Stephen Lewis Foundation

From IntactiWiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search

The Canadian Stephen Lewis Foundation was created by Stephen H. Lewis and his daughter Ilana Landsberg-Lewis in 2003[1], with the express purpose of putting money directly in the hands of community-based organizations working on the frontlines of the AIDS pandemic in Africa. Since 2003, they have funded over 1700 initiatives, partnering with over 325 community-based organizations in the 15 countries that have been hardest hit by the AIDS pandemic in Africa, including Botswana, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe, according to their own statements.[2]

Contents

Self-presentation

Since 2003, the Stephen Lewis Foundation (SLF) has been delivering resources directly into the hands of the community-based organizations (CBOs) that are turning the tide of HIV & AIDS in Africa. Led by grassroots experts in the more than 325 CBOs with which the SLF partners, over 1700 innovative and inspiring initiatives have been successfully undertaken—with astounding and tangible impact—in the 15 African countries hardest hit by the pandemic. We know from experience that in order to effect positive and lasting change, it is critical to support committed organizations at the community-level that are working to improve the lives of those infected and affected by HIV and AIDS in their communities. (SLF)[3]

Population-based studies

September 2021 saw the publication of two huge population studies on the relationship of circumcision and HIV infection:

  1. Mayan et al. (2021) carried out a massive empirical study of the male population of the province of Ontario, Canada (569,950 males), of whom 203,588 (35.7%) were circumcised between 1991 and 2017. The study concluded that circumcision status is not related to risk of HIV infection.[4]
  2. Morten Frisch & Jacob Simonsen (2021) carried out a large scale empirical population study in Denmark of 855,654 males regarding the alleged value of male circumcision in preventing HIV and other sexually transmitted infections in men. They found that circumcised men have a higher rate of STI and HIV infection overall than intact men.[5]

No association between lack of circumcision and risk of HIV infection was found by either study. There now is credible evidence that the massive, expensive African circumcision programs have not been effective in preventing HIV infection.

See also

External links

References

  1.   Our Co-Founders, SLF. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  2.   What We Do, SLF. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  3.   Who We Are, SLF. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  4.   Mayan M, Hamilton RJ, Juurlink DN, Austin PC, Jarvi KA. Circumcision and Risk of HIV Among Males From Ontario, Canada. J Urol. 23 September 2021; PMID. DOI. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
    Quote: We found that circumcision was not independently associated with the risk of acquiring HIV among men from Ontario, Canada.
  5.   Frisch M, Simonsen J. Non-therapeutic male circumcision in infancy or childhood and risk of human immunodeficiency virus and other sexually transmitted infections: national cohort study in Denmark. Eur J Epidemiol. 26 September 2021; 37: 251–9. PMID. DOI. Retrieved 16 January 2022.