inothernews:

(via Upworthy)

(via 221b-adwolf)

projectqueer:

BY JERRY PORTWOOD

Are David Harris and Tre’Darrius Anderson the country’s youngest African-American gay couple to marry? David Harris and Tre’Darrius Anderson, both 19, were married in Washington, DC January 18, 2013, and they may be one of the youngest gay couples to legally wed. At least that’s what The Scoop seems to think. The young couple from Tennessee, who tied the knot in front of the Lincoln Memorial, will also be featured on an upcoming episode of My Teenage Gay Wedding.

As described on the My Teenage Gay Wedding page:

David and Tre’Darrius, both 19, are young, black, and gay, and getting married in not-so-progressive Memphis. But the odds are stacked against them. Once very popular, David’s friends ostracized him after he came out in high school. Neither mother is responding to the wedding invite. And their only adult supporter, Tre’s uncle Theo, thinks they’re too young to marry. When flaky groomsman Rico says he might have to work on the wedding day, the couple is crushed. The biggest obstacle, though, is making the marriage legal. That means going to Washington, DC, but Tre must first get over his fear of flying!

Click the header link above to watch a video with clips from their wedding.

projectqueer:

Jason’s HIV-positive status taught him how to rebound in tough times, over and over again.

BY TYLER CURRY

Jason Thompson had just barely gotten his feet wet in the world of love and dating. He was 20 years old and still stuck in the rural landscape of Southern Illinois. The small town of Aviston was a far cry from a gay metropolis, but he had managed to find a couple of boys around his parts who were worthy of dinner and a movie.

At his age, a gay man is typically allowed a couple “do-overs” and “never-agains” until he learns to operate in the land of one-night stands and no-good boyfriends. But sometimes the wrong guy with all the right words can take away the frivolity that comes with youth before you get the chance to learn your lesson.

He was on his way to work when his friend called and told him the news—his friend was just diagnosed as HIV-positive. With little knowledge of the disease himself, he did the only thing he knew to do to support him. Jason got tested.

Click the header link above to read the full article.

projectqueer:

But those who use condoms 100% of the time can largely avoid the virus.

BY MICHELLE GARCIA

Men who used condoms every time they had anal sex were 70% less likely to acquire HIV than men who never used condoms, according to a study whose results were announced Sunday at the 20th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. Meanwhile, only using condoms intermittently was nearly as ineffective at preventing HIV as not using condoms at all over an extended period of time, according to the study. Among all men having anal sex, men who said they used condoms every single time were 68% less likely to become infected with HIV than men who said they sometimes used them.

Only one in six gay men were able to avoid HIV infection with inconsistent condom use for anal sex over a four-year period. The study on the effectiveness in preventing HIV through condom use was the first study of its kind since 1989. According to AIDS Map, HIV transmission through anal sex is severely under-studied—evidenced by the fact that scientists are somewhat unclear about the extent to which condoms actually prevent HIV transmission in anal sex. 

If used consistently and properly, condoms still boasts high effectiveness rate. According to NBC News, condoms cut risk of HIV infection by about 80%; essentially, a less than a 1% chance of infection per year.

* This information is useful for trans* women and non-binary individuals as well.

(via fuckyeahsexeducation)