Last week, the Biden administration declared that monkeypox is a public health emergency. This follows the World Health Organization’s announcement of a global emergency a few weeks earlier. California, New York, and Illinois have similarly declared statewide emergencies over the virus.
The outbreak has been traced to two raves held in Belgium and Spain. To date, more than 7,500 monkeypox cases have been reported in the United States. Worldwide, 98% of infections have been documented in men who have sex with men.
This is where things start to get tricky. The discussion of who is at greatest risk of monkeypox has been suppressed to prevent stigmatization of gay and bisexual men, a phenomenon that has drawn parallels to the AIDS crisis in the 1980s and 1990s. As my readers know, as a straight woman, I am a strong supporter of the gay community, and I share these concerns about discrimination and not wanting to repeat history. At the same time, I worry that attempts to mask factual information about monkeypox will lead to an unintended backlash against the community.
Monkeypox is primarily transmitted through intimate contact with someone who is infected. This includes skin-to-skin contact with lesions during sexual activity and respiratory droplets spread by kissing, coughing, or sneezing. Thankfully, the corresponding death rate is relatively low, at 6%, and most who are infected recover within several weeks. For those who are concerned, the smallpox vaccine has been shown to offer protection, and antiviral medication can reduce symptoms.
Yet fearmongering about the virus has abounded, with claims that everyone in the general population is equally likely to be affected and that monkeypox is easily spread. Monkeypox has simultaneously inspired a reluctance to enforce policies that would be helpful, including canceling sex-centric parties and events and discouraging casual sex. In contrast, over the last 2 1/2 years, the world has been subjected to a variety of inhumane restrictions in the name of fighting the pandemic despite having little to do with “The Science,” safety, or public health.
We can be mindful of the ways in which illness is stigmatized, particularly if it is transmitted sexually, while also being truthful about its mode of transmission. A failure to do so, on the part of political correctness or activist suppression, gives the false impression that the community is acting irresponsibly and hampers people’s ability to make informed decisions about their health.
Dr. Debra Soh is a sex neuroscientist, the host of The Dr. Debra Soh Podcast, and the author of The End of Gender: Debunking the Myths About Sex and Identity in Our Society.
