Tag: HIV Stigma
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HIV Stigma Is Not About Ignorance
The Day I Realized HIV Stigma Is Not About Ignorance — It’s About Fear. There was a time I believed something that many people still believe today: that HIV stigma exists because people simply don’t know enough. It sounded logical. If people understood how HIV is transmitted… If they knew about treatment… If they realized that people living with HIV can…
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Why HIV Stigma Still Exists in 2026 — And What Leaders Are Getting Wrong
We have ARVs. We have awareness campaigns. We have global funding (e.g. PEPFAR), international conferences (e.g. IAS), and decades of research. So why does HIV stigma still feel so alive in 2026? Why are people still whispering? Why are conversations still happening in corners instead of in the open? Why do so many people living…
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What It Means to Be Born With HIV
When most people think about HIV, they imagine someone becoming infected later in life. The story they picture often involves risky behavior, illness, and eventually treatment. But for thousands of people around the world, HIV is not something that arrived later in life. They were born with it. For people born with HIV, the virus is not…
