Gender and AIDS stigma

Abstract

In the last decade, greater attention has been paid to AIDS stigma as a social process, including how stigma both reflects and reproduces entrenched power dynamics. While gender relations have been recognized as part of these processes, the links between stigma and gender power dynamics have not been systematically examined. This chapter presents a novel conceptual framework that links the structure of AIDS stigma to gender as a social structure. This framework helps clarify why women and men often experience AIDS stigma in different ways and the role gender relations play in these processes. Understanding these complex social dynamics will allow us to integrate a more robust gender analysis into AIDS prevention programs. This is an especially pressing issue today given advances in using antiretroviral drug therapy to reduce HIV transmission. For such biomedical approaches to fulfill their promise, they need to incorporate an awareness of how gender is intertwined with AIDS stigma.