FROM GAY CITY
STRANGER: Great to see that you joined the mainstream media last Wednesday in reporting the recent rise of HIV in King County among gay and bisexual men ["The Immoral Minority," Eli Sanders, June 5]. Unfortunately, Eli Sanders wove a tale that conveniently omitted important facts and blurred editorial commentary with reporting.

Fact: Despite the fact that Gay City has been working with progressively less public funding for HIV and STD prevention, Gay City has not shied away from its mission to prevent HIV transmission among gay, bi, and trans men. On the contrary, the organization continues to develop cutting-edge programs to encourage healthier lives for Seattle's gay community.

Fact: Gay City's programs produce real results. While your article mentioned our newest publication, "Action: A Handy STD Guide for Gay, Bi and Trans Men," which was produced without any public funding and provides the latest information on HIV/STD treatment, prevention, and accessing health services, the article failed to mention a host of other programs Gay City offers. And those programs are generating real results, with program evaluations indicating that people participating in Gay City's activities not only feel better about themselves and more connected to their community, but are learning where to get tested for HIV and other STDs, are getting tested in higher numbers, and are changing their behaviors.

Fact: Shame just doesn't work. Perhaps the biggest problem with Eli's editorial centers on his contention that Gay City (and other gay men's health and HIV organizations) should commence with a campaign to shame men into behavior change. What Eli failed to communicate is what we repeatedly told him: Public health and other research data very clearly show that such strategies don't work. Experts around the country have found that what may appear to be common sense--telling people something like "You're stupid or a killer if you have unsafe sex"--just doesn't work. In fact, it can--and does--backfire as gay men try to exert their independence and overcome years of being told they are sick/immoral/not worthy of living, etc.

Encouraging safer sex practices to discourage HIV and STD transmission remains at the heart of Gay City Health Project. We will continue to develop cutting-edge programs that give our community members the information they need, in ways that they will be receptive to rather than reject as paternalistic or as some form of propaganda.

Fred Swanson,

Executive Director, Gay City Health Project



FROM SEX CHECK
STRANGER: Eli Sanders made an important point: It can make a difference if people talk with one another about the importance of being sexually safe. Disclosing one's HIV status, whether positive or negative, before having sex can make a difference. Opinion leaders in the gay community can make a difference by speaking out clearly regarding good decision-making about sexual safety.

Sanders wrote about the Sex Check, and we came to two conclusions after reading his article. The first is that the Sex Check is contributing importantly to the community by offering gay men the chance to talk about ambivalent attitudes about being unsafe. The Sex Check is advertised as supportive, nonjudgmental, and multicultural, and we believe that is exactly what is needed in reaching individuals who are conflicted about what they're doing and assisting them in deciding about their future.

Our second conclusion is that we can do our work better, particularly when our intake workers are directly asked for advice. People who call are told about the study and the kinds of services it offers, and are given the chance to see if they're eligible. Those who enroll receive a lot of support in grappling with decisions about sex. But, for those who only speak with us one time, we'll be better prepared to respond.

Because the Stranger article included some misinformation about the Sex Check, we'd like to clarify what it is. When a man phones the project, he will learn that the service is part of a research project. All of his conversations will be by telephone. He'll learn that all of the men in this study are randomly assigned to have either one or three phone conversations with a counselor. Four follow-up interviews over the following 10 months will help the project staff evaluate the Sex Check's effectiveness. Payments for these interviews will make it possible for him to earn up to $200.

Through his conversations with his counselor, the participant will be able to think about why he is making certain choices about his sex life.

Roger A. Roffman, via e-mail

ELI SANDERS RESPONDS: The information The Stranger published about the Sex Check was gleaned from the pamphlets and cards that the hotline distributes. In other words, we had the same information the average caller would have--which was the point. At first glance, Sex Check's promotional materials appear to be those of a hotline. In reality, the hotline is a way of bringing people into a research study. There is nothing wrong with this, as long as effective services are offered to those who just want advice and don't want to be studied. It's nice to hear that the Sex Check will be improving the advice-giving part of its operation in response to our story. For my response to Fred Swanson's letter, please see page 17.