HIV-positive men stage 'Kiss-In' protest at U.S.-Mexico border

A group of HIV-positive men met at at the border between the United States and Mexico Sunday to kiss, creating a powerful display of defiance in the face of discrimination.

Ahead of World AIDs Day, MPact Global Action for Gay Men’s Health and Rights hosted the third annual Besoton Sidoso Internacional, also known as the International HIV Kiss-In, in Friendship Park/Parque de la Amistad on the border between California and Mexico. The demonstration sought to uplift people living with HIV and take away the stigma that surrounds dating and sex, while also showing solidarity with queer migrants as they face persecution from the Trump administration.

"As of one of the only openly HIV-positive Executive Directors of a global organization, I am inspired and heartened by this highly visible action for the rights of all people living with HIV, especially queer migrants, when there’s so much fear and disinformation out there," Andrew Spieldenner, MPact executive director, told The Advocate. "Our communities are powerful when we come together.”

Migrants living in high-income countries are disproportionately affected by HIV infection, according to a 2018 report from the National Institute of Health, and frequently have characteristics associated with poor HIV clinical outcomes. A large portion of migrants acquire HIV after migration, and are frequently unable to access care.

Up to 3 percent of non-U.S. citizens living in the United States (640,000 people) are LGBTQ+, a separate study from the Williams Institute found, including as many as 288,000 undocumented immigrants. Queer migrants are already at a heightened risk under Trump's policies, and queer migrants living with HIV in U.S. detention centers are particularly subjected to violence, stigma, and denied access to lifesaving medications.

"MPact works in collaboration with local communities to create the International HIV Kiss-in because it's a bold, provocative, and revolutionary act to publicly demonstrate the sexuality of people living with HIV and declare the human rights of queer migrants," said Alex Garner, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives & Communications at MPact. "We've transcended borders of sexuality and of gender and borders cannot restrict our fight for queer migrants and people living with HIV as we utilize the power of a kiss."

Scroll for more pics from the Besoton Sidoso Internacional.

Editor's note: This article orginally published on our sister site, advocate.com.