GLAAD’s “Summer of Giving” blood donation drive begins
June 3, 2024GLAAD, the leading LGBTQ+ media advocacy organisation, is collaborating with U.S.A.’s Blood Centers, a national network of community-based, independent blood centres, to launch a summer-long national blood drive that supports the LGBTQ+ community.
Announced on May 22, the campaign called “The Summer of Giving” will run from May 28 through September 4, according to ‘LGBTQ Nation’.
GLAAD describes the initiative as “a national blood drive campaign focused on advocacy and education on the implementation of new [Food and Drug Administration] guidance that expands blood donor eligibility to more LGBTQ people, especially for gay and bisexual men who, in the past, have faced discrimination around blood donor eligibility.”
“This initiative encourages businesses to host blood drives and all eligible individuals to donate blood, recognizing recent eligibility changes that promote fairness and inclusivity in the donation process while maintaining the safety of the blood supply,” GLAAD said in a press release.
Image Credit: Canva
The changes refer to the FDA’s revised blood donation rules from May 2023, which replaced the previous policy requiring men who have sex with men to abstain from sex for three months before donating blood.
The earlier policy, instituted in the 1980s, entirely banned gay or bisexual men from donating blood due to the stigma from the AIDS crisis. The LGBTQ+ community viewed this as discriminatory because even low-risk men were included in the blanket ban.
“The ‘Summer of Giving’ campaign is a unique opportunity for individuals and businesses to donate blood and host blood drives in support of a new era of blood donor eligibility. Together, we can help save lives during a time of critical need for the blood community,” said America’s Blood Centers CEO, Kate Fry.
“‘Summer of Giving’ is a celebration of the LGBTQ community and decades of work to remove the stigma many potential donors have endured. Removing discriminatory barriers and following facts and science will ease the critical national blood shortage,” stated GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis in a joint statement with America’s Blood Centers. “LGBTQ donors should be treated the same as any other donor when they walk into their local blood donation center.”
“This campaign sends a long-needed message that LGBTQ people are welcome and can generously contribute to their communities to help save lives.”
Those interested in donating can find a blood centre here.
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