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Article Archive Health Living with AIDS in Apache culture
Article Archive Health Living with AIDS in Apache culture
| Living with AIDS in Apache culture | | Print | |
| Thursday, 22 March 2007 19:19 |
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San Carlos man talks about need for AIDS education Source: Eastern Arizona Courier By Diane Saunders, Staff Writer http://eacourier.com Today is the first National Native American HIV/AIDS Aware-ness Day, and Isadore Boni, a San Carlos Apache, knows firsthand about the stigma and rejection experienced by a homosexual afflicted with AIDS — especially in American Indian communities. “I have been shunned by the tribe, but I also have forgiven those who have hurt me,” Boni said. “I’m not ashamed of being gay; I’m not ashamed of having AIDS.” American Indian communities selected March 21 to commemorate National Native American HIV/AIDS Awareness Day because “it marks the start of spring, a time of renewal,” according to Charles W. Grim, director of Indian Health Services, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. A Health and Human Services statement indicates that more than 1 million Americans are living with HIV and at least 40,000 new infections are reported every year. American Indians and Alaska Natives represent approximately 1 percent of the U.S. population but account for the third-highest rate of AIDS diagnoses in the United States. Boni, 40, said although attitudes are changing on Indian reservations, only education and awareness will bring about an open dialogue that will result in saving lives. “I want to educate people about what’s killing me. It’s not about being gay; it’s about choosing life,” he said. To help promote AIDS awareness and assistance to those suffering with the disease, Boni is holding a carwash in Phoenix on March 24 with the help of several Arizona State University students. Boni’s journey in coping with the disease began in 2002, when he was diagnosed with AIDS. He said he was exposed to HIV in 1999 when he was barhopping. Experimentation with illegal drugs, including methamphetamine, impaired his judgment - but he doesn’t view this as an excuse. “I have to take responsibility for everything I do in my life and everything I did in my life,” Boni said. At the time of his infection, Boni said he believed AIDS was a white man’s disease. He added that he is not the only Apache who has AIDS. He was working in San Carlos as a social worker when he found out he was infected with AIDS. He moved to Phoenix because he felt he could not live on the reservation, although his mother was compassionate. “I had to leave San Carlos. I did not trust anyone there because of lack of confidentiality,” he said. “I kept crying out for my dad, who died two months prior.” For the next couple of years Boni alternated between living on the streets and in homeless shelters. “I’ve lived on the streets, slept in the alleys and ate out of dumpsters,” Boni said. He found that AIDS medications are expensive, and several agencies that provide assistance to AIDS patients lost their funding. A television story about his plight in December 2004 was the first time he talked publicly about his disease. He said the tribe responded with negative reactions, and he was accused of stigmatizing the tribe. Only his mother and a niece were supportive. A little more than two years later, his relationship with the tribe is improving. “A lot of it’s changing. It’s getting better now,” Boni said. “I’m getting more positive feedback from the tribe.” In November 2006 he received a positive response from the San Carlos Tribal Council. He has been invited to speak at Fort Thomas High School in May, but no date has been set, Boni said. He looks forward to bringing AIDS awareness to Fort Thomas and to the San Carlos Reservation. “The best thing since my diagnosis is being welcomed back home,” he said. “I’m proud of being an Apache, and I want to go back home.” |
| Last Updated on Monday, 09 February 2009 05:23 |