Political Quotes

“the current epidemiology of HIV/AIDS is clear. Women, children and minorities are affected disproportionately by heterosexuals' HIV infection associated with transmission from injectable drug users. Understand this: We are not just talking about drug users but those of whom they come into contact with. Certainly, minority communities are disproportionately affected by AIDS injection drug use. In 1996, of the Latinos diagnosed with AIDS, injection drug use accounted for 39 percent of the total cases in men and 51 percent of the total cases in women. Of particular concern is the fact that nearly 50 percent of new HIV infections can be attributed to injecting drug use, which disproportionately affects minority communities. We are not reducing drug use through this legislation. We are talking about denying protection to families, women and children who come into contact with drug users, compounding their misery and risking their lives for an empty political symbol. The war on drug use is not the same as a war on drug users nor a war on their families.”