It feels as if I shall be going off in several directions during this entry, so I shall beg you to forgive my wandering in advance.
AIDS, HIV, Immune Deficiency Virus. All one, all the same.
I would like you to imagine a place of beauty, of mountains, deserts, rainforests and grasslands. Think of a place in which animals have areas where they can run free. A place that ingrains itself into the lives of those who live there, making them one of her own. Imagine a place where the people are warm and friendly. A place where people who live in rural areas will share the last of what they have with strangers. A place where people will openly welcome you into their homes and treat you as one of their own. A place rich and diverse in its culture, its history and its natural resources. Now imagine that this place is a continent, and her name is Africa. This is the world I grew up in, amongst warm generous people who shared their lives, their stories, and their homes with me. This is a place where HIV has spread like wildfire, ravaging the continent I grew up in.
There are currently 28 million people living with AIDS through out Africa, many of them children. Many of these people will not have the benefit of medication and many of these children will not live past their childhood. Africa is considered to be one of the poorest parts of the world, I can attest to that fact. Though the people share a land rich in natural resources the conditions they live in are not; many people living in rural areas live in shantytowns. Villages made up of tin and scrap metal siding, cardboard boxes and plastic tents. Many of them will travel great distances for work, leaving family behind as they head for the bigger city to earn some money. This factor coupled with others may be one of the many contributing elements as to why HIV is so wide spread in Africa.
But this is not what I wanted this entry to be about. I do not want to discuss the reasons or factors as to why Africa or any other continent, country, town or village for that matter has people infected with HIV. Nor do I want to go on a statistical rampage and talk about numbers. I would rather talk about the people, about who they are and who they were. Most of them were young vibrant people much like you and me. People with dreams and aspirations. People who loved, people with families and perhaps some with children of their own. Many of them have the same fears, worries and hopes as you and I. They are also all individuals with their own creativity, their own view of life their own thoughts and ideals. If this is a truth then why is it that some of us still fear people with AIDS? Why is it that some of us look down on these people and feel that they have gotten their just reward, that they deserve this disease? Why is it that some of us feel these are people who deserve to be treated with dread and placed apart from our society? How is it that some of us can still say, not in my school, not in my community?
If we are all human beings, then we should all be treated with the same respect, courtesy and basic human decency. I think on this day what I would like to urge you most to do, is think of the people who have AIDS, learn more about them, about their lives and who they are. Learn from them and get to know them.
Posted by munin at November 30, 2001 10:03 PM