Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

[CFLarsen]

More than 20 years after the AIDS epidemic arrived in the United States, a significant proportion of African Americans embrace the theory that government scientists created the disease to control or wipe out their communities, according to a study released today by Rand Corp. and Oregon State University.

...

Nearly half of the 500 African Americans surveyed said that HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, is man-made.

...

More than one-quarter said they believed that AIDS was produced in a government laboratory, and 12 percent believed it was created and spread by the CIA.

A slight majority said they believe that a cure for AIDS is being withheld from the poor. Forty-four percent said people who take the new medicines for HIV are government guinea pigs, and 15 percent said AIDS is a form of genocide against black people.

At the same time, 75 percent said they believe medical and public health agencies are working to stop the spread of AIDS in black communities.

...

The findings were also no surprise to Na'im Akbar, a professor of psychology at Florida State University who specializes in African American behavior.

"This is not a bunch of crazy people running around saying they're out to get us," Akbar said. The belief "comes from the reality of 300 years of slavery and 100 years of post-slavery exploitation."

...

The study, which was supported by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, appears in the Feb. 1 edition of the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes.

Source: Washington Post (Free subscription required)

First, it was God's punishment for gays. Now, it's a black genocide, concocted by the gubmint.

And false beliefs are supposed to be harmless?

 

[Rob Lister]

First, it was God's punishment for gays. Now, it's a black genocide, concocted by the gubmint.

And false beliefs are supposed to be harmless?

Well, it's not as if the U.S. government has been involved in doing such things.

"The United States government did something that was wrong—deeply, profoundly, morally wrong. It was an outrage to our commitment to integrity and equality for all our citizens... clearly racist."

—President Clinton's apology for the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment to the eight remaining survivors, May 16, 1997

http://www.infoplease.com/spot/bhmtuskegee1.html

 

[CFLarsen]

Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

Well, it's not as if the U.S. government has been involved in doing such things.

Does that mean the gubmint is guilty of creating and spreading the HIV virus?

 

[HarryKeogh]

First, it was God's punishment for gays. Now, it's a black genocide, concocted by the gubmint. harmless?

gubmint? is that little racist jab really necessary, CF?

 

[CFLarsen]

Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

gubmint? is that little racist jab really necessary, CF?

No racism intended. I use "gubmint" when describing all sorts of conspiracies.

 

[Rob Lister]

Re: Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

Does that mean the gubmint is guilty of creating and spreading the HIV virus?

No, but it does mean they have, in the past, done some of the other things asked about in the survey.

 

[TheBoyPaj]

FWIW, I hear "gubmint" in a Texan drawl, rather than an African accent.

 

[HarryKeogh]

Re: Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

No racism intended. I use "gubmint" when describing all sorts of conspiracies.

in that case, please accept my apology.


This seems similiar to the idea spread by Louis Farrakhan how crack was introduced by the government to destroy black communities.

It goes to show what a distrust of government (sometimes with very good reasons since many black people alive today were alive during segregation, have been a victim of racial profiling or simply experience racism on a regular basis) and the influence of uninformed authority figures can have on some people (sort of like militia members...distrust of gov't, charismatic leaders).

 

[CFLarsen]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

No, but it does mean they have, in the past, done some of the other things asked about in the survey.

That may be. They also dropped two bombs on the Japanese. Terrible, yes.

But, like Tuskegee, irrelevant. Is there any evidence that the gubmint has concocted the AIDS virus (I think that's what they referred to) and deliberately spread it in black communities?

 

[PixyMisa]

We should introduce the "HIV is man-made" cranks to the "AIDS isn't caused by HIV" cranks. And then retire to a safe distance.

 

[CFLarsen]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

in that case, please accept my apology.

No probs.

 

[geni]

A reasonable ist of AIDs conspirocy thoeries

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIDS_conspiracy_theories

 

[Luke T.]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

That may be. They also dropped two bombs on the Japanese. Terrible, yes.

But, like Tuskegee, irrelevant. Is there any evidence that the gubmint has concocted the AIDS virus (I think that's what they referred to) and deliberately spread it in black communities?

The atom bomb was dropped on an enemy waging war against the United States. The black airmen infected with syphillis were not combatants against the U.S.

I think if you ask any black person, Tuskegee is most certainly relevant. If it were your people who had been the subject of such experiments, you would certainly understand the mindset of "if they did it before..."

I'm sure the Jewish people keep a weather eye on neo-nazis for the same reasons.

 

[bigred]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

I think if you ask any black person, Tuskegee is most certainly relevant. If it were your people who had been the subject of such experiments, you would certainly understand the mindset of "if they did it before..."

I would (in fact do) understand it.....but that doesn't make it any more valid, or less paranoid (not to mention outright ridiculous).

I'm sure the Jewish people keep a weather eye on neo-nazis for the same reasons. [/B]

Please tell me you don't really think that's a valid comparison.

 

[jmercer]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

The atom bomb was dropped on an enemy waging war against the United States. The black airmen infected with syphillis were not combatants against the U.S.

I think if you ask any black person, Tuskegee is most certainly relevant. If it were your people who had been the subject of such experiments, you would certainly understand the mindset of "if they did it before..."

I'm sure the Jewish people keep a weather eye on neo-nazis for the same reasons.

I didn't bother quoting BigRed's "Please don't tell me that you think this is a valid comparison" because it's a PITA in this particular forum software to nest quotes. (argh!)

But it's a perfectly valid comparison, because both are based on mistrust due to historical injustices. Both incorporated racial bias as a motivation (in part and in whole, depending on which one we're citing), and both were performed by government organizations. While the neo-nazi's are not a government, they are still an organization which (in a very distorted way) is a descendent of Hitler's Nazism, and lays claim to being the "New Reich" reborn.

(Edited for grammar and clarity)

 

[jmercer]

Now for my opinion... organized racism is a form of fanaticism, perpetuated by people to gain and/or hold personal power. These hate-mongers seize on any opportunity to promote their agenda. The only rule seems to be "Will I get headlines without pissing off my followers?"

The US government has done a lot of really stupid and illegal things at times, and ALL governments need to be watched constantly to keep them "honest". But if AIDS did turn out to be artificial - which I don't believe is the case - there are a lot of other goverments and organizations I'd look at as possible culprits before even considering the US as a source.

 

[Luke T.]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

I would (in fact do) understand it.....but that doesn't make it any more valid, or less paranoid (not to mention outright ridiculous).

Sometimes, to overcome a belief, you must understand the roots of that belief.

Please tell me you don't really think that's a valid comparison.

I do think it is a valid comparison. American blacks were enslaved for hundreds of years and are discriminated against to this day. Jews have been persecuted for thousands of years. A certain amount of cultural paranoia is inevitable to both.

 

[CFLarsen]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

I think if you ask any black person, Tuskegee is most certainly relevant.

The problem is that there is no evidence of this AIDS conspiracy.

If it were your people who had been the subject of such experiments, you would certainly understand the mindset of "if they did it before..."

"My" people? Who are "my" people?

I'm sure the Jewish people keep a weather eye on neo-nazis for the same reasons.

Again, there is evidence of the Holocaust. There is no evidence of this conspiracy.

 

[Luke T.]

Now for my opinion... organized racism is a form of fanaticism, perpetuated by people to gain and/or hold personal power. These hate-mongers seize on any opportunity to promote their agenda. The only rule seems to be "Will I get headlines without pissing off my followers?"

The US government has done a lot of really stupid and illegal things at times, and ALL governments need to be watched constantly to keep them "honest". But if AIDS did turn out to be artificial - which I don't believe is the case - there are a lot of other goverments and organizations I'd look at as possible culprits before even considering the US as a source.

I think it is far more likely that AIDS is not artificial and that the only exploitation going on is on the part of certain black community leaders who take advantage of their people's cultural paranoia and thereby increase and nurture it.

 

[Kevin_Lowe]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Study: Many Blacks Cite AIDS Conspiracy

But, like Tuskegee, irrelevant. Is there any evidence that the gubmint has concocted the AIDS virus (I think that's what they referred to) and deliberately spread it in black communities?

None I'm aware of.

Technically speaking I think the theory isn't utterly implausible. AIDS could have been made by humans mucking around with ape viruses. Then again each new strain of 'flu that goes around could, in theory, have been made in a lab by someone. There's just no evidence that's the case, and there are much more everyday explanations available.

I do find it interesting that the US government is the scapegoat in these stories, because I just don't see what the US government would get out of spreading AIDS.

A better conspiracy theory would be to have an evil pharmaceutical company release AIDS so that they could sell more drugs. That would at least be a story with a clear profit motive.