cecilia chung and laurel sprague july 23, 2014 aids 2014 melbourne, victoria, australia...
TRANSCRIPT
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Cecilia Chung and Laurel SpragueJuly 23, 2014
AIDS 2014Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Intersections of Disclosure and Prosecution
Transgender People in the US Respond to Criminal Laws Based on HIV Status
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Respondent Voices
In order to file charges, I [would have] had to disclose my rape, my [HIV] status and I would have to give up my privacy and be subjected to public scrutiny (African American transgender woman, age 60 or older).
I was the one charged...there was absolutely NO physical contact...simply saying yes to sex... after 9 months in jail, and a front page news article in hopes that SOMEONE would come forward, the charges were dropped...not before my reputation, both professionally and personal, was ruined (White transgender woman, age 40-49).
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The Sero Project Study on HIV Criminalization
• Purpose of the Study– Research led by and for people living with HIV – Identify the views of people living with and affected by
HIV about the use of HIV-related criminal laws
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Study Methods
On-line questionnaire
Anonymous responses
Wide community distribution
Survey available for 8 weeks • from June to August 2012
20-30 minutes completion time
IRB approval through • Eastern Michigan University
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Transgender Respondents
US respondents = 3034, 2% identified as transgender or third sex
Transgender male 19 37%Transgender female 18 35%Third sex 14 27%Total 51 100%
Transgender male
Transgender female Third sex
HIV-negative 74% 28% 46% Unknown HIV status 0% 0% 15% HIV-positive 21% 72% 31% Prefer not to answer 5% 0% 8%
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Enabling Legal EnvironmentDisa
bli
ng
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Do you feel confident that you could protect yourself legally from accusations that you engaged in sexual behavior without disclosing your HIV-positive status?
Not confident Somewhat confident Completely confident
40%
32%28%28%
24%
48%
55%
25%
20%
Cisgender maleCisgender femaleTransgender/third sex
HIV-positive respondents only
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Have you ever worried about being falsely accused of not disclosing your HIV status?
Transgender women living with HIV were the most frequently worried about false accusations of non-disclosure (23%).
Never A few times Frequently
60%
30%
9%
74%
21%
4%
43% 43%
14%
Cisgender maleCisgender femaleTransgender/third sex
HIV-positive respondents only
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Do you believe a person living with HIV could get a fair hearing in your state if accused of not disclosing
his or her HIV status to a sexual partner?
Not Applicable No or probably not
Not sure Probably or yes
3%
49%
28%
21%
5%
43%
22%20%
5%
52%
33%
14%
Cisgender maleCisgender femaleTransgender/third sex
HIV-positive respondents only
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Why or why not?
• As a poz trans woman, I find it doubtful that I would be given a fair hearing in any court of law (Latina trans woman, age 24-29).
• Because although this state has become fairly tolerant with regards to the LBGT community, there is still a lot of intolerance when it comes to the transgender community that extends to the court system (African American trans woman, age 60 or older).
• As for being transgender, ….we have been treated very badly by the system here (White trans woman, age 40-49).
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HIV Disclosure
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Should a person living with HIV disclose her/his status to a potential sexual partner before engaging in sexual
activities?
Never has to disclose
Should always disclose if asked
Should always disclose even if
not asked
Depends on the circumstances
4%
19%
46%
30%
3%7%
65%
25%
6%
22%
37%35%
Cisgender maleCisgender femaleTransgender/third sex
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Should a person living with HIV who is a sex worker disclose her/his status to a client before engaging in
sexual acts?
Never has to disclose
Should always disclose if asked
Should always disclose even if
not asked
Depends on the circumstances
7%
22%
50%
22%
6%
12%
58%
24%
10%
18%
31%
41%
Cisgender maleCisgender femaleTransgender/third sex
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Criminal Laws and Attitudes toward HIV Testing, Treatment, and Disclosure
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How reasonable is it to avoid testing, treatment, or disclosure because of fear of prosecution?
Not reasonable Somewhat reasonable Very reasonable
42%
34%
24%
52%
30%
18%
39%37%
24%
A person, who is otherwise feeling healthy, states he or she does not take an HIV test out of fear of being prosecuted if the HIV test came back positive
A person, who otherwise is feeling healthy, avoids getting treatment for HIV out of fear people might find out he or she is HIV positive and press charges against him or her
A person does not disclose his or her positive HIV status to a current sex-ual partner out of fear of being prosecuted by a previous partner to whom he or she did not disclose HIV status
Transgender and third sex respondents only
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Summary in Comparison with Cisgender Respondents
• Transgender and third sex respondents were the most likely to focus on the context ("it depends on the circumstances") when determining whether there should be criminal charges for non-disclosure related to sex, drug use, or sex work.
• Transgender and third sex respondents were the most likely to say that it is reasonable for a person living with HIV to avoid testing, treatment and disclosure for fear of criminalization.
• Transgender and third sex respondents living with HIV expressed the strongest sense of legal vulnerability, indicating:• Much less confidence that they could protect themselves legally from
accusations that they had not disclosed their status• Much more frequent worries about being falsely accused of non-
disclosure• The lowest levels of trust that a person living with HIV could get a fair
court hearing if accused of non-disclosure
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Next Steps
Research that people living with HIV need: Violence related to disclosure With specific questions for transgender people living
with HIV
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Thank you
to the people living with HIV and members of affected communities who generously shared their time, thoughts and
experiences with us and made this research possible.