Factors affecting the social responses of a group of white South Africans to HIV/AIDS
Date
2008-03-28T11:22:28Z
Authors
Kohler, Shona
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Abstract
ABSTRACT: Worldwide, social responses to the HIV/AIDS epidemic have been largely
negative, with widespread revulsion to the illness manifesting in hatred,
discrimination, rejection, exclusion, marginalisation and fear of those infected,
such that witch-hunts, harsh criminal legislation, seclusion camps and other
extreme reactions to the illness have been seen (Cameron, 2005).
South Africa, despite having enacted a number of laws and policies to protect the
rights of people living with HIV/Aids, has not been immune from the negative
social response to the disease, with many HIV-positive South Africans having
recounted stories of how being HIV-positive has led to alienation from family and
friends, difficulties in accessing education and healthcare services, job loss,
emotion and verbal abuse, and even physical violence (Campbell, 2003; Preston-
Whyte, 2004; Stadler, 2004; Stein, 2004).
Negative social responses to HIV/AIDS can be seen as having a detrimental
effect on the ability of affected communities to deal with the challenges posed by
the disease. For example, fear of the shame and disgrace attached to HIV/AIDS
is often at the root of the failure of people to undergo testing, to reveal their HIVpositive
status, to seek out treatment and routinely take medication. Cases have
been cited of HIV-positive women who continue to breastfeed, despite the
knowledge that this may endanger their child, in order to avoid being identified as
having HIV, and of HIV-positive people who continue to engage in unprotected
sex, for the same reason (Campbell, 2003; Preston-Whyte, 2004).
Thus, it is important to tackle the challenge represented by negative social
responses to people infected with HIV/AIDS. In order to do so, it is necessary to
understand the nature, causes and consequences of responses to the disease.
Towards this, this research study has attempted to examine the factors shaping
negative social responses to HIV/AIDS among a selected group of white South
Africans.
Factors that emerged as influential include notions of blame, deviance and
morality, as well as pre-existing prejudices, particularly along racial lines.
Description
Keywords
HIV/AIDS, social responses