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The Inherent Violence of Anti-Black Racism and its Effects on HIV Care for Black Sexually Minoritized Men

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Abstract

The goal of this study was to examine the effects of racial discrimination, depression, and Black LGBTQ community support on HIV care outcomes among a sample of Black sexually minoritized men living with HIV. We conducted a cross-sectional survey with 107 Black sexually minoritized men living with HIV in Chicago. A path model was used to test associations between racial discrimination, Black LGBTQ community support, depressive symptoms, and missed antiretroviral medication doses and HIV care appointments. Results of the path model showed that men who had experienced more racism had more depressive symptoms and subsequently, missed more doses of HIV antiretroviral medication and had missed more HIV care appointments. Greater Black LGBTQ community support was associated with fewer missed HIV care appointments in the past year. This research shows that anti-Black racism may be a pervasive and harmful determinant of HIV inequities and a critical driver of racial disparities in ART adherence and HIV care engagement experienced by Black SMM. Black LGBTQ community support may buffer against the effects of racial discrimination on HIV care outcomes by providing safe, inclusive, supportive spaces for Black SMM.

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Acknowledgements

This work would not be possible without the individuals who participated in this study. We are grateful for their willingness to participate and trust in us to use these data to address police brutality against Black individuals and improve HIV care. We would also like to acknowledge the contributions of all of the Resilience study team members at the AIDS Foundation of Chicago and our supporting community members and organizations. This research was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (R21 MH122010; MPI Voisin and Quinn).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for AIDS Intervention Research, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, USA

    Katherine G. Quinn, Jennifer L. Walsh & Wayne DiFranceisco

  2. School of Child and Youth Care, Toronto Metropolitan University, Toronto, Canada

    Travonne Edwards

  3. Sol Price School of Public Policy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Lois Takahashi

  4. School of Social Work, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Anthony Johnson

  5. AIDS Foundation of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Andrea Dakin & Nora Bouacha

  6. School of Applied Social Sciences, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Dexter R. Voisin

Authors
  1. Katherine G. Quinn
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  2. Jennifer L. Walsh
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  3. Wayne DiFranceisco
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  4. Travonne Edwards
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Correspondence to Katherine G. Quinn.

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Quinn, K.G., Walsh, J.L., DiFranceisco, W. et al. The Inherent Violence of Anti-Black Racism and its Effects on HIV Care for Black Sexually Minoritized Men. J Urban Health 101, 23–30 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-023-00823-x

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