Bless Their Hearts : HIV/AIDS Related Stigma in the Southern United States

When AIDS was first discovered in the United States in 1981 it was a death sentence; a lot has changed in thirty years. Even with the tremendous growth in every aspect of HIV/AIDS prevention, there are still millions of people living with the disease and thousands more who contract it every year. The southern United States is the area in our country that is currently being hit the hardest by the epidemic. Why do all of these new infections exist? What is stopping us from forming an AIDS-free generation in the next few years? The answer is simple: stigma. Stigma, particularly is the conservative South, has become the biggest challenge to combat in the fight against HIV/AIDS. This research covers the different forms of stigma that are present in The South, why they exist, ways to combat each stigma, and what removing these stigmas could mean for the future of HIV/AIDS