State Senator Christine Kehoe moderated a public town hall meeting on the use of crystal methamphetamine in the GLBT community at The Center on Oct. 12 as part of the San Diego Community Leadership Council. The panel consisted of various experts on the topic and featured a personal story from a former crystal meth addict.

“It can have far-reaching consequences in your life and the lives of your loved ones. It’s important to work out solutions that include education and prevention so you can make informed decisions and be aware of the consequences of meth abuse,” said Kehoe.

Former owner/manager of Rich’s, Bart Johnson, spoke candidly about the 15-year crystal meth addiction he struggled with throughout his 20s and 30s. Now 44, he has been drug-free since 1998.

“I quit almost seven and a half years ago and did not go to rehab, sought no help, and didn’t talk to anybody about it, Johnson said. “I didn’t even tell my own lover until two and a half years after I quit.”

Johnson, who was diagnosed with HIV in 1999, credits the rise in HIV/AIDS cases among gay men specifically to crystal meth abuse.

“I have a strong feeling HIV would have never occurred so heavily in the gay community, or [be] as prevalent, had it not been for the use of crystal meth and the sexual activity among people – because when sex becomes part of the drug, that’s one of the problems,” he said. “Once you are high, the furthest thing from your mind is putting on a condom.”

Jim Zians, project manager for the Edge Research Project at UCSD, also sees a direct correlation between crystal meth and unsafe sex. “We know that meth use predicts risky sexual practices,” said Zians. “It doesn’t mean that everybody who does meth does that. Statistically you’re more likely to be in that group.”

Now in its sixth year, the Edge study targets men who have sex with men (MSM) who are also HIV-positive and use crystal meth. To qualify for the study, participants must have had unprotected anal or oral sex in the past two months with an HIV-negative sexual partner or someone with an unknown HIV status.

Zians highlighted some preliminary data measuring sexual compulsivity. The average participant had 13 different sexual partners during the two months prior to entering the study, and in 83.5 percent of their encounters involving anal sex, they did not use condoms. Those who reported using crystal meth were more likely not to practice safe sex, Zians noted. He said the rate of HIV infection among crystal meth users is twice that of non-users.

Binge crystal meth users accounted for 43 percent of men in the Edge study. “A binge user is someone who can’t stop using until they run out of drugs or they just crash,” Zians said. “They have less stable relationships, [a] higher risk of being homeless, more financial problems and health problems. They’re really in trouble.”

In the summer of 2003, Stepping Stone and The Center conducted a survey of San Diego gay men to gather data for a social marketing campaign. Of the people surveyed, 14 percent had used meth in the last two months. The more club drugs they reported using, such as ecstasy, cocaine and “poppers,” the less often they practiced safe sex. In terms of sex practices, HIV-negative and HIV-positive respondents said they both practiced unsafe sex at about the same rate.

North Park Family Health Centers conducted an HIV-risk survey in November of 2004 among a random pool of respondents that found that 15 percent had used crystal meth in the last six months. Only 20 to 25 percent of respondents reported that they “almost always” practiced safe sex.

Cheryl Houk, executive director of Stepping Stone, said harm reduction advertising campaigns have been frowned upon since the aim is not for the addict to stop using, but instead to reduce behaviors that would put them at risk for getting HIV and other STDs.

She emphasized the ever-present issue concerning the lack of funding to create and launch marketing campaigns that aim to educate the public about the complicated nature of crystal meth addiction.

“I truly wish there were more federal block grant funds for media-related ways of approaching this and getting a higher visibility in order to speak to people on it,” she said. “Most of us who have created these ads have had to get our own financing in order to do that. It really does take a village to meet this problem head on, change some behaviors around and have a higher impact, because the end result of this drug is not a pretty sight.”

Steven Johnson, a heath policy and government relations consultant and former board chair of Stepping Stone, also stressed harm reduction as the key to combating crystal meth addiction.

“It’s not rocket science,” he said. “The fact of the matter is putting on your seatbelt is harm reduction, wearing a condom is harm reduction. It’s not mad science; it’s not crazy.”

Crystal meth campaigns that demonize and ostracize gay men are not a viable solution, Johnson added. “Remember that these are human beings that are dealing with complex issues. For us, as gay organizations, to add to their stigma…is a disservice and it drives them underground and away from the organizations that are built to serve them,” he said.

Johnson and local businessman David Contois helped create www.KnowCrystal.org, a Web site that provides factual information – without judgment or stigma – to gay and bisexual men who use crystal meth or know someone who does. The site is funded by private donations and is a program of the San Diego Harm Reduction Center.

For more information on the project, visit www.KnowCrystal.org or e-mail info@ knowcrystal.org.