It has been reported that one of the main reasons for the spread of HIV and the AIDS virus in African Americans is the shared use of hypodermic needles during intravenous drug use. Therefore, it seems possible to lessen the spread of AIDS by distributing needles to drug users to prevent needles from being shared.
Some organizations, particularly churches and other religious groups, have been against distributing drug needles. Maybe they think they would be encouraging intravenous drug use. If so, they should probably realize that decreasing the availability of clean needles does not stop the drug usage, but instead just makes people more likely to share dirty needles.
Maybe they think it is against their faith or religion to distribute needles for drug use. Maybe they should realize they are not increasing the drug use, but instead are making the drug use less damaging.
By sharing needles, intravenous drug users not only poison their minds and bodies with drugs, but also risk infecting themselves with AIDS from other drug users. Distributing clean needles will not affect the actual drug usage, but will remove the risk of contracting HIV and AIDS from sharing needles, therefore possibly saving lives.
Rather than encouraging sin, distributing needles can be seen as making things safer for people afflicted by drugs, so that if they are able to overcome their drug problem, they will not have to overcome AIDS as well.
Some of us seem to think that drugs are not our problem. We seem to think that, because we are not using drugs or our loved ones are not using drugs, we are not affected by this problem. While I recognize that I may not have a perfect understanding of Christianity, I personally find it difficult to reconcile the ideas of being Christian and not loving other people.
Regardless of faith, it is wrong to assume that the afflictions of others cannot affect our own lives. While we may not be drug users, members of our families might be. While members of our families may not be drug users, people they love might be.
Even if we can convince ourselves that the afflictions of others will not affect our own lives, we would like someone to care about us and help us if something was happening that would hurt us. Being afflicted by drugs does not make a person suddenly become something else.
Drug use will not be ended by distributing clean needles. That is not the point. The point is, distributing clean needles can reduce the risk of people contracting HIV and AIDS.
Finally, this article does not apply just to Black communities. All communities are affected by drug use and all people have the same strengths and weaknesses that come with being human. If you are a member of an organization that can distribute clean needles to drug users, please consider doing this.
Website: African American Culture
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