aids - Jezebel

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How Young Is Too Young To Teach Kids About AIDS?
AIDS Leading Cause Of Death For Women Worldwide
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BytheSea
11/13/09

In reply to How Young Is Too Young To Teach Kids About AIDS?
Kami may be controversial for a westeran audience, but in parts of Africa, the pediatric AIDS rate can go as high as 50%. AIDs is not an "issue" there, it's a daily reality. #sesamestreet
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whynotshesaid
11/12/09

In reply to How Young Is Too Young To Teach Kids About AIDS?
I knew about AIDS when I was about eight or nine years old. Two words: Ryan. White. #sesamestreet
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you've got red on you
11/12/09

@whynotshesaid: That's exactly what came to mind for me, too. His story was fascinating and sad to me. I grew up in Bloomington, Indiana, so it was also extremely close to home--and caused the first stirrings of disgust with the intolerance of the bible belt. I have no issue with an HIV-positive muppet; I think it's a wonderful way to teach children acceptance and tolerance. #sesamestreet
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Red-headed bookworm
11/12/09

@whynotshesaid: Me too. I lived in Indianapolis as a kid, EVERYONE knew about Ryan White there. #sesamestreet
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whynotshesaid
11/12/09

@Red-headed bookworm: @you've got red on you: I actually lived in Utah at the time, and a lot of kids didn't know anything about AIDS, but those who did were pretty ignorant and mean about it. It just wasn't something that was discussed, you know? Plus our educators were too busy sending home fliers warning our parents about drug dealers who were hanging around playgrounds and pushing LSD on Mickey Mouse stickers to spend any time clarifying things related to the "gay disease."

But I used to sneak my stepmom's People magazines, and I watched the made-for-TV movie with Lukas Haas when it came out, and I was so upset by the whole thing. Not just that he had this fatal illness through no fault of his own, but that other people were so cruel about it. I mean, I was old enough to know that people could be real dicks to each other - I knew about slavery and the civil rights movement and sexism and sex abuse and ugly divorces and custody battles - but even so, the language used to discuss people with AIDS was shocking to me.
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Edited by whynotshesaid at 11/12/09 10:34 AM whynotshesaid was starred whynotshesaid was unstarred

TubOfTaft
11/12/09

@Red-headed bookworm: They even have a section of the Children's Museum in Indy dedicated to him - with his actual bedroom furniture and all. #sesamestreet
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Lin-Z [linguist on duty]
11/11/09

In reply to How Young Is Too Young To Teach Kids About AIDS?
A while back I watched a documentary about Sesame Street and how they launch the series and localize it in different countries. And I have to say that lambasting an HIV-positive puppet for the South African series is just ignorant. A huge percentage of children have HIV/AIDS and/or have lost a family member to it. Introducing this character is a way for kids to know what's going on. This is a very real issue there. #sesamestreet
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Lin-Z [linguist on duty]
11/11/09

@Lin-Z [linguist on duty]: This isn't the part about South Africa, but here's a bit of the film anyway #sesamestreet
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KATE!
11/11/09

In reply to How Young Is Too Young To Teach Kids About AIDS?
if sesame street really wanted to push the gay agenda, Bert would get aids from a late-night cruise in central park and pass it along to Ernie. That would be a great scandal. #sesamestreet
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DutchessOfDork
11/11/09

In reply to How Young Is Too Young To Teach Kids About AIDS?
Kami probably got it from her mother as I read somewhere that mothers have about 1 in 4 chance of passing it on to their children if they give birth through the birth canal.
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Edited by DutchessOfDork at 11/11/09 7:47 PM DutchessOfDork was starred DutchessOfDork was unstarred

Penny
11/11/09

In reply to How Young Is Too Young To Teach Kids About AIDS?
Personally, there is no "too" young, and I think this character is great. One of my best friend's hubby is HIV+ and it's important for kids (hell, grown ups) to understand that 1) this is not just a developing world illness and 2) it does not mean you're going to drop dead any second. Oh, and it's not contagious. Seriously, it still baffles me how some people retract.

Anything that promotes tolerance for something that has been so stigmatized is a positive in my book.
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Edited by Penny at 11/11/09 7:12 PM Penny was starred Penny was unstarred

Elaken
11/11/09

@Penny: Not only tolerance but actually knowing anything about it. I had a human sexuality teacher at a community college tell the class that HIV can skip generations. A woman can have it, not give it to her child, but then the grandkid can be born with it because apparently he thinks it becomes part of the DNA. Like, wtf. I was the only one to call him on it. The amount of misconceptions I have come across when it deals with HIV/AIDS is just staggering. #sesamestreet
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la.donna.pietra
11/11/09

@Elaken: My sixth-grade teacher told my class that AIDS came from people having sex with monkeys. Really. 1987 was a weird time, but still. #sesamestreet
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Elaken
11/11/09

@la.donna.pietra: I still hear people say that and it shows such a limited knowledge about how things work. #sesamestreet
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wannabegossipgirl
11/11/09

@Elaken: This is actually possible, any university microbiology/virology classes will tell you that HIV can be intgrated into the host genome (AKA human DNA) and remain in a dormant like state called latency. It probably wasn't passed through the mother's DNA because HIV doesnt tend to attack gamete cells, they go for immune cells which could have been given to the child in many possible ways, through the placenta, or the breast milk. And then the child carried the latent form throughout her life and then in the grandchild the virus decided to manifest itself. #sesamestreet
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thechibster63
11/12/09

@la.donna.pietra: Kids in my class ask me about this all the time. #sesamestreet
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la.donna.pietra
11/12/09

@wannabegossipgirl: Your definition of "latency" seems to be unsupported by the scientific community:

[pathmicro.med.sc.edu] #sesamestreet
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la.donna.pietra
11/12/09

@thechibster63: I suspect that it's some sort of conservative meme that won't go away. It's certainly very popular online. #sesamestreet
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thechibster63
11/12/09

@la.donna.pietra: Sometimes they tell me that the government created AIDS to kill black people. To which I reply, "Then why did gay white men have it first in the U.S.?" #sesamestreet
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la.donna.pietra
11/12/09

@thechibster63: Gay white men didn't have it first. Gay white men were diagnosed with it first. Big difference. #sesamestreet
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wannabegossipgirl
11/12/09

@la.donna.pietra: The section from that website about post-integration latency is says that the HIV genome is, in some cases, integrated into the host genome. Maybe I was a little unclear with my definition of latency? Latency in viruses is just when a virus establishes a domant state in a host cell, some viruses are incorportated into the genome and some just lie within the cytoplasm, but in the website article it is talking about clinical latency which is different. I just wanted to make a point that it could be possible for someone to have it, their kid "not have it" (latent virus stage) and then the grandkid have it, although this is probably very common, and that the HIV genome being integrated into the human genome is not some absurd idea (look at retrovirus, almost 10% of our human genome has ancient retroviral DNA). I'm not an expert (yet haha) by any means, I've only taken a few courses on this stuff. #sesamestreet
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thechibster63
11/12/09

@la.donna.pietra: I understand this, but try explaining it to high-schoolers. #sesamestreet
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jemandtheholograms
11/11/09

In reply to How Young Is Too Young To Teach Kids About AIDS?
Oh Traditional Values Coalition--you never stop amazing me in your ability to not get it. The issue with Kami presumable has nothing to do with homosexuality since she's a 5 year old orphan--presumably infected by her now deceased mother! #sesamestreet
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ladyfalcon is skin deep
11/11/09

@jemandtheholograms: Another "what?" moment was when they said that HIV is primarily spread by homosexuals in the U.S. Now, I know in my area (DC) this falls under the Super Not True category, and while I'm not certain I would be willing to bet that it's not true elsewhere, either. But the big moment of confusion is, What the fuck does the US rates and means of infection have to do with the presentation of an HIV+ muppet to South African kids? #sesamestreet
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jemandtheholograms
11/11/09

@ladyfalcon is skin deep: Anything they can do to hate on the gays and prevent the spread of knowledge is good in their book. #sesamestreet
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jigglyball
11/11/09

In reply to How Young Is Too Young To Teach Kids About AIDS?
My dad did HIV research when I was a little kid, and by the time I was 10, I'd gone to several HIV research conferences, awareness events, pride parades, etc. My dad never hid the "realities of the virus" from me, and I don't remember ever feeling traumatized (The Hot Zone and Outbreak, though, are a different story).

My dad was also careful to destigmatize the disease in an age when rumors were flying fast and furious. #sesamestreet
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lp8790
11/11/09

@jigglyball: I read the Hot Zone for my high school bio class. That book was ridiculous. #sesamestreet
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jigglyball
11/11/09

@lp8790: I couldn't sleep through the night for weeks after I read that book. At one point, I woke my dad up in the middle of the night to ask him if he though my skin was disintegrating from Ebola (at this time, he happened to work at the only center in the country that handles the Ebola virus - FEAR). #sesamestreet
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tiredfairy
11/11/09

In reply to How Young Is Too Young To Teach Kids About AIDS?
I grew up in the 80's, when they still didn't know that much about AIDS. So I learned about it when I was in kindergarten because a lot of IV drug users peppered the schools playground with used needles at night. They need to keep the kids from picking them up, or telling someone if they got stuck with one.

I was about...4. And we continued to learn about it every year I was in school, because my school system started health classes that included sex ed in about 2nd grade.

And didn't a recent study just find that AIDS is the leading cause of death among young women worldwide? That would seem like something that's likely to effect a lot of children, whether we think they're ready for it or not.

I'm just not in favor of acting like kids should be "protected" from reality. Life isn't one big fun-fest. I'm not saying we should depress the shit out of them every day, but acting like kids can't handle anything important/serious is making less and less informed and tolerant adults. #sesamestreet
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maude_flanders
11/09/09

In reply to AIDS Leading Cause Of Death For Women Worldwide
And somehow, despite the availability of this information....the Church, arguably more of an influence in poor countries where women are most affected, speaks out against contraption and education funding/awareness.

It undermines any worthless commentary they have on uplifting human rights for women in other ways. It's criminal. It's terrifying. It reminds me of why I am both a deeply embittered ex-Catholic and why I am more afraid than ever. I don't know the nature of God (what a blessing it would be, if there are scientific proof that there wasn't one, at least, not like the versions of God used as weapons over policy or authority figures' moral accountability in the present; the thought of an afterlife would not weigh over me).

That's their idea--the U.S. Council of Bishops will invite a warmonger to the Alfred E. Smith dinner but not John Kerry, because one of them supports family planning. They're not grotesque hypocrites, undeserving of a voice over public policy and matters both complex and important (war, abortion, the death penalty, I don't really give a shit what the Church thinks, whether they're on my side or not).

They have a channel to the immortal that the rest of us (lay people, and worst of all, baby eaters, heathens, etc.) don't. So that shit is okay.

I suppose people could argue that throughout history, religion has been one of the few lonely voices protecting the poor from violent or greedy government. Great. (Uh, if anything, not only do I think that idea is a little outdated....it's just a sign that the country is probably a God-forsaken, unbelievably poor, desperate, chaotic, borderline-anarchistic/despotic hellhole and organized religion is on the scene for rock bottom, but I suppose that's beside the point.) I can't really give them credit for it if they simultaneously work to conceal or stall progress in medicine or women's health.

There is nothing so foul as religion when its doctrines or authority contribute to the suffering of humanity (only in this life though, I guess, so it doesn't count!), and the hierarchy promoting fatal ignorance come to their audience as effective mouthpieces for the cosmic decision-maker of mortal destiny. #aids
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Laines
11/09/09

In reply to AIDS Leading Cause Of Death For Women Worldwide
I read this and all I can think is that I really really hate the Pope. There's my not nice nor rational thought for the day. I try to limit myself to one but some times are more trying than others. #aids
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miyamyo
11/09/09

In reply to AIDS Leading Cause Of Death For Women Worldwide
The other day I saw an advertisement for a walk in my area for heart disease research, I believe, and it cited it as a the leading cause of death in the US. The person I was with started talking about how silly that was, since there "will always be a leading cause of death". I was horrified! Yes, there will always be leading causes of death, but people should still do all they can to help! Everyone will die, yes, but people should do what they can.

I bring it up because I'm sure there will be a lot of people (not on this site, I hope) that will probably see this, shrug and be like "yeah, but everyone dies of something." People's lack of compassion is really horrifying sometimes. #aids
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thesciencegirl
11/09/09

In reply to AIDS Leading Cause Of Death For Women Worldwide
AIDS deaths in women are a sort of barometer for how women are faring in a given society. Most HIV cases worldwide are contracted via sex, and this puts women at higher risk when they lack the power to demand condom usage or fidelity from their partners (not to mention non-consentual sexual encounters). When you then consider that women are often unable to achieve economic independence and often lack access to or money for care, you can understand why women may not only disproportionately contract AIDS (e.g. 60% of HIV+ people in Sub-Saharan Africa are women), but also disproportionately die from it.

The WHO has an interesting publication on HIV and gender inequality, if anyone wants to read more than just my ranting. :)

[www.who.int] #aids
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maude_flanders
11/09/09

@thesciencegirl: Wish I could promote you but you already have a star #aids
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KaneBaker
11/09/09

@thesciencegirl: Your comment made me think about this issue from another angle. That being that HIV/AIDS are not the disease in this case when looking at the bigger picture. They are the symptom of a greater social condition. Let's say we cure HIV, it won't fix the other problem that causes this disproportion of power.

Lastly this is not intended to trivialize the importance of fighting HIV in the first place. #aids
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thesciencegirl
11/09/09

@KaneBaker: You should check out the work of Paul Farmer. He writes about how inequalities in health (and specifically infectious disease, which is his specialty, and mine) are indicative of imbalances of power in society and greater issues of structural violence. He focuses specifically on the poor, but his theories are also relevant to gender inequality. #aids
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KaneBaker
11/09/09

@thesciencegirl: Makes you wonder why and how the people that would benefit the most from socialized medicine in the united states seem to be fighting the hardest against it. (A strong and successful campaign of misinformation I assume). I live in Canada and have considered living in the US on many occasions, but it worries me that I am one sickness or one accident away from landing in debt and on the street. I'm relatively safe here. It's not all roses and sunshine here for the under privileged, but at least healthcare and emergency treatment is available to everyone that walks in off the street. I took it for granted through my childhood and young adult years. Now I appreciate it more than ever. #aids
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Sophie needs to study...damn
11/09/09

In reply to AIDS Leading Cause Of Death For Women Worldwide
I got tested last week. It was a rapid HIV test and takes about 20 minutes. Longest 20 minutes of my life. And I've gotten tested 1-2 times a year for the past 4 years. I haven't prayed that hard since...well, my last HIV test. Get tested! #aids
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Blackagar Boltigon
11/09/09

In reply to AIDS Leading Cause Of Death For Women Worldwide
what i find so heartbreaking about this story is, i was trying to figure out why they had used 15-44 as the age range -- i understood wanting to put a lower threshold on womanhood, but 44 seemed like an arbitrarily low number. then i remembered that globally, many women with aids probably die long before they reach 44 -- in fact, that's older than the generally life expectancy in many countries. #aids
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