Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2006. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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Bay Area Reporter - December 7, 2006
Bob Roehr
The order has yet to appear on the White House Web site and there is no indication when it might.
U.S. law allows the exclusion of foreigners who pose a public health risk. That was interpreted to exclude an HIV-positive Dutch visitor traveling to speak in the U.S. in 1989. It sparked a protest at the International AIDS Conference in San Francisco in 1990 and the conference has not returned to the U.S. in protest of the policy.
Congress codified the policy in 1993 by passing a law that prohibits foreigners from becoming citizens or obtaining a visa to visit the U.S. if they are HIV-positive. However, the provision may be waived on an individual basis if it is deemed to be in the best interest of the U.S. to do so. Blanket waivers have been issued for particular events, most recently Gay Games VII in Chicago.
Those who have objected to the policy say it is demeaning, further stigmatizes the disease, and contributes nothing to public health. Furthermore, having notice of such an exemption stamped in their passport may subject the person to discrimination and possibly violence in their home country.
Many HIV-positive visitors have chosen to simply not state their status or seek a waiver when visiting the U.S. They run the risk of being questioned and possibly denied entry if an examination of their luggage turns up HIV drugs.
Michael Weinstein, president of the Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation, called the proposed change "a vast improvement over current law," though he would prefer to see a change in the law itself and not just an easing of the waiver process.
Log Cabin Republicans also praised the move.
"This decision is a good first step toward ending the stigma of HIV," said Log Cabin Executive Vice President Patrick Sammon. "We urge the president to take further steps by finally removing HIV as a barrier to American citizenship and residence. As we've learned more about this disease and the way it is spread, there is no justifiable reason to keep this law in place."
Gay pundits noted the administration has granted waivers.
"When the first lady recently sat down with African women dealing with HIV for a photo-op, the press did not tell you that the White House had first to secure that waiver to even allow those women into the country, let alone the White House," wrote gay conservative pundit Andrew Sullivan on his blog. Sullivan, himself HIV-positive, has long advocated for elimination of the travel ban.
Sullivan called Bush's move a "tiny, if welcome, gesture" that should be followed by support for a legislative effort to remove HIV as a barrier to American residence and citizenship.
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