Handling HIV is a challenge for anyone, but for immigrants—who must battle cultural chasms, bigotry and complicated laws that can lead to deportation—HIV is a totally tangled web. Benefits are available to noncitizens, but how is an immigrant to know what resources they can (or can’t) access? It’s not like the INS has an HIV hotline. Fortunately, an updated version of HIV and Immigrants: A Manual for AIDS Service Providers (published by the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild) has some answers. While designed specifically for service providers, its comprehensive and detailed presentation of issues will be useful to immigrants.

The booklet deals with a wide variety of immigration issues, with one of its four sections devoted to the eligibility of HIV positive noncitizens for public benefits—particularly important because of the new immigration and welfare laws. For those fearing or facing deportation, HIV and Immigrants (along with a good lawyer) can help improve your victory odds.

For a free copy, contact the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, P.O. Box 426182, San Francisco, CA 94142; phone: 415.487.3080, fax: 415.487.3089.