Is no one else raged? Because my blood is boiling. I have rare blood (-0) and I love telling people that I do as it makes me feel very special. The special thing about my blood is that it can be accepted by any other blood group which exists. However, I can only accept -0 blood. For me it means that I could be helping so many people with my blood but especially the people like me who can only accept my type of blood. I used to give blood often and I really hope I managed to help someone. That is until I came out and my blood apparently became poisonous. Seriously why are people allowed to get away with such blatant discrimination? 

I must not be so harsh though .The new law means that gay men who have not had sex in a year can give blood. I’m sorry but now I have to give up sex for a year to do someone else a favour. I couldn’t give up sex for a year if a distant family member’s life depended on it so the NHS has no chance. 

Where is Rosa Parks when you need her? This feels like a law which should have been eradicated at the beginning of the development of gay rights and not now. Not when we are getting married (sort of), having children and are so over represented in the television even I am getting bored. You can have Allan Carr of Graham Norton not both ! (Team Allan).

However although people may be disgusted, where is the rage? I will admit that I am terribly lazy but if there was a blood march or a flower power protest on the cards I would be there with my little rainbow flag. I know people do care and although giving blood is not anyone’s favourite activity it is only fair that we get prodded and then get some orange juice and a biscuit just like everyone else.

To make the situation worse the NHS has the balls to send me monthly letters telling me that I am an awful person for not giving blood and telling me that I need to attend the next drive. They mention that my blood is rare and how I could save lives by donating. Talk about twisting the knife a little bit. I feel like just doing what many do and just not ticking the little box which asks if you have sex with men. But that would mean hiding who I am and that’s not for me. 

I try to be calm. I was born into a world that I am sure some older gay men would have loved to have. Luckily for me some of the UK’s gay people are some of the smartest (not me) and most powerful (definitely not me) people in the world. The older/wiser generation changed everything that gay people had ever known in 20 years and we owe them everything. However the task is long from over and the Blood ban needs to go.

Ben Joslin