A recently released survey on the high rate of herpes cases in Mecklenburg Country drew controversy this week after county commissioner Bill James suggested blacks are more likely to become infected with the disease because they are "more promiscuous."
Some worry that attention paid to James' comments could overshadow the larger message of the new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that an estimated one in six Americans has herpes and black women have the highest rate of infection at 48 percent.
James wrote about the CDC survey in two e-mail messages sent to more than 2,000 people this week, taking umbrage with comments from a CDC official saying the higher rate of infection among blacks is not due to increased risky behavior. The health agency said biological factors make women more susceptible to sexually transmitted diseases like herpes, and the higher prevalence of the disease within the black community probably perpetuates racial disparities.
James accused the media and black leaders of downplaying what he alleges are the real reason for high numbers.
"The problem is worse in the African-American community because there is more promiscuous behavior," James wrote, "and it has to be fixed there and programs have to be tailor (sic) there."
James has drawn criticism before over comments toward homosexuals and the black community.
His latest comments drew a strong rebuke from the head of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Community Relations Committee.
Willie Ratchford said Friday that James' e-mail was "based upon a misstatement of facts. I just found it to be highly offensive and I felt it was necessary to respond." He called the charge that blacks are more promiscuous a "lie" and that attention should be paid to the millions of others, including whites, who have herpes.
"What the conversation should be is, we need to have better education for people involved in any kind of sexual behavior so that they can stay healthy and not contract deadly diseases," said commissioners Chair Jennifer Roberts. "That is the real conversation and everybody needs to hear that message...."
A number of efforts across the community attempt to get the word out about ways to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. The county's Health Department offers outreach programs, and hosts presentations on sexually transmitted diseases at drug treatment centers and to inmates at the county jail.
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