Challenging the Stigma and Discrimination of HIV/AIDS
What is Stigma and Discrimination?Stigma and
discrimination are barriers for being involved in a ministry of
caring. Stigma devalues and discredits someone in the eyes of
others. It reinforces social inequalities such as gender, race
and ethnicity, and sexuality. Stigma becomes deeply rooted. Some
religious thought on sin can suggest HIV infection is a
punishment for doing something wrong. Placing blame is a key
ingredient to sustaining stigma. When one group attributes blame
onto another group that is “different,” distancing and absolving
themselves from the problem occurs and hinders participation in
a caring ministry.
Discrimination happens when stigma exists and results in
certain types of actions. Exclusions and restrictions affecting
people living with HIV occur when stigma exists and is acted
upon by others, even if there is no justification for the
action. Discrimination of a person living with HIV can happen in
family and community settings through ostracizing, shunning and
avoiding everyday contact, verbal harassment, physical violence,
verbal discrediting and blaming, gossip, and denial of
traditional funeral rites.
Discrimination can happen in institutional settings such as
the workplace, health–care services, prison, educational
institutions and social–welfare settings. A person living with
HIV may receive a reduced standard of health care and breach of
confidentiality by health care workers. Denial of employment in
the work place or denial of entry into a school setting are
other examples of institutional discrimination.
When discrimination happens at a national level, it reflects
stigma that has been officially sanctioned through laws,
policies, and practices. It can become a vicious cycle as it
leads to increased stigmatization and legitimizes
discrimination. It also occurs through omission. This happens
when there is an absence of, or failure to implement, laws,
policies, and practices that safeguard the rights of people
living with HIV.
How to Challenge Stigma and Discrimination
Whether implementing projects, programs, and activities directly
or by more indirectly creating supportive and enabling
environment, the stigma and discrimination related to HIV can be
challenged. Following are a few indicators of success in a
variety of settings:
- increased willingness of relatives and community members
to care for HIV–positive people;
- increased willingness of community members to volunteer in
HIV prevention and AIDS care programs;
- increased access to, and uptake of, treatment;
- increased willingness on the part of health workers to
deal constructively with people living with HIV;
- increased openness of HIV positive employees about their
status;
- increased willingness of employees to work alongside
people known to be living with HIV; and
- supportive HIV workplace policies and practice.
Information presented on this web page was taken from the
UNAIDS publication, HIV–Related Stigma, Discrimination and Human
Rights Violations. For more in–depth study and information, see
this publication and www.unaids.org.
