What we tend to forget is that the decisions we make today will effect the rest of our lives or that of our future partners. From the classes we take to the person with whom we choose to walk home from the Tombs on Friday night, we need to be constantly aware of the consequences our decisions may bring. As Georgetown students, this becomes a dilemma because of the Catholic tradition proclaimed from the top of Healy Tower. As a community, we should stop and recognize that the Catholic tradition needs to be upheld. But in the same breath, we need to acknowledge those on this campus that are not Catholic, as well as the fact that the Catholic tradition cannot stop the spread of this life-threatening disease.
Catholics are just as vulnerable as anyone else to the disease.
While the administration cannot disregard the constraints placed upon it, it must nevertheless play a more pronounced role through education in helping to increase awareness with respect to HIV and AIDS on Georgetown's campus. In the results of an anonymous survey we conducted on World AIDS Day, we realize that many Georgetown students do not feel that they are at risk for this disease because of the lack of prevalence of awareness on this campus. The students, as a whole, are not aware of the fact that it is here, and it is a risk to all of us. The participants as a whole who were aware of someone who had HIV were generally over the age of 24. The results also show that the students do not feel that there is an adequate support system in place if they were to become infected.