For Immediate Release
Media Contact:
Cub Barrett, Program Communications Manager
cell: (847) 571-0509
cub.barrett@amfar.org
NEW YORK, November 20, 2012—amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS
Research on Tuesday commemorated Transgender Day of Remembrance and urged
governments around the world to help curb discrimination and violence against
transgender individuals while also addressing the growing HIV/AIDS epidemic
among the population.
Observed annually every November 20, Transgender Day of
Remembrance memorializes those who have been killed as a result of transphobia
and brings attention to the continued violence endured by the transgender
community. The day was first observed in 1998.
“At a time when so many transgender people around the world
live in fear of violence and persecution, the rate of HIV/AIDS among them is
also on the rise,” said amfAR CEO Kevin Robert Frost. “When a group lives in
the shadows, it is very difficult to reach them with lifesaving HIV/AIDS
education, prevention, and treatment.”
amfAR’s GMT Initiative—focusing on gay men, other men who
have sex with men (MSM), and transgender individuals, collectively known as
“GMT”—seeks to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS among GMT by investing in
community-led responses to reach these populations. The program, formerly known
as the MSM Initiative, was renamed in September 2012 to reflect its work with
transgender populations.
HIV prevalence is disproportionately high among GMT around
the world. A July 2012 analysis published in The Lancet shows that 25
percent of gay men and other MSM in the Caribbean are living with HIV, while 18
percent of MSM in Africa are infected. The few existing studies of transgender
women have shown HIV prevalence of up to 68 percent in some countries.
Additionally, in much of Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America, the
highest rates of HIV infection in any risk group are among GMT.
“We follow the data, and the limited data we have tell us
that transgender people are at very high risk of HIV infection in many parts of
the world,” said amfAR GMT Initiative Director Kent Klindera. “If we’re going
to end the epidemic, we need to first understand it among transgender individuals
and then reach the people who need us most. Today reminds us that we have a long
way to go to make the world safer for our transgender sisters and brothers.
Governments everywhere must recognize that they have a responsibility to keep
all of their citizens safe from violence and from disease.”
About amfAR
amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, is one of the
world’s leading nonprofit organizations dedicated to the support of AIDS
research, HIV prevention, treatment education, and the advocacy of sound
AIDS-related public policy. Since 1985, amfAR has invested more than $366 million
in its programs and has awarded grants to more than 2,000 research teams
worldwide.