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AIDS in Bethlehem
"Palestinian youth who have AIDS are isolated from others."
By Raja'i Alabed
I recently met a fifteen-year-old Palestinian named Michael here in
Bethlehem who is HIV positive. Because the conflict with Israel overshadows
practically everything else, it's extra difficult for someone with the
disease to get the help and counseling they need. A few days ago I
interviewed Michael. He started crying while telling me his story.
Michael said he contracted AIDS from a blood transfusion he had when he was
12 years old. He is considered a rare case, both because Bethlehem has very
few kids who are HIV positive, and also because of the way he was infected.
Compared to many countries, HIV/AIDS is not a big problem here because
there are very few people infected. It's rumored that most of the people who
are infected caught the disease from foreigners, through sexual contact and
drugs.
Michael thinks he'll never get to see himself finish college or get married.
He said to me, "I'll never start a family or see my precious babies," and he
thinks it won't be long before he joins others who have died because of this
disease.
In general, Palestinian youth who have AIDS are isolated from others, and
even booted out of the families if they are adults. Michael explained that
the worst thing is that all his friends refuse to socialize with, or even
talk to him. He says he always tries to tell them that the disease cannot be
caught just by hanging out with someone, but nobody listens. It seems like
they aren't aware how the disease works. It's very difficult for him, going
through this alone. There is a lot of shame associated with the disease.
Those infected don't tell others about their infection because if they did,
they would be treated badly and perhaps would even be forced to leave their
own homes.
Doing this interview changed my perspective on young people with HIV because
I discovered first hand that the emotional distress that accompanies AIDS can
be almost as debilitating as the illness itself. To be honest, my knowledge
about HIV/AIDS before I interviewed Michael was very limited. My friends and
I were unaware that one could contract AIDS through a blood transfusion or sexual
intercourse. I must admit that I was very nervous while interviewing him because
of the lack of information about this disease. But listening to him talk about
how his friends have abandoned him made me feel strangely. I felt as if it's
my duty is to convince others that they have to give people who are in Michael's
case their rights to live freely like others, and to be treated equally.
- Raja'i Alabed is a 19-year-old
Palestinian college student.
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