Apparently if you're gay, you aren't allowed to give blood...

[mountain_tiger]

Link to original post: Apparently if you're gay, you aren't allowed to give blood...



What's up with that? OK, so I was looking at the criteria on this link for donating blood (since I intend to when I'm old enough):

http://www.blood.co.uk/

Well, it doesn't outright say, 'No gays allowed', but it may as well do.

The question is, why? Surely as long as the person in question doesn't have AIDS or other sexually transmitted infections, then there's no problem with them giving blood? Do they think that if you're gay your blood is somehow dirty, or something? If they changed the rules to allow gays to give blood, it would allow more blood for people who desperately need it. They keep putting up posters and stuff saying, 'We need more blood donors.', yet they're tossing people who want to give blood aside just because they're gay.

I thought that homophobia like this was supposed to be illegal, anyway.

 

[:mad:]

They can deny you with any reasonable belief that your blood could be tainted. Being a homosexual (or at least having intercourse), they still believe you run the risk of hurting someone. It's not like you're being denied a right or anything. Don't sweat it.

 

[Steven Jackson Action Jackson]

I doubt this thread will stay open, your topics are often controversial :O.

That's not the entire reason this time.

 

[CRASHiC]

Homosexuals are at a greater risk of catching STDs that are blood releated for reasons I can not list on Smashboards.

Feel free to look it up, use your imagination, or find out for yourself sometime

 

[Teran]

More explicit content and contentious subjects? Gimme a break.