A. J. Betts, a gay teen who committed suicide at age 16, had his eye donation rejected because of his sexual orientation. His parents were unsure of his sexual history or even whether he had sex. The FDA continues to reject life-saving, life-changing tissue donations from homosexuals because of outdated AIDS paranoia. Betts' precious eyes could have made a tremendous change in someone's life, yet they were thrown away because of outdated stereotypes. What a waste.
HIV and other communicable diseases are a threat to every community, not just homosexuals. That's why tissue donations go through screening processes to ensure they're healthy. Thanks to modern testing, there is no reason to reject life-saving donations from gay men.
Gay men are allowed to donate their organs, which fall under a separate category. Betts' heart went on to save the life of a 14-year-old boy. No matter what that boy's religion or political beliefs, it is certain he'd rather be alive with a working heart than dead because a donor couldn't be found. Please tell the FDA to stop denying people the chance at a healthy life because of outdated and bigoted stereotypes.
We, the undersigned, are concerned with your policy on rejecting homosexuals' tissue donations. As you know, A. J. Betts, a gay teen who committed suicide at age 16, had his eye donation rejected because of his sexual orientation. We believe those precious eyes could have made a tremendous change in someone's life, yet they were thrown away because of outdated stereotypes.
HIV and other communicable diseases are a threat to every community, not just homosexuals. That's why tissue donations go through screening processes to ensure they're healthy. Thanks to modern testing, there is no reason to reject life-saving donations from gay men.
Gay men are allowed to donate their organs, which fall under a separate category. Betts' heart went on to save the life of a 14-year-old boy. No matter what that boy's religion or political beliefs, it is certain he'd rather be alive with a working heart than dead because a donor couldn't be found. We respectfully urge you to change your policy and accept life-changing, life-saving tissue donations from homosexuals.
