Syndemic health outcomes among MSM have been theorized to be socially produced by “social inequality and unjust exercise of power” (p. The production of racial/ethnic disparities in HIV has occurred within the wider context of the intercorrelation and overrepresentation of adverse health outcomes among MSM of all race/ethnicities, termed syndemics ( Stall et al., 2003 Singer and Clair, 2003). Black MSM were twice as likely to experience these structural factors than non-Black MSM ( Millet et al., 2012). A recent meta-analysis of 164 studies ranked correlates of HIV infection and found that structural factors constituted the majority of the top 10, including low income and education, recent unemployment, and a lifetime history of incarceration. Empirical investigations into the causes of racial/ethnic disparities in HIV have not found support for the roles of individual sexual risk behavior, such as unprotected anal intercourse (UAI), number of sexual partners and drug use ( Millet et al., 2007 Millet et al, 2012 Harawa et al., 2004 Koblin et al., 2006), although the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) ( Millet et al., 2007) and sexual mixing patterns and networks ( Tieu, 2012), are areas currently under investigation. In addition, there have been recent increases in the rate of new syphilis cases ( Pathela et al 2011), particularly among urban-dwelling MSM. Among young African American MSM, new HIV infections increased significantly by 48% from 2006 through 2009 ( Prejean et al., 2011). Young MSM are disproportionately represented among new HIV cases ( CDC, 2007 CDC, 2008 Hall et al., 2008) young MSM accounted for over a quarter of new HIV infections in 2009, a 34% increase from 2006 ( Prejean et al., 2011). Gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM) continue to be disproportionally affected by HIV in the United States (US) accounting for 61% of new cases in 2010 and 49% of prevalent cases in 2009 ( CDC, 2011 Prejean et al., 2011). across time and space, we identify pathways to risk and contribute to our understanding of how neighborhood space is experienced by gay men, adding to our ability to support young men as they emerge in place and to shape the social topography of urban areas. By analyzing accounts of emerging sexuality in neighborhood space, i.e.
In this paper, using data from twenty in-depth qualitative interviews with MSM living in four New York City (NYC) neighborhoods, we present accounts of neighborhood space, examining how space can both physically constitute and reinforce social systems of stratification and oppression, which in turn produce social disparities in sexual health outcomes.
African American and Latino MSM experience overlapping systems of oppression that may increase their risk of experiencing syndemic health outcomes. The intercorrelation of these adverse health outcomes among MSM, termed syndemics, has been theorized to be socially produced by a heterosexist social system that marginalizes lesbian, gay, bisexual, MSM and other sexual minorities. Analysts have noted that these racial/ethnic disparities in HIV among MSM exist within the wider context of sexual, mental and physical health disparities between MSM and heterosexuals. Young, African American and Latino gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM) are disproportionately represented among new HIV cases according to the most recent national surveillance statistics.