[#HashCon2012- Positive SHE-roes: Strong Women Working Toward
an AIDS Free Generation]
-
Dee Dee Myers, former White
House Press Secretary during the Clinton Administration
There is a theory
in sociology that empowering the most vulnerable within a society allows for the
most effective and sustainable change. Women are considered among the most vulnerable
groups affected by HIV/AIDS.
It is noteworthy
that a report on gender and the challenges of HIV/AIDS published by the World
Health Organization almost 20 years ago highlights a number of issues which
still remain pertinent today. It noted that “one of the most striking features
of the response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic…is how few of the policies and
programmes we have developed relate to women’s life situations”*.
The report also addresses a number of challenges, among them:
- Women are physiologically more vulnerable to HIV than men. AIDS death rates are highest for women in their 20s.
- As society’s traditional care-givers, women carry the main psychosocial and physical burdens of AIDS care. However they have the least control over and access to the resources needed to cope effectively.
- Many ideas and expectations regarding male and female (sexual) behaviour neither encourage men to act responsibly and protect themselves and their partners from infection nor stimulate women to challenge notions of female inferiority and social structures which keep them vulnerable.
As I write this on the advent of World Aids Day 2012, I am reminded of the “Smart, Sexy & Wise” condom ads done by Jamaica’s National HIV/STI Programme (watch it here). Clearly the programme administrators saw the value of targetting women in the promotion of responsible sexual behaviour. The ad however depicts females buying what can be assumed to be male condoms. A step further would be to encourage women to use a female condom or a microbicide. Such a strategy recognizes that the male condom is a male-controlled technology and it takes account of the imbalance in power in sexual interactions that makes it difficult for women to negotiate condom use by providing women with an alternate, woman-initiated technology.
Women needed to
be empowered. But what are the real effects of such efforts? Global non-profit
organizations such as CARE believe that the women’s empowerment is key to ending a number of global
problems including the spread of HIV/AIDS. Women are central to the family and
therefore impact significantly on their wider communities based on the
decisions they make. The health of the female population is critical to the
development of a country as this directly affects the health and well-being of communities due to the role women play in the family- the building block of a community.
So, what next? The
23rd Anniversary of the World Aids Day marks a significant milestone
for the event worldwide and the strides it continues to make in raising the level of
awareness about the fight against HIV/AIDS. However, it is critical that the
role of women be taken into greater consideration by policymakers and national
stakeholders if the disease is to be prevented all-together. It is through this empowerment that a greater change can be effected.
Peace & love.
xoxo
Keeta :)
Peace & love.
xoxo
Keeta :)
*“Facing the Challenges
of HIV/AIDS and STDS; A Gender-Based Response” published by the World Health
Organization, 1995. Available at: http://data.unaids.org/topics/gender/facingchallenges_en.pdf
