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Back then, early media reports linking a new infectious disease to gay men raised alarms and fed panic. Such coverage causes men who have sex with men to face even more stigma while creating the false impression that everyone else is somehow immune or not at risk. Media coverage that clouds these simple facts is a threat to everyone. These transmissions can occur between any two people – regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity or any other identity. Monkeypox is transmitted through large respiratory droplets via prolonged face-to-face contact, contact with bodily fluids, or contaminated objects or surfaces. Yet there is nothing about the way this viral disease is transmitted that is actually unique to gay men or men who have sex with men. And for now, news reports on the infectious disease are suggesting a unique association between monkeypox and sexuality, specifically an association between the virus and gay men or men who have sex with men. Unlike 40 years ago, thanks to social media, and 24-hour news coverage, any news about monkeypox travels across the world in the blink of an eye. So far, we are in danger of failing the test.
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But as headlines link the disease to outbreaks among men who have sex with men, the lessons we learned 40 years ago about stigma and infectious diseases have come roaring back to prominence.Īs monkeypox moves towards the top of the international news agenda, the world has a small window of time to get it right, and prevent the same mistakes that fuelled HIV/AIDS-related panic, fear and discrimination for over four decades. Let’s be clear upfront: monkeypox is very different from HIV/AIDS. We applaud the recent statement by UNAIDS denouncing the “racist” and “homophobic” coverage of monkeypox, but much more is needed as a lot is at stake here. Another who works for an NGO in Lebanon was unsure whether to even share news about the disease, for fear of adding to the already intense stigma experienced by gay people across the country. “If I get monkeypox, will everyone know I am gay?” asked one friend in the Gulf. Since new outbreaks of monkeypox started making headlines across the world, we have been receiving text messages non-stop.