Fatal lack of knowledge

Published 9:00 pm Sunday, June 20, 2004

EVERETT – Abelardo Lopez didn’t seem like a man who wanted to die.

A few months ago, Lopez, 22, was trying to make a better future for himself in the United States, taking English classes and often volunteering at Familias Unidas, a local Latino resource center. He left Everett in January to pick oranges in Florida so he could keep sending money to his poor family in rural Oaxaca, Mexico.

In March he discovered he’d contracted herpes, genital warts or another treatable sexually transmitted disease (STD).

Police believe Lopez felt ashamed and feared the disease had ruined his life. He killed himself in late April.

STDs humiliate and embarrass people of all backgrounds.

But the stigma is especially strong among Latin American immigrants, who often face additional cultural and educational pressures, experts say.

“There’s still a taboo about things like this,” said Elizabeth Ramirez, program coordinator for Familias Unidas and a friend of Lopez. “You don’t talk about your body. You don’t talk about personal things. You don’t talk about sex.”

Lopez’s suicide spurred Ramirez to work with the Snohomish Health District to develop an STD and HIV education project especially for Latin American immigrants, who might otherwise not know where to turn. The program would be the first in the county.

“It’s too late for him,” said Maria Burgess, the Familias Unidas youth coordinator. “But I’m sure he’s not the only one in this type of situation. Maybe because of his passing, we can do something to prevent this from happening to others.”

First step is education

Like most Mexican immigrants, Lopez probably knew little about STDs, Ramirez said. Many health clinics in Mexico don’t offer information on STDs. The few that do might be hours away from remote villages such as San Antonio, Oaxaca, where Lopez grew up, Burgess said.

Instead, many people rely on rumors or assume the worst when they contract an STD, said Carlina Myers, health education program manager for Seamar Community Health Centers. The group runs a Marysville clinic and 13 others in western Washington serving Hispanics.

“Fallacies and myth run rampant in our culture on STDs, particularly among people with low literacy levels,” Myers said.

Lopez took a step that many with STDs don’t. He sought treatment March 15 at Arcadia Family Health Care Center, said DeSoto County, Fla., sheriff’s Detective Maria Trevino. His cousin, Jaime Margarito, said Lopez had genital sores that he believed were incurable.

Such sores usually mean herpes or genital warts, said Dr. Greg Sanders of Seamar’s Marysville clinic. Medical treatment can control these common diseases. Sores also can indicate syphilis, which is easily cured.

Mickey Presha runs the nonprofit health clinic in Florida where Lopez sought help. Federal privacy laws prevented him from talking about Lopez’s case. But, he said, everyone who gets an STD test at the clinic receives professional counseling.

No one knows how Abelardo Lopez interpreted whatever diagnosis he received at the clinic. He was last seen April 22. Eleven days later, two men found his body. His death was officially ruled a suicide.

Margarito told police that Lopez was “embarrassed and ashamed” he had an STD and didn’t want his parents to find out.

Fear of disappointment

That Lopez so desperately wanted to hide his condition from his parents is not surprising, said Judith Puzon, preventive health services director for Seamar.

Members of traditionally close-knit Latin American families often shelter and protect each other, she said. But children also feel great pressure to not disappoint their parents, who often sacrifice much so their kids can live more prosperous lives than they did.

“I could understand … how he didn’t want to contribute to putting more stress on his family,” Puzon said. “I’m sure the family could have absorbed it. Unfortunately, he didn’t give them that option.”

At Familias Unidas’ Everett offices, Lopez likely walked right past Spanish-language pamphlets on STDs. About every two weeks one of the pamphlets disappears.

Rarely does anyone see a person taking one, Ramirez said. She wonders how many people never picked up a pamphlet because they were too embarrassed.

She also ponders how to attract people to the STD education sessions she is planning.

The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services might have some ideas.

For years, Los Angeles’ Latino outreach program has often mixed STD information with topics ranging from immunizations to workplace safety in public forums and in pamphlets.

That eases people’s nervousness that they’ll be seen picking up STD information, said Dr. Peter Kerndt, program director.

Another tactic is to use the county’s mobile clinics to occasionally offer STD tests along with other types of medical exams.

When health workers talk one-on-one about STDs, they first establish trust, Kerndt said.

For example, they might go several times to a garment factory or day-laborer pick-up site. Over time, people get more comfortable talking about sexually transmitted diseases. And by getting to know the workers, STD educators know how to approach each individual.

It also helps that the health workers are usually Spanish-speaking Hispanics, he said. “They understand the culture, speak the language and come out of the same experience,” Kerndt said.

Everyone involved in the program realizes that some people might never talk to them about STDs, he said. But they might get up the courage to anonymously call a telephone number printed on a pamphlet.

Burgess often wonders what was going through Lopez’s mind after he discovered he had an sexually transmitted disease and how his death could have been prevented. She’s convinced that a countywide STD education program would help others like him.

“Abelardo must have been in an unimaginable amount of pain from the time he found out he had an STD until he took his life,” Burgess said.

“I just wish I could have somehow made it known to him that if he had questions we would have been glad to give him information,” she said, “that we don’t judge people, and that we care.”

Reporter David Olson: 425-339-3452 or dolson@heraldnet.com.

How you can help

Tax-deductible donations for the Lopez family can be sent to Familias Unidas, 6315 Fleming St., Suite B, Everett, WA 98203.

Make the check out to Familias Unidas and put “To Lopez family” on the memo line of the check.

You can call in donations with your credit card at 425-513-2880. Your card will be charged to Lutheran Community Services Northwest, the parent organization for Familias Unidas.

How you can help

Tax-deductible donations for the Lopez family can be sent to Familias Unidas, 6315 Fleming St., Suite B, Everett, WA 98203.

Make the check out to Familias Unidas and put “To Lopez family” on the memo line of the check.

You can call in donations with your credit card at 425-513-2880. Your card will be charged to Lutheran Community Services Northwest, the parent organization for Familias Unidas.