NASHVILLE, Tenn. – A state senator who made national headlines for his controversial comments on how the AIDS virus was spread addressed those comments on MorningLine on Thursday morning.
Senator Stacey Campfield, who represents the Knoxville area, was a guest on the show that airs on NewsChannel 5+.
He was recently quoted as saying the AIDS virus was spread by a homosexual man who had sex with a monkey. He was asked to explain his comments on Thursday.
"I admit I'm not a gay/AIDS historian. There's no known proof, definitively, how AIDS was transmitted from a monkey to a human. Lots of people have different theories, there's multiple theories," Campfield said.
Joseph Interrante, with the AIDS education organization, Nashville Cares, was also a guest on the show.
He said the most important thing to focus on is educating the public.
"So if there's any question in terms of history, get tested. Talk to your partner. Make the appropriate changes, whatever those may be, and whatever are consistent with your own values and belief system. There's no one way necessarily. And if you do that, then you're taking the appropriate steps to help us move toward an AIDS free generation," said Interrante.
Campfield's "Don't Say Gay" bill is now moving from the Senate to the House. If passed, it would limit what can be taught about homosexuality in public schools.
Morningline can be seen Monday through Thursday each weekday at 8 a.m. on NewsChannel 5+.
