A University of Kansas student organization is protesting the Food and Drug Administration's policy banning blood donations from men who have had sex with other men.
On Feb. 25, members of Queers and Allies gathered in the Kansas Union to collect signatures for a petition to send to the FDA. KU freshman Michael Turner helped organize the event, and said the group wanted to raise awareness about people who want to help save lives, but are institutionally prevented from doing so.
The FDA policy is leftover from 1983, when HIV-AIDS was stigmatized as a gay disease.
Prompted by students, the Red Cross has recently taken steps to distance themselves from the FDA’s policy.
In a letter to student newspaper The University Daily Kansan, Scott Caswell, the American Red Cross regional CEO, said the FDA's policy did not reflect the views of the Red Cross. He said the organization is dedicated to fairness in donor selection regardless of beliefs, race, gender or sexual orientation. Caswell also noted that in 2005, the Red Cross worked with other organizations to petition the FDA to review its policy.
In 2007, the FDA reaffirmed its ban of donations from men who have had sex with men.
FDA Consumer Safety Officer Jill Burkoff said the FDA's policy does not reflect discrimination, but is based on preventing transmission of disease. She said that men who have had sex with other men have an HIV prevalence rate 60 times higher than other people.
"Please rest assured that this policy is not discriminatory," Burkoff said. "It is risk-based."
"The FDA welcomes scientific and public input and we reevaluate our policies as new data becomes available," she added.
Some students thought Queers and Allies was protesting the blood drive itself, but the group seemed to have no animosity towards it beyond the FDA's policy. “We’re not protesting against the blood drive or the Red Cross at all,” Turner said. “We are totally in support of what they do. We think it’s great and we encourage people to donate.”
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