The main point of this speech, was Mary Fisher’s demand for an end to the silence and prejudice surrounding HIV/AIDS and to inform about the spread of infection. She begins the speech with strong influential words of willingness to inform her listeners. This bears the message of how important and personal the
Gould, S. J. (1978). The Terrifying Normalcy of AIDS. In L. H. Peterson, The Norton Reader (pp. 754-757). New York: W. W. Norton and Company.
Human Immunodeficiency Virus has left a deep imprint on citizens affected today. The first recognition of AIDS occurred in the 1980’s and informed Americans to be more careful of their sexually activity. Some symptoms were similar to the common cold but were taken seriously after it lead to deaths. People assumed that HIV was spread by sitting on toilet seats or even hugging. The truth was that HIV couldn’t be spread as easily as everyone thought. HIV could only be transmitted through sexual contact, or needle use from an infected individual. This virus gradually became a scare especially when the common antibiotics failed. Later on scientists slowly realized that when a person is infected, they are infected with HIV which leads to AIDS. By the end of 1990, AIDS was well known throughout the world and a drug was found to slow down its symptoms. From the 1980’s to present day, doctors expanded their knowledge on this epidemic and hope to treat AIDS patents.
Infection by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the biologic agent of the AIDS syndrome, has emerged as one of the most important threats to public health in the United States and its incidence is rapidly increasing. A highly lethal disease with over 70% of AIDS patients dying within 2 years of diagnosis. This disease has already become the leading cause of death in men aged 25-44 and women aged 25-34. The Centers for Disease Control have for the purpose of epidemiological surveillance, defined AIDS as a "reliably diagnosed disease that is at least moderately indicative of an underlying cellular immunodeficiency in a person who has no underlying cause of cellular immunodeficiency nor any other cause of reduced resistance reported to be associated with that disease." [5]
Fifteen years ago the word AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) was barely used in the United States. Today, it's on the cover of every newspaper, and parents and kids discuss it regularly in the household. It is no longer considered someone else's problem; it is now everyone's problem. Not a day goes by that a person doesn't worry about AIDS. The fear of AIDS is heightened only by the fact that there is no cure.
The history of HIV and AIDS is peppered with similarities to other epidemics seen throughout history. However, in many ways HIV/AIDS presented new ways of looking at and dealing with disease in our modern culture. This essay will examine these two separate avenues of thought, and will help to illustrate both the individuality of the epidemic, and its’ uniformity.
Each author explains their views on the AIDS debate; they discuss the importance of AIDS research, the numbers of AIDS patients and their cost, and benefits of research to other fields. Freundlich and Fumento agree that it is important to study AIDS, because it is a threat to young and old alike, opposed to cancer and heart disease being mainly targeted at older people. But Fumento thinks that AIDS spending should be realistic, not just tailored to fit the needs of protesters and demanding organizations, simply to keep them quiet. They also both agree that AIDS is a new and upcoming epidemic that is becoming more of a problem with each passing year. Each realizes that the disease is no longer only confined to drug users and homosexuals. Thurman states that, "Frequently they are in poverty and have abusive relationships, and often have mental problems on to of that-the list goes on and on. So our clients today are much more complicated to treat" (Thurman 1). However, they do not agree on its importance compared to other diseases and medical problems in the United States. I feel that AIDS is a very important disease to be worrying about in today's society, because it is hurting all ages not just the older groups of people.
The general population of America today is having great difficulty facing a very frightening situation. Unfortunately, rather than seek information which might lessen anxiety about the subject, many people just choose to ignore the problem. Unwillingness to deal with a problem, however, only makes matters worse, and in this case, avoidance often leads to unrestrained disgust and hatred for those members of our society who are directly affected by the problem--our unfortunate citizens who are suffering with AIDS. Other members of our society, on the other hand, want to learn about AIDS, first to overcome their fears and then to replace the general lack of knowledge with understanding. These people realize that a whole generation of Americans is dying from the disease, and they know that those infected with AIDS must be treated as people who are victims of the disease, not as the disease itself. Nevertheless, a major problem exists in educating people about AIDS because, as Donna and Michael Lenaghan report, "controversy and politics surround the content, description, methodology, and strategy for any education initiatives" (17). Still, information exists in abundance, and much has been learned about AIDS since it was first widely reported in 1981. We now know what causes the disease. And, perhaps more importantly, we know how to prevent its spread (Colman 8). AIDS is not easily contracted. As communicable diseases go, AIDS is relatively difficult to catch as it does not easily find its way into the human body. In fact, it is far less contagious than the common cold, measles, or even gonorrhea. When armed with reliable information, a person can almost always avoid the infection. With such knowledge about AIDS available, it is not only important and necessary to share it, but it is also preventative. There is hope that with education will come caution, not the caution of fear, but the caution that knowledge brings. Many have come to realize that "in the absence of a cure or vaccine for AIDS, the most enduring and economical intervention is education" (Lenaghan and Lenaghan 17). It seems obvious, therefore, that effective implementation of AIDS educational programs will stop the spread of the disease among our high-risk groups: children, teenagers, and young women of child-bearing age.
Kalichman, S. C. (2003). The inside story on AIDS: experts answer your questions. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
... past, people can still learn from the epidemic. From studying the HIV/AIDS epidemic people learn that ignorance and fear can drive the response to the disease. People can also learn that while the LGBT community is predominantly affected by AIDS, everyone can work to keep HIV/AIDS at bay. After learning that while a response to HIV/AIDS came eventually, it was delayed because of the groups it affected, one must think about the lives of the people in and out of the LGBT community that could have been saved. What would have happened if the president mentioned the word ‘AIDS’ before 1986? If governments around the world funded AIDS research sooner and more aggressively would less people have died a gruesome, horrific death? It is important to study the AIDS epidemic because if people don’t know what happened, people will repeat the mistakes of the generations before.
Although antiretroviral treatment has reduced the toll of AIDS related deaths, access to therapy is not universal, and the prospects of curative treatments and an effective vaccine are uncertain. Thus, AIDS will continue to pose a significant public health threat for decades to come.