by Petra Newman

Created on: March 06, 2008   Last Updated: July 08, 2008

"No man is an island; entire of itself . . . any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee." (John Donne 1572-1631)

The words were written almost four-hundred years ago during the Renaissance era, when the Bubonic Plague (Black Death) raged throughout Europe.

Today, four-hundred years later, another plague is ravaging the world; a pandemic where death is once again a constant companion of the living. HIV/AIDS; is spreading in momentum around the world since it was first discovered in 1980, (then known as GRID; Gay Related Immune Deficiency).

According to the World Health Organization, UNAIDS; "Aids is among the greatest development and security issue facing the world today."

Statistics from the 2006 report for HIV/AIDS epidemic are staggering.
Infected . . . 65 million
Deaths . . . nearly 25 million
Approximately 35 million people living with HIV are unaware of their status.

With statistics like this it would be unconscionable and reckless for world leaders to ignore.

The panic and fear it once struck in our hearts has diminished over time. Headlines don't scream the words HIV/AIDS as loud as it once did. But that doesn't mean we're out of the woods. HIV/AIDS is still the deadly and contagious disease spreading death and devastation around the globe.

Are we so arrogant as to believe ourselves above this horrendous disease; that because we're from an affluent country it doesn't affect us? Have we become complacent because it's been around for over twenty-five years, thereby thinking it's of no immediate danger to us?

How concerned should Americans be about HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean when statistics show these islands to be the highest infected next to sub Saharan Africa? Florida is one of the most infected with HIV/AIDS in the United States. Could the contributing factor be the close proximity to the Caribbean Islands, and/or immigration and refugees from Haiti?

Long gone are the days of Ellis Island where immigrants were required to go through stringent examination to assure no communicable diseases set foot in the country. Tourists from around the world travelling to these tropical Islands may be bringing home souvenirs they didn't expect. The disease may not show up for ten to fifteen years, during which time they could possibly infect many others.

The time for finger pointing is over. It isn't just the sex trade, gays, and drug users; poverty, social economics, religion and

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