'Sons Of Anarchy' Another 'Shield' Star
Monique Ruffin: Moms Change the World: Kenya Stevens
You may not know the name Nushawn Williams, but it's probably a name you should familiarize yourself with. You would especially want your daughter to know his name, as well as anyone else in the community who has reason to fear a more disturbing style of sexual predator for the new millennium.
Williams is in prison for knowingly infecting women with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. His victims were as young as 13 years old, and authorities believe he may have infected as many as 50 women prior to to being incarcerated in 1998. Police are working to keep Williams behind bars, because they fear what might happen if he is released.
"He is prone to further sexual contact with underage individuals because of deficits in his emotional capacity to understand why this is wrong and attitudes that support these types of exploitative encounters. His emotional callousness, lack of remorse and impulsivity undermine important internal mechanisms for managing his sexual behavior," said examiner Jacob E. Hadden from the New York State Office of Mental Health.
Authorities have determined that Williams suffers from a mental-health abnormality that makes him incapable of understanding why his actions are wrong or harmful.
The possible release of Williams reminds us of the urgency of managing the public-health alarm called HIV infection. African Americans are taking the lead in HIV-infection rates, and what is also true is that the experience in our community is nothing less than a precursor to what is eventually going to happen all throughout America. What is most frightening about the case of Nushawn Williams is that he is probably not the only person deliberately spreading the disease: There are likely women and other men doing the same thing. To make matters worse, there are many in our community (and others) who are being incredibly irresponsible with their sexual behavior and infecting scores of people in the process.
As I felt empathy for celebrities like Magic Johnson and Eazy-E for their battles with HIV/AIDS, I wondered how many people thought about the long list of partners they infected before finally getting their own positive test results. Did you ever think about the fact that many of those people are out in the community right now, quite a few of whom may have taken years to become aware of their HIV-positive status? This is scary indeed, so the truth is that to protect yourself from the silent community killer, a general strategy of protection must be put in to play.
I'm not a choir boy, Bible thumper or self-righteous finger-wagger, but most of you know that I've got to tell the truth when it comes to this kind of stuff. Sex is not the romantic, glamorous junk you see in the movies. It is the foundation of human life, "Mother Nature's crack pipe," and something that we all think about on some level on a regular basis (come on, tell the truth, you were probably thinking about sex over Corn flakes).
The worst trick in the world was for us to be confronted with a deadly disease that is transmitted by our doing the very thing we need in order to perpetuate the species. So in our efforts to avoid seeing that which is right in our faces, we over-romanticize the issue, don't ask the right questions, lie to one another or pretend that using a condom is going to protect us from our decision to have rampant sexual encounters with whomever we want.
Sorry, it doesn't work that way - life is not like the movies. While none of us can blame anyone else for wanting to engage in the act of having great sex, the truth is that when you get naked with another person, you are ALWAYS put at risk on some level. In a world full of deception and delusion, there is no way to get around the fact that STDs are everywhere, so the best thing we can do is encourage ourselves to tell it like it is and find a healthy way to deal with the fact that sex has become both exciting and downright scary for everyone, including married people.
Let's have an honest conversation about some things we might be able to agree on, shall we?
First off, we can agree that having unprotected sex is not a good idea, especially for single people. Married folks make this decision on a case-by-case basis, since many married people have been infected with STDs by their partners. We can also agree with the truth that we are never aware of what another person is doing behind closed doors. I'm sure that Tiger Woods' wife, Elin, had no idea that he was having unprotected sex with porn stars in his free time.
So, our goal of trying to extrapolate a person's full spectrum of desire, discipline and morality after knowing them for just a few days or weeks is not all that realistic. There's nothing wrong with taking the time to get to know someone before you engage in the act of possibly creating life with them. Finally, I am hopeful that we can agree that promiscuous and irresponsible sexual decisions are a generally risky idea, even when condoms are being used. Condoms don't protect you from everything, and some of us might argue that sleeping with someone you don't know very well is just not good business.
Again, this doesn't mean we can't enjoy sex. Instead, it means that we might have to open our eyes and take the blinders off when it comes to honestly analyzing that with which we are being confronted. Sex is powerful, and with great power comes great responsibility (didn't they say that in a Spiderman movie? Well, it's true regardless).
The case of Nushawn Williams is certainly a wake-up call. But the truth is that Nushawn should not scare you nearly as much as the other Nushawns of the world who have not yet been revealed. The government and police are not going to protect you from the horrors that lie right in front of you, so please be smart with what you do with your body.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and the author of the new book, 'Black American Money.' To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your e-mail, please click here. 
Comments: (93)
Add a comment
By: When WE Make LOVE on 4/14/2010 10:33AM
The Imitation Of LIFE.....Glamourous & Romantic - WANNABEES
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: MizzSams on 4/15/2010 7:54AM
I understand that the media is trying to protect women from NuShawn, however to exploit his medical information is a violation of HIPPA and someone can do some serious time (if he understood how to fight back). He may have mental issues but he is not totally incompitent, thats why he was not recommended to a mental facility from the start. The man is married now. Someone made a decision to marry him knowing he was HIV+, that says something about his character regardless of him making a poor decision. Realistically, they can't lock him up forever.
I find it hard to believe that all the women he infected were not warned in some way or another about him possibly being HIV+. They should have taken more responsibility and be held accountable for their actions as well. When was someone going to say lets go to the Health Department?
There are so many people out there just like him who are not branded. I'm not taking sides because I work in the nursing field and I see it on a daily basis, I am the one who has to care for these people when they are on their way out the door. So before yall jump down my throat. I am not blind to this disease or the impact it has on a person or their families.
Recently, there was an individual in our community how died. He was HIV+ for at least 17 years that I know factually. He infected over 100 men, women and girls. He has about 30 kids from these various invidiuals. No one heard about him in the news because he had money. My point to this story is. No matter how much people were warned that this guy was spreading HIV they had to take responsibility in the situation to say lets get tested. He is not going to volunteer. Therefore, their actions were wreckless.
Word to the wise. The best way to know that you will stay HIV free is not to have sex in the first place. The best way to know if a person has HIV or not is to get tested. Then that is NOT always fool proof. Just so you know. It can take anywhere from 3 weeks to years for a person to test positive after being exposed to the virus.
At minimum it may break down like this....In simpler terms, you can sleep with someone today contract HIV, get tested a week from now and test negative. Then in another week test negative, then in the third week possibly the test may read negative, positive or inconclusive (which means you have possibly been exposed to the HIV Virus). The doctors will call you in to do another test "for accuracy". Depending on your immune system your test will come back positive or inconclusive again. In my opinion an inconclusive test is worse than a test that says + or -. The individual who is being tested is totally wigging out because they truly don't know whats going to happen.
We all have the responsibility to educate ourselves on this disease and the many others that our out there.
In my final thought. If you REALLY want to know what HIV looks like...find the nearest mirror and take a glance. By the time you can look at a person and tell they have HIV, they have had it for a long time. Their body has undergone so many changes that they just want out (to die). The humiliation, rejection and shame that come with this disease are almost unbearable thats whey a lot of people keep silent. So if you really want a person to open up to you. You have to keep your cool about the situation (even if you want to snap) get to know what you need to know and make an informed decision on your next move. If you are negative about talking about it the person will never talk to you as they will feel you will reject them. I hear this the most when I talk to the individuals I care for.
Last but not least. Get tested. Get tested. Get tested. Don't trust other people with your life. You are in the drivers seat. You have total control over your medical status.
Report This
By: The truth on 4/15/2010 9:29AM
The reason the dumbass is alive today is because of the free health care provided while incarcerated. It will be interesting to see how long he lasts now that he'll be responsible to get a job and provide his own. Being that he's a manipulator and the timing is just right he should do ok...He's married, so his enabler wifee will provide the family plan needed to keep him up and running. Now that there are healthcare rules telling insurance companies they can't discriminate against those with pre-existing medical conditions...he'll be all set. God bless america LOL!!!
Report This
By: Anita on 4/15/2010 2:00PM
@mzzsams you may be in the health field --- but, your post was sorely lacking in a realistic view about Mr. Williams, which is what the article is about, he is a KNOWN threat to society. As such, married or not, more reasonable or not --- HE NEEDS TO REMAIN LOCKED UP!
Report This
By: Vern on 4/15/2010 2:40PM
I remember when this happened back in the 90s. The only reason he went to jail was because he was infecting WHITE GIRLS in upstate NY.
Report This
By: TraceyJoy76 on 4/14/2010 10:11AM
There is no difference between NuShawn Williams and Charles Manson, he need to stay locked up for life.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Juanita on 4/15/2010 8:32AM
I FEEL TGE SAME WAY. WHY LET HIM OUT SO MORE PEOPLE CAN GET AIDS?
Report This
By: u.d on 4/16/2010 11:21AM
What better way to wipe out a race. They probaly told him he can have sex with all the black women he wanted as long as he stayed away from the white women? I hope our brothers and sisters are aware of the campaign to convince black males to become homosexuals through music - another good way to wipe out the race. WAKE UP!!!!
Report This
By: john on 4/24/2010 11:42PM
TraceyJoy76, I am amazed that you ignored my comment about arresting and sentencing women who pass on this disease like prostitutes, cheating g/fs and wives. You totally ignored responsibling to that comment of mines. Is it that you don't think women should be held to the same standard as this young man? Let's release the HIV results on all Americans who are positive, and if they have had sex with anyone let their partners report them to law enforcement. You don't care about this man's HIV status being made public; let's makes all HIV individuals status public without regard to their gender. Do you agree? Or do you now think this man's HIV status should have remained private?
Report This
By: paul on 4/14/2010 11:09AM
How ironic. This murderer is probably only alive today because of the health care provided to him in jail.
"Our tax dollars working for you."
Reply to this Comment | Report This