AIDS the Secret, Silent, Suffering Shame
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome commonly known as AIDS is a disease that has been stigmatized in the society. People suffering from this disease are often judged harshly since it is commonly contracted by having unprotected sex (Hammonds 270-271). One could say Aids is a moral judgement.
People living with Aids are often viewed differently in the society since they are seen to be immoral. Many fear to reveal their Aids status due to the judgment in the society (Hammonds 268). As days go by, people are changing their perception about the infected HIV people due to the vast knowledge that is out there about Aids. In the past days, people did not want to interact nor live with infected people for the fear of contracting the disease.
The YouTube video "A different world-Aids" is about a girl who reveals her status in class and how her classmates respond to the confession. The essay Aids the secret, silent, suffering shame is about how black women suffer in silent for the fear of being shamed in the society because they have Aids. The essay highlights the plight of a black woman living with Aids via both mentioned works; which aim to show that HIV/AIDS should not be seen as a moral judgment; instead people should strive to educate others on how to help the infected people.The video "A different world-Aids" is from the sitcom A Different world where the students were supposed to write and read their eulogy.
When Josie is presenting her eulogy, she reveals to the class that she has Aids which leaves the other students astonished. The reaction of her classmates is different. One of the students reveals that she would have to move dormitories another one does not think the disease is for women. The reactions elicited to show that people did not have information about Aids. Some of the students start to look at her differently after the revelation. From the essay Aids secret, silent, suffering shame Hammond talks about the black woman in the society and how they live in secrecy about their HIV/AIDS status (Hammonds 271).
According to Hammonds (2009), black women are portrayed to be the good women and wives to their husbands. Most of these women remain faithful to their husbands although the husbands engage in extramarital affairs. The wives, however, do not tell anyone only to find out they have contracted HIV/AIDS from their husbands. After Josie reveals her HIV/AIDS status, one of the students says the disease is not for women. This shows that they do not have enough information on the same and that men are the only ones that can contact the disease. The essay also talks about how the black woman is on the forefront fighting the Aids epidemics without the help of the black institutions (Hammonds 278).
From the video, there are some issues that can be identified such as lack of information about HIV/AIDS. In the classroom, only one girl seems to have …
