Though the International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO) has a relatively short history, each passing year makes a stronger case for its existence.  In the twelve months since the last IDAHO took place, same-gender loving men and women in Uganda faced the prospect of execution, visitors to a gay health clinic in Kenya were doused in gasoline, and roving death squads tortured, murdered and dismembered effeminate men in Iraq.

It takes no stretch of imagination to understand that atrocities like these are the product of homophobia.  They are vile and horrifying and we should do everything in our power to stop them.  To understand the full effect of homophobia, however, one must look past the most obvious examples.  As the body of literature on homophobia grows, it has become clear that it plays a driving role in another human rights crisis—the AIDS crisis.

Gay men and other men who have sex with men (MSM) are at higher risk of contracting HIV, regardless of what region of the world they live in.  MSM in low- and middle-income countries are, on average, 19 times more likely to be infected with HIV than the general population.  Wealthy countries are no exception, with MSM in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia experiencing infection rates up to 44 times higher than those of their heterosexual counterparts.

Read the full article on lgbtpov.com.

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