Jamaican doctor: homosexuality “inherently infectious”

Regrettably, and despite being publicly chastened for his reckless and unscientific statements, West still persists in peddling illogical arguments that are a discredit to his profession and the noble institution that he serves.

His latest foray into falsehood was at a recent demonstration against President Obama’s visit to Jamaica.  This event, and West’s response to it, showed a decided lack of logic.

Speaking to the Jamaican press about the anti-Obama protest, West claimed that if our Prime Minister kept her 2011 election promise to review the 1864 British colonially imposed anti-sodomy law, then she would somehow be submitting to US pressure(!) What nonsense. Regular Jamaicans have long called on our PM to keep her word.  In fact, two op-eds published in the Jamaican newspapers in the past two days have made this point.

West, also alleged (again) that the archaic anti-gay statute is necessary to prevent HIV among MSM.  As stated above, this myth has been scientifically debunked, as even with the law, Jamaica still has the highest HIV prevalence rate among MSM in the western hemisphere, if not the world (33%). Clearly the law does not work.

He then made another spurious claim that criminalizing people will help them to make better health choices.  In his words: “Now, if 64 per cent of persons were going to get diabetes, the Ministry of Health would say ‘No, stop what you are doing and rethink.”

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As a medical doctor, West knows that over-consumption of food contributes to diabetes.  Is he therefore suggesting that we ban eating to prevent the disease?  Or, is he suggesting that we take steps to encourage healthy eating? If the latter is true, then I would agree.

And since the desire for physical intimacy is a powerful urge, like eating, and since we can no more choose who we are attracted to than what foods we like to eat, then the logical thing would be to encourage safe expression of desire.  There is absolutely no evidence that making people criminals will encourage this type of behavior change. On the contrary, it will drive them underground, away from appropriate health-seeking interventions.

But, there may be evidence that West is questioning his own strident commitment to the archaic anti-sodomy laws.  In a letter that he wrote on behalf of JCHS in response to an editorial by a major daily in his native Trinidad and Tobago. West declared that HIV epidemics “continues to expand” among MSM in countries WITH OR WITHOUT anti-sodomy laws.  So, is he ready to concede that these statutes do not, in fact, prevent HIV among MSM? Dare we hope?