful to look at actual risk behaviors and structural factors such as poverty and access to health care that drive the epidemic in our communities," Stephens concluded. "We all have a responsibility, whether straight or gay, to ask questions and communicate openly with our partners."
Source: allhiphop.com