In response to recent legislative efforts on behalf of the LGBT community seeking to overturn a federal ban on gay blood donors, the Illinois-based anti-gay group Americans for Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH) is launching a campaign to protect the extent ban.
The Huffington Post reports that the AFTAH’s campaign, entitled “Keep the Gay Blood Ban,” was launched Friday in an effort to, as campaign spokespersons put it, prioritize “the safety of Americans – and a pristine blood supply – ahead of the demands of the selfish Homosexuality Lobby.”
AFTAH is urging Congress to investigate potential health hazards connected with homosexual behaviors in the hopes of gaining government support to maintain the ban, which as been active since the early AIDS epidemic scare of the 1980’s. Thus far, opponents to the ban include Senator John Kerry, Representative Mike Quigley (D-Ill.) and some 40 additional members of the U.S. Congress – all of whom are arguing that the Department of Health and Human Services lift what they consider to be an unfair and outdated ban.
The current law prohibits any man who has sex with men from donating blood throughout the U.S. Kerry, Quigley and their supporters in Congress recently reiterated their intention to “continue to push for a behavior-based screening process both in the name of fairness and a safer blood supply.”
