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Letter: Imagine denying a state a remedy for any life-threatening condition until it changes its school curriculum to Trump’s liking. That’s now reality.

(Valerie Plesch | The New York Times) Asia Russell, executive director of Health GAP, protests President Donald Trump’s freeze on foreign aid that has halted funding for HIV groups abroad, in Washington, on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. HIV treatment and services were funded through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, a $7.5 billion program that was frozen along with all foreign aid on Trump’s first day in office.

I would like to bring attention to a concern of which the media has been providing minimal coverage. Trump has recently threatened the states with losing funding for PREP, an HIV prevention resource, if states continue to provide gender ideology content in sex education courses. Whether or not parents want their children to learn about gender, the president of the United States using a lifelong sexually transmitted disease as ammunition to achieve his personal agenda is objectively unethical.

This is similar to withholding EpiPen provision from a particular state until they change their school curriculum.

This is targeting a specific group of people and forms harmful rhetoric around the LGBTQ community. It also shows a minimal understanding of how sexually transmitted diseases work, as creating a public health crisis does not just harm members of the queer community, but puts every sexual being at risk.

Realistically, members of the community are contributing simply by remaining aware of issues that affect our LGBTQ community and speaking out whenever given a platform to do so. Quite simply, neglecting the issues that are impacting this community will impact all of us, of any sexual orientation or background.

Morgan McOmber, Salt Lake City

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