Many African Americans in Wilmington are not accessing the city's needle exchange, even though they make up 67 percent of state residents with HIV/AIDS.

Wilmington's five-year pilot exchange has been running since February 2007. The program, which uses a van to distribute needles at locations across the city, was approved by the Legislature in 2006 as a way to reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS. Program participants receive state-issued ID cards that allow them to exchange used syringes for clean ones, exempting them from drug paraphernalia laws.

State figures show that just 10 percent of the exchange's 302 clients are black, compared with 75 percent for whites and 13 percent for Hispanics.

The low rate of black participation, some say, is due to distrust of the police and the public health system. "We have a reason to be paranoid," said the Rev. Derrick Johnson, who serves on Delaware's oversight committee for the exchange. "That being said, we -- as a program -- have to make a more passionate and enthusiastic effort to get this accepted in the black community."

Brandywine Counseling, the Wilmington-based drug treatment agency that runs the exchange, deliberately operates it in a semi-secretive way to appeal to addicts and avoid upsetting residents who may not want the van in their communities. Program Director Bahsa Silverman said she hopes the longer the van is on the street, the more black addicts will become comfortable with it.

Silverman said she is working on a plan to recruit the program's current clients to spread the word at shooting galleries and drug houses. Johnson suggested Brandywine expand the van's location stops and attend more community meetings to build support.

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