What The Pox? | Investigating the monkeypox outbreak

Is the USA leading the way? From epicenter to action

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Episode notes

Dr. Demetre Daskalakis is like the Chris Witty of monkeypox in the US - slides and all. But can you imagine anyone 'official' in the UK talking about buttholes, fetish gear or anal while responding to a health crisis? 


That's what Daskalakis is doing, and he says the language he's persuaded the CDC to use is working better than anything they've used before. In official CDC guides about the virus, expect to see language like anal, oral and buttholes. Which, as NAM Aidsmap director Matthew Hodson notes earlier in the show, works because it reflects how gay and bi men talk. 


In the global north outbreak, monkeypox primarily affects sexually active queer, gay, bi and men who have sex with men. But numbers are now declining after a sharp spike, with nNw York named the epicenter of the global north outbreak. 


However, without action, it could take root and become endemic in more countries, joining those in Central and West Africa who've struggled with the disease for many years. 


Daskalakis is acutely aware of this. He's using his long history of sexual health work to get vaccines into arms. Indeed, this history has even seen him do HIV outreach off his own back. All of that and more this week as we work out just what the pox is going on, in America...


This week's guests are:

  • Dr. Demetre Daskalakis - White House Deputy Co-ordinator for Monkeypox
  • Joseph Osmundson - American biophysicist and writer


Listen to understand:

  • The press headlines that painted him as a monkeypox ‘super spreader’ and satanist for being a gay man with tattoos
  • The frank language he’s persuaded federal departments to use
  • Why he’s taking vaccines to the places where those most affected are, including fetish events and bathhouses


Resources:


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