>> PEOPLE WITH HIV CAN NO LONGER
BE CRIMINALLY PROSECUTED FOR
EXPOSING SOMEONE ELSE TO THE
VIRUS WITHOUT THEIR KNOWLEDGE
THIS MAKES ILLINOIS THE SECOND
STATE TO REPEAL SUCH A LAW THIS
FROM THE 1980s MAKING HIV
EXPOSURE A FELONY.
ADVOCATES SAY THE LAW
DISCOURAGED TESTING AND
TREATMENT FOR HIV AND THAT THIS
REPEAL IS OVERDUE.
JOINING US WITH MORE ARE TIMOTHY
JACKSON, THE DIRECTOR OF
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS WITH THE
AIDS FOUNDATION CHICAGO AND THE
LEAD LOBBYIST OF THE BILL'S
REPEAL.
AND STATE REPRESENTATIVE CAROL
AMMONS A DEMOCRAT WHO SPONSORED
THE BILL.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US.
TIMMOTHY LET'S START WITH YOU
PLEASE, WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION
TO THE GOVERNOR SIGNING THIS
BILL LAST WEEK?
>> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING
US.
EMOTIONS WERE ALL OVER THE PLACE
TO BE HONEST WITH YOU.
AS A PERSON LIVING WITH HIV FOR
12 YEARS, THERE WAS ANXIETY,
THERE WAS JOY THERE WERE A
COUPLE OF TEARS BUT MOSTLY IT
WAS REALLY A WEIGHTLIFTED OFF OF
MY SHOULDERS AND THE SHOULDERS
OF PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV ACROSS
ILLINOIS THAT THEY WON'T HAVE TO
WORRY ABOUT THEIR HEALTH
CONDITIONS BEING WEAPONIZED
AGAINST THEM I'M GRATEFUL TO
CAROL AMMONS AND GOVERNOR J.B.
PRITZKER AND OTHERS FOR THEIR
WORK IN ADVANCING THE
LEGISLATION.
>> AND REPRESENTATIVE CAROL
AMMONS WHY DID YOU WANT TO BE A
PART OF THIS LEGISLATION?
>> I THINK TIMMOTHY EXPRESSED
THAT AND THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME
ON.
THIS BILL REFLECTS SOMETHING
THAT SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN ON THE
BOOKS IN THE FIRST PLACE BUT WE
NEEDED TO CORRECT THE WRONG THAT
WAS HISTORICAL RECORD WHEN IT
CAME TO PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV.
SO I WANTED TO BE A PART OF
THAT.
I HAVE A LONG LEGISLATIVE RECORD
OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM.
I FOUND THIS TO BE NOT JUST
CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM BUT THIS
IS ALSO HEALTHCARE JUSTICE IN
THE FACE OF COVID.
AND SO I THINK IT WAS HIGH TIME
THAT ILLINOIS TOOK THE LEAD ON
THIS INITIATIVE AND I'M SO HAPPY
THAT WE GOT IT SIGNED LAST WEEK
INTO THE GOVERNOR SAW THE
IMPORTANCE OF THIS LEGISLATION.
>> AND TIMMOTHY HOW DID THIS
PARTICULAR LAW AND LAWS LIKE IT
HOW DID THEY IMPACT PEOPLE
LIVING WITH HIV?
>> YES, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF
DIFFERENT HARMS OF WHICH ONE
BASED ON CURRENT SCIENCE,
BECAUSE RIGHT NOW, THERE'S A
THING UNDETECTED UNTRANSMITTABLE
WHICH MEANS A PERSON LIVING WITH
HIV WITH AN INDETECTIBLE VIRAL
LOAD THEY POSE ZERO RISK IN
TRANSMITTING THE VIRUS.
SO OBVIOUSLY THAT IS A HUGE BOON
FOR PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV.
WE UNDERSTAND THAT IT'S OVERLY
HARSH AND DISCRIMINATORY TO THE
SAME COMMUNITIES THAT ARE
ALREADY RAVAGED BY HIV, BLACK,
LATINX, INDIGENOUS AND LGBTQ
COMMUNITIES AND MORE THAN ALL OF
THOSE IT INFLICTS HARM.
AND ALSO STANDS IN THE WAY OF
PUBLIC HEALTH STRATEGIES.
BECAUSE A PERSON COULD HAVE BEEN
CHARGED WITH THIS LAW, IF THEY
DIDN'T KNOW THEY HAD HIV.
AND SO PEOPLE LITERALLY TOLD US
WELL, I'M NOT GOING TO GET
TESTED FOR HIV BECAUSE I CAN BE
CHARGED FOR HIS CRIME.
SO OBVIOUSLY WE UNDERSTAND THAT
STANDS IN CONTRAST TO WHAT WE
WANT TO HAPPEN.
WE WANT TO ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO
GET TESTED AND GET INTO
TREATMENT.
HAVING SOMETHING ON THE BOOKS
THAT STOOD IN THE WAY OF US
DOING THAT WAS OBVIOUSLY A HUGE
BARRIER TO ENDING THE HIV
EPIDEMIC HERE IN ILLINOIS.
>> AND LET'S GET INTO A LITTLE
BIT OF THAT.
ANALYSIS OF COURT DATA SHOWS
THAT BLACK MEN MAKEUP TWO-THIRDS
OF THE PEOPLE CHARGED UNDER THIS
LAW AND ACROSS GENDER LINES 75%
OF THOSE CHARGED ARE BLACK AND
THAT IS THE CIRCUIT THAT COMES
FROM THE CHICAGO READER.
WHY HAVE BLACK PEOPLE BG BEEN
DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTED BY
THE LAW?
>> GREAT QUESTION.
IT'S REALLY JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE
OF SYSTEMIC RACISM.
I THINK REPRESENTATIVE AMMONS
HIGHLIGHTED NOT ONLY IS IT A
CRIMINAL JUSTICE ISSUE, THIS IS
A HEALTHCARE JUSTICE ISSUE AS
WELL.
AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE
REALLY SEEN WHERE YOU HAVE
DISPROPORTIONATE IMPACT IN A
NUMBER OF DIFFERENT AREAS.
THERE IS NOT JUST CHICAGO OR
COOK COUNTY CENTER ONE OUT OF
EVERY TWO GAY BLACK MEN IN THIS
COUNTRY WILL CONTRACT HIV IN
THEIR LIFETIME.
BASED ON THE C.D.C.
50%.
AND JUST TO PUT IT INTO BROADER
TERMS, YOU'RE LOOKING AT THAT
STATISTIC.
I AM A GAY BLACK MAN LIVING WITH
HIV.
AND SO THAT JUST PUTS INTO
REALLY INTO FOCUS OF THE
IMPORTANCE OF MAKING SURE THAT
WE REMOVE THIS LAW AND THAT WE
FOCUS ON EDUCATION, PREVENTION
AND TREATMENT NOT ONLY IN THE
BLACK COMMUNITY BUT LATINX
COMMUNITY AND OTHERS AS WELL.
>> AND YOU'VE SAID TO YOUR
KNOWLEDGE TO YOUR KNOWLEDGE, NO
ONE IS CURRENTLY IN PRISON FOR
THIS LAW.
BUT THERE'S OTHER DATA FROM COOK
COUNTY THAT SAYS THAT FROM
1990-2016, 60 PEOPLE WERE
CHARGED.
REPRESENTATIVE AMMONS WHAT DOES
THAT SAY TO YOU ABOUT THIS LAW
THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE CHARGED AND
PEOPLE IMPRISONED?
>> YOU KNOW, THIS REALLY TELLS
ME THAT WE ARE ON THE RIGHT
TRACK.
IF WE KNOW THAT 50% THAT
INCLUDES MY OWN FAMILY MEMBERS
MY OWN SON, I WANT TO MAKE SURE
THAT HE HAS EVERY OPPORTUNITY
AFFORDED TO HIM TO GET GOOD
QUALITY HEALTHCARE AND TO NOT IN
THE EVENT THAT HE MAY CONTRACT
HIV OR MY DAUGHTER FOR THAT
MATTER COULD CONTRACT HIV OR
CHILD COULD BE BORN WITH IT, WE
WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DON'T
HAVE LAWS ON THE BOOKS THAT DENY
THEM THEIR ACTUAL RIGHTS.
AS WELL AS PROTECTING THEIR
HEALTH STATUS.
IT LEADS TO UNEMPLOYMENT,
SOCIOECONOMIC CONDITIONS, STATUS
CHANGES, DISCRIMINATION.
WE DON'T WANT THAT TO BE THE
OUTCOME FOR A PERSON WHO IN
REALITY HAS A HEALTH ISSUE THAT
REALLY JUST NEEDS ADDRESSING.
AND SO THAT IS WHY THIS WAS SO
IMPORTANT TO REMOVE THE STIGMA
AND THE DISCRIMINATION AND
REMOVE THE CRIMINALIZATION FOR
PEOPLE LIVING WITH HIV IN OUR
STATE.
>> ALL RIGHT THAT WHERE WE HAVE