Since 1985 it’s been illegal for gay American men to donate blood in the United States, despite calls by the American Red Cross and the American Blood Centers to end the FDA’s discriminatory ban.
In Canada, gays are also banned from donating blood.
But do the blood-takers know we’re gay? Well, the form every donor fills out asks if you are a man who has had sex with another man since 1977. Yeah, 1977. If you answer “yes” then you can’t give blood.
Of course, you could always lie. That’s what one blogger does. And it’s what one Canadian citizen did. Only, he got caught. And then sued:
Canadian Blood Services is suing a man who admits he lied repeatedly about having sex with men when he donated blood.
Kyle Freeman is counter-suing, arguing that the lifetime ban on gay men being blood donors isn’t scientifically valid and violates his constitutional right to equal treatment regardless of sexual orientation.Freeman, who is not HIV positive, admits he lied when asked if he’s had sex with another man . . . He donated blood 18 times but the lawsuit focuses on four donations between 1998 — when CBS was formed after the Krever Inquiry into tainted blood — and 2002.
“I had been tested,” [Freeman] said. “I had been cleared. I guess at that point it was a political statement. I felt that the benefit of giving blood would outweigh the political position of the blood services.”
A perfectly healthy man donates blood eighteen times. And is sued for it. Yup. The trial is expected to take months.
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