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Do not fill this in! == Society and culture == === Stigma === {{main|Discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS}} [[File:Ryan White.jpg|thumb|alt=A teenage male with the hand of another resting on his left shoulder smiling for the camera|[[Ryan White]] became a [[poster child]] for HIV after being expelled from school because he was infected.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ryan-White |title=Ryan White, an American AIDS Victim |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |date=November 7, 2013 |access-date=July 16, 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150722112020/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ryan-White |archive-date=July 22, 2015 }}</ref>]] AIDS stigma exists around the world in a variety of ways, including [[shunning|ostracism]], [[Social rejection|rejection]], discrimination and avoidance of HIV-infected people; compulsory HIV testing without prior [[consent]] or protection of [[confidentiality]]; violence against HIV-infected individuals or people who are perceived to be infected with HIV; and the [[quarantine]] of HIV-infected individuals.<ref name="UNAIDS2006Ch4"/> Stigma-related violence or the fear of violence prevents many people from seeking HIV testing, returning for their results, or securing treatment, possibly turning what could be a manageable chronic illness into a death sentence and perpetuating the spread of HIV.<ref name="Ogden">{{cite web |vauthors=Ogden J, Nyblade L |website=[[International Center for Research on Women]] |year=2005 |title=Common at its core: HIV-related stigma across contexts |url=http://www.icrw.org/docs/2005_report_stigma_synthesis.pdf |access-date=February 15, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070217044825/http://www.icrw.org/docs/2005_report_stigma_synthesis.pdf |archive-date=February 17, 2007 }}</ref> AIDS stigma has been further divided into the following three categories: * ''Instrumental AIDS stigma''—a reflection of the fear and apprehension that are likely to be associated with any deadly and transmissible illness.<ref name=Herek1999>{{cite journal |vauthors=Herek GM, Capitanio JP |journal=American Behavioral Scientist |year=1999 |url=http://psychology.ucdavis.edu/rainbow/html/abs99_sp.pdf |title=AIDS Stigma and sexual prejudice |access-date=March 27, 2006 |volume=42 |issue=7 |pages=1130–47 |doi=10.1177/0002764299042007006 |s2cid=143508360 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060409034211/http://psychology.ucdavis.edu/rainbow/html/abs99_sp.pdf |archive-date=April 9, 2006 }}</ref> * ''Symbolic AIDS stigma''—the use of HIV/AIDS to express attitudes toward the social groups or lifestyles perceived to be associated with the disease.<ref name="Herek1999"/> * ''Courtesy AIDS stigma''—stigmatization of people connected to the issue of HIV/AIDS or HIV-positive people.<ref name="Snyder">{{cite journal |vauthors=Snyder M, Omoto AM, Crain AL |title=Punished for their good deeds: stigmatization for AIDS volunteers |journal=American Behavioral Scientist |year=1999 |pages=1175–92 |volume=42 |issue=7 |doi=10.1177/0002764299042007009|s2cid=144929159 }}</ref> Often, AIDS stigma is expressed in conjunction with one or more other stigmas, particularly those associated with homosexuality, [[bisexuality]], [[promiscuity]], prostitution, and [[Intravenous drug use (recreational)|intravenous drug use]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Sharma |first=A.K. |title=Population and society |publisher=Concept Pub. Co. |location=New Delhi |year=2012 |isbn=978-81-8069-818-7 |page=242 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sE-VDhEuxmsC&pg=PA242 |access-date=June 27, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924080127/https://books.google.com/books?id=sE-VDhEuxmsC&pg=PA242 |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref> In many [[Developed country|developed countries]], there is [[AIDS and homosexuality|an association between AIDS and homosexuality or bisexuality]], and this association is correlated with higher levels of sexual prejudice, such as [[Homophobia|anti-homosexual]] or [[Biphobia|anti-bisexual]] attitudes.<ref name="Herek2002">{{cite journal |vauthors=Herek GM, Capitanio JP, Widaman KF |title=HIV-related stigma and knowledge in the United States: prevalence and trends, 1991–1999 |journal=American Journal of Public Health |volume=92 |issue=3 |pages=371–77 |date=March 2002 |pmid=11867313 |pmc=1447082 |doi=10.2105/AJPH.92.3.371}}</ref> There is also a perceived association between AIDS and all male-male sexual behavior, including sex between uninfected men.<ref name="Herek1999"/> However, the dominant mode of spread worldwide for HIV remains heterosexual transmission.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=De Cock KM, Jaffe HW, Curran JW |title=The evolving epidemiology of HIV/AIDS |journal=AIDS |volume=26 |issue=10 |pages=1205–13 |date=June 2012 |pmid=22706007 |doi=10.1097/QAD.0b013e328354622a|s2cid=30648421 |doi-access=free }}</ref> In 2003, as part of an overall reform of marriage and population legislation, it became legal for those diagnosed with AIDS to marry in China.<ref>{{cite news |title=China relaxes laws on love and marriage |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/1439403/China-relaxes-laws-on-love-and-marriage.html |access-date=October 24, 2013 |newspaper=The Telegraph |date=August 21, 2003 |last=Spencer |first=Richard |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131108082647/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/1439403/China-relaxes-laws-on-love-and-marriage.html |archive-date=November 8, 2013 }}</ref> In 2013, the [[National Library of Medicine|U.S. National Library of Medicine]] developed a traveling exhibition titled ''Surviving and Thriving: AIDS, Politics, and Culture'';<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/survivingandthriving/index.html |title=Exhibition – Surviving and Thriving – NLM Exhibition Program |website=U.S. National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201111011/https://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/survivingandthriving/index.html |archive-date=December 1, 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> this covered medical research, the U.S. government's response, and personal stories from people with AIDS, caregivers, and activists.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-confusing-and-at-times-counterproductive-1980s-response-to-the-aids-epidemic-180948611/ |title=The Confusing and At-Times Counterproductive 1980s Response to the AIDS Epidemic |last=Geiling |first=Natasha |work=Smithsonian.com |date=December 4, 2013 |access-date=March 16, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180316152312/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-confusing-and-at-times-counterproductive-1980s-response-to-the-aids-epidemic-180948611/ |archive-date=March 16, 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref> === Economic impact === {{Main|Economic impact of HIV/AIDS|Cost of HIV treatment}} [[File:Life expectancy in select Southern African countries 1960-2012.svg|thumb|upright=1.5|alt=A graph showing several increasing lines followed by a sharp fall of the lines starting in the mid-1980s to 1990s|Changes in life expectancy in some African countries, 1960–2012]] HIV/AIDS affects the economics of both individuals and countries.<ref name="M117">Mandell, Bennett, and Dolan (2010). Chapter 117.</ref> The [[gross domestic product]] of the most affected countries has decreased due to the lack of [[human capital]].<ref name=M117/><ref name="Bell-et-al-2003">{{cite report |vauthors=Bell C, Devarajan S, Gersbach H |year=2003 |url=http://econ.worldbank.org/external/default/main?pagePK=64165259&theSitePK=478060&piPK=64165421&menuPK=64166093&entityID=000160016_20031110113834 |title=The long-run economic costs of AIDS: theory and an application to South Africa |access-date=April 28, 2008 |version=World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. 3152 |format=PDF |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130605151302/http://econ.worldbank.org/external/default/main?pagePK=64165259&theSitePK=478060&piPK=64165421&menuPK=64166093&entityID=000160016_20031110113834 |archive-date=June 5, 2013 }}</ref> Without proper nutrition, health care and medicine, large numbers of people die from AIDS-related complications. Before death they will not only be unable to work, but will also require significant medical care. It is estimated that as of 2007 there were 12 million [[AIDS orphan]]s.<ref name=M117/> Many are cared for by elderly grandparents.<ref name=Greener>{{cite book |last=Greener |first=Robert |year=2002 |title=State of The Art: AIDS and Economics |chapter=AIDS and macroeconomic impact |editor-last=Forsyth |editor-first=Steven |pages=49–55 |publisher=IAEN |chapter-url=http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNACP969.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121012090520/http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNACP969.pdf |archive-date=October 12, 2012 }}</ref> Returning to work after beginning treatment for HIV/AIDS is difficult, and affected people often work less than the average worker. [[Unemployment]] in people with HIV/AIDS also is associated with [[suicidal ideation]], memory problems, and social isolation. Employment increases [[self-esteem]], sense of dignity, confidence, and [[quality of life]] for people with HIV/AIDS. Anti-retroviral treatment may help people with HIV/AIDS work more, and may increase the chance that a person with HIV/AIDS will be employed (low-quality evidence).<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Robinson R, Okpo E, Mngoma N |title=Interventions for improving employment outcomes for workers with HIV |journal=The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews |volume=2015 |issue=5 |page=CD010090 |date=May 2015 |pmid=26022149 |doi=10.1002/14651858.CD010090.pub2 |pmc=10793712 |hdl=2164/6021|hdl-access=free }}</ref> By affecting mainly young adults, AIDS reduces the taxable population, in turn reducing the resources available for [[government spending|public expenditures]] such as education and health services not related to AIDS, resulting in increasing pressure on the state's finances and slower growth of the economy. This causes a slower growth of the tax base, an effect that is reinforced if there are growing expenditures on treating the sick, training (to replace sick workers), sick pay, and caring for AIDS orphans. This is especially true if the sharp increase in adult mortality shifts the responsibility from the family to the government in caring for these orphans.<ref name=Greener/> At the household level, AIDS causes both loss of income and increased spending on healthcare. A study in [[Côte d'Ivoire]] showed that households having a person with HIV/AIDS spent twice as much on medical expenses as other households. This additional expenditure also leaves less income to spend on education and other personal or family investment.<ref name="WBank">{{cite report |last=Over |first=Mead |title=The macroeconomic impact of AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa, Population and Human Resources Department |publisher=World Bank |year=1992 |url=http://www.worldbank.org/aidsecon/macro.pdf |access-date=May 3, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080527201655/http://www.worldbank.org/aidsecon/macro.pdf |archive-date=May 27, 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref> === Religion and AIDS === {{Main|Religion and HIV/AIDS}} The topic of religion and AIDS has become highly controversial, primarily because some religious authorities have publicly declared their opposition to the use of condoms.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.news-medical.net/health/AIDS-Stigma.aspx |title=AIDS Stigma |website=News-medical.net |access-date=November 1, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111112214833/http://www.news-medical.net/health/AIDS-Stigma.aspx |archive-date=November 12, 2011 |date=December 7, 2009}}</ref><ref name="Thirty years after AIDS discovery, appreciation growing for Catholic approach">{{cite web |url=http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/thirty-years-after-aids-discovery-appreciation-growing-for-catholic-approach/ |title=Thirty years after AIDS discovery, appreciation growing for Catholic approach |website=Catholicnewsagency.com |date=June 5, 2011 |access-date=November 1, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111016214921/http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/thirty-years-after-aids-discovery-appreciation-growing-for-catholic-approach/ |archive-date=October 16, 2011 }}</ref> The religious approach to prevent the spread of AIDS, according to a report by American health expert Matthew Hanley titled ''The Catholic Church and the Global AIDS Crisis'', argues that cultural changes are needed, including a re-emphasis on fidelity within marriage and sexual abstinence outside of it.<ref name="Thirty years after AIDS discovery, appreciation growing for Catholic approach"/> Some religious organizations have claimed that prayer can cure HIV/AIDS. In 2011, the BBC reported that some churches in London were claiming that prayer would cure AIDS, and the [[London Borough of Hackney|Hackney]]-based Centre for the Study of Sexual Health and HIV reported that several people stopped taking their medication, sometimes on the direct advice of their pastor, leading to many deaths.<ref name=BBC18102011>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-14406818 |title=Church HIV prayer cure claims 'cause three deaths' |date=October 18, 2011|access-date=October 18, 2011 |work=BBC News |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111018164909/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-14406818 |archive-date=October 18, 2011 }}</ref> The [[Synagogue Church Of All Nations]] advertised an "anointing water" to promote God's healing, although the group denies advising people to stop taking medication.<ref name=BBC18102011/> ===Media portrayal=== {{Main|Media portrayal of HIV/AIDS}} One of the first high-profile cases of AIDS was the American gay actor [[Rock Hudson]]. He had been diagnosed during 1984, announced that he had had the virus on July 25, 1985, and died a few months later on October 2, 1985.<ref name="autogenerated4">{{cite web |last=Berger |first=Joseph |date=October 3, 1985 |title=Rock Hudson, Screen Idol, Dies at 59 |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/national/science/aids/100385sci-aids.html |access-date=November 6, 2022 |website=[[The New York Times]] |archive-date=July 28, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170728124316/http://partners.nytimes.com/library/national/science/aids/100385sci-aids.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Another notable British casualty of AIDS that year was [[Nicholas Eden, 2nd Earl of Avon|Nicholas Eden]], a gay politician and son of former prime minister [[Anthony Eden]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Coleman |first=Brian |url=http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/brian-coleman/2007/06/lady-thatcher-gay-tory |title=Thatcher the gay icon |work=[[New Statesman]] |date=June 25, 2007 |access-date=November 1, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111114044756/http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/brian-coleman/2007/06/lady-thatcher-gay-tory |archive-date=November 14, 2011 }}</ref> On November 24, 1991, British rock star [[Freddie Mercury]] died from an AIDS-related illness, having revealed the diagnosis only on the previous day.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/24/newsid_2546000/2546945.stm |title=November 24, 1991: Giant of rock dies |work=BBC On This Day |publisher=BBC News |access-date=November 1, 2011 |date=November 24, 1991 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111021020133/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/24/newsid_2546000/2546945.stm |archive-date=October 21, 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref> One of the first high-profile heterosexual cases of the virus was American tennis player [[Arthur Ashe]]. He was diagnosed as HIV-positive on August 31, 1988, having contracted the virus from blood transfusions during heart surgery earlier in the 1980s. Further tests within 24 hours of the initial diagnosis revealed that Ashe had AIDS, but he did not tell the public about his diagnosis until April 1992.<ref>{{cite web |last=Bliss |first=Dominic |url=http://www.itennisstore.com/Tennis-Latest-News/FROZEN-IN-TIME--ARTHUR-ASHE-by-Dominic-Bliss.aspx |title=Frozen In Time: Arthur Ashe |website=iTENNISstore.com |access-date=June 25, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130730170201/http://www.itennisstore.com/Tennis-Latest-News/FROZEN-IN-TIME--ARTHUR-ASHE-by-Dominic-Bliss.aspx |archive-date=July 30, 2013 }}</ref> He died as a result on February 6, 1993, aged 49.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/tributes-to-arthur-ashe-1471622.html |title=Tributes to Arthur Ashe |location=London |work=[[The Independent]] |date=February 8, 1993 |access-date=July 24, 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111124842/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/tributes-to-arthur-ashe-1471622.html |archive-date=November 11, 2012 }}</ref> Therese Frare's photograph of gay activist [[David Kirby (activist)|David Kirby]], as he lay dying from AIDS while surrounded by family, was taken in April 1990. ''[[Life (magazine)|Life]]'' magazine said the photo became the one image "most powerfully identified with the HIV/AIDS epidemic." The photo was displayed in ''Life'', was the winner of the [[World Press Photo]], and acquired worldwide notoriety after being used in a [[United Colors of Benetton]] advertising campaign in 1992.<ref>{{cite web |last=Cosgrove |first=Ben |title=Behind the Picture: The Photo That Changed the Face of AIDS |url=http://life.time.com/history/behind-the-picture-the-photo-that-changed-the-face-of-aids/#1 |website=LIFE magazine |access-date=August 16, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120814045129/http://life.time.com/history/behind-the-picture-the-photo-that-changed-the-face-of-aids/#1 |archive-date=August 14, 2012 }}</ref> Many famous artists and AIDS activists such as [[Larry Kramer]], [[Diamanda Galás]] and [[Rosa von Praunheim]]<ref name="DeutscheWelle">{{cite web |title=Germany's most famous gay rights activist: Rosa von Praunheim |url=http://www.dw.com/en/germanys-most-famous-gay-rights-activist-filmmaker-rosa-von-praunheim-at-75/a-41514818 |work=[[Deutsche Welle]] |access-date=June 14, 2018 |archive-date=July 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210723132748/https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-most-famous-gay-rights-activist-filmmaker-rosa-von-praunheim-at-75/a-41514818 |url-status=live }}</ref> campaign for AIDS education and the rights of those affected. These artists worked with various media formats. === Criminal transmission === {{Main|Criminal transmission of HIV}} Criminal transmission of HIV is the [[intention (criminal law)|intentional]] or [[recklessness (law)|reckless]] infection of a person with the [[human immunodeficiency virus]] (HIV). Some countries or jurisdictions, including some areas of the United States, have laws that criminalize HIV transmission or exposure.<ref>{{cite web |title=HIV-Specific Criminal Laws |url=https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/policies/law/states/exposure.html |website=U.S. [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] (CDC)|access-date=November 22, 2014 |date=June 30, 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141031203041/http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/policies/law/states/exposure.html |archive-date=October 31, 2014 }}</ref> Others may charge the accused under laws enacted before the HIV pandemic. In 1996, Ugandan-born Canadian [[Johnson Aziga]] was diagnosed with HIV; he subsequently had unprotected sex with eleven women without disclosing his diagnosis. By 2003, seven had contracted HIV; two died from complications related to AIDS.<ref>{{cite web |title=Aziga found guilty of first-degree murder |date=April 4, 2009 |url=http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/aziga-found-guilty-of-first-degree-murder-1.386276 |publisher=CTV.ca News |access-date=April 9, 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029204016/http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/aziga-found-guilty-of-first-degree-murder-1.386276 |archive-date=October 29, 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=HIV killer ruled dangerous offender |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2011/08/02/hiv-offender-aziga.html |publisher=CBC News |access-date=April 9, 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120903081633/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2011/08/02/hiv-offender-aziga.html |archive-date=September 3, 2012 }}</ref> Aziga was convicted of [[first-degree murder]] and sentenced to [[Life imprisonment in Canada|life imprisonment]].<ref>{{cite news |title=A fraudster, not a murderer |url=https://nationalpost.com/opinion/columnists/story.html?id=2c6dca9a-cf31-45e0-8bab-510069a10a9d |newspaper=National Post |access-date=April 9, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160515102752/http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/columnists/story.html?id=2c6dca9a-cf31-45e0-8bab-510069a10a9d |archive-date=May 15, 2016 |date=March 30, 2010}}</ref> ===Misconceptions=== {{Main|Misconceptions about HIV/AIDS|Discredited HIV/AIDS origins theories}} There are many [[misconceptions about HIV and AIDS]]. Three misconceptions are that AIDS can spread through casual contact, that [[Virgin cleansing myth|sexual intercourse with a virgin]] will cure AIDS,<ref>{{cite news |title='Virgin cure': Three women killed to 'cure' Aids |url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/513598/virgin-cure-three-women-killed-to-cure-aids/ |access-date=September 14, 2013 |newspaper=[[International Herald Tribune]] |date=February 28, 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131015000557/http://tribune.com.pk/story/513598/virgin-cure-three-women-killed-to-cure-aids/ |archive-date=October 15, 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Jenny |first=Carole |title=Child Abuse and Neglect: Diagnosis, Treatment and Evidence – Expert Consult |year=2010 |publisher=Elsevier Health Sciences |isbn=978-1-4377-3621-2 |page=187 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BKILM5KWFKwC&pg=PA187 |access-date=June 27, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151127054149/https://books.google.com/books?id=BKILM5KWFKwC&pg=PA187 |archive-date=November 27, 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author1=Klot, Jennifer |author2=Monica Kathina Juma |title=HIV/AIDS, Gender, Human Security and Violence in Southern Africa |publisher=Africa Institute of South Africa |location=Pretoria |year=2011 |page=47 |isbn=978-0-7983-0253-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=du0aR53YsYMC&pg=PA47 |access-date=June 27, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160426060547/https://books.google.com/books?id=du0aR53YsYMC&pg=PA47 |archive-date=April 26, 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref> and that HIV can infect only gay men and drug users.<ref name="WIFANG">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MNsmDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA407|title=Women's Issues for a New Generation: A Social Work Perspective|isbn=978-0190239404|publisher=Oxford University Press|last=Ukockis|first=Gail|date=2016|page=407|access-date=December 10, 2021|archive-date=December 21, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231221043736/https://books.google.com/books?id=MNsmDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA407#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="RASEFSS">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8ZnpDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA87|title=Relationships and Sex Education for Secondary Schools (2020): A Practical Toolkit for Teachers|isbn=978-1913063689|publisher=Critical Publishing|last1=Glazzard|first1=Jonathan|last2=Stones|first2=Samuel|date=2020|page=87|access-date=December 10, 2021|archive-date=December 21, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231221043746/https://books.google.com/books?id=8ZnpDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA87#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2014, some among the British public wrongly thought one could get HIV from kissing (16%), sharing a glass (5%), spitting (16%), a public toilet seat (4%), and coughing or sneezing (5%).<ref>{{cite web |title=HIV Public Knowledge and Attitudes 2014 |url=http://www.nat.org.uk/media/Files/PDF%20documents/Mori_2014_report_FINAL.pdf |website=National AIDS Trust |access-date=February 12, 2015 |page=9 |date=November 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150212142740/http://www.nat.org.uk/media/Files/PDF%20documents/Mori_2014_report_FINAL.pdf |archive-date=February 12, 2015 }}</ref> Other misconceptions are that any act of anal intercourse between two uninfected gay men can lead to HIV infection, and that open discussion of HIV and homosexuality in schools will lead to increased rates of AIDS.<ref>{{cite book |last=Blechner |first=MJ |title=Hope and mortality: psychodynamic approaches to AIDS and HIV |publisher=Analytic Press |location=Hillsdale, NJ |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-88163-223-1}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Kirby DB, Laris BA, Rolleri LA |title=Sex and HIV education programs: their impact on sexual behaviors of young people throughout the world |journal=The Journal of Adolescent Health |volume=40 |issue=3 |pages=206–17 |date=March 2007 |pmid=17321420 |doi=10.1016/j.jadohealth.2006.11.143|doi-access=free }}</ref> A small group of individuals continue to dispute the connection between HIV and AIDS,<ref name=Duesberg>{{cite journal |vauthors=Duesberg P |title=HIV is not the cause of AIDS |journal=Science |volume=241 |issue=4865 |pages=514, 517 |date=July 1988 |pmid=3399880 |doi=10.1126/science.3399880 |bibcode=1988Sci...241..514D}}{{cite journal |vauthors=Cohen J |title=The Duesberg phenomenon |journal=Science |volume=266 |issue=5191 |pages=1642–44 |date=December 1994 |pmid=7992043 |doi=10.1126/science.7992043 |url=http://www.sciencemag.org/feature/data/cohen/266-5191-1642a.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070101111630/http://www.sciencemag.org/feature/data/cohen/266-5191-1642a.pdf |bibcode=1994Sci...266.1642C |archive-date=January 1, 2007}}</ref> the existence of HIV itself, or the validity of HIV testing and treatment methods.<ref name=Kalichman>{{cite book |last=Kalichman |first=Seth |author-link=Seth Kalichman |title=Denying AIDS: Conspiracy Theories, Pseudoscience, and Human Tragedy |publisher=Copernicus Books ([[Springer Science+Business Media]]) |location=New York |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-387-79475-4 |url=https://archive.org/details/denyingaidsconsp0000kali|url-access=registration }}</ref><ref name=SmithNovella>{{cite journal |vauthors=Smith TC, Novella SP |title=HIV denial in the Internet era |journal=PLOS Medicine |volume=4 |issue=8 |page=e256 |date=August 2007 |pmid=17713982 |pmc=1949841 |doi=10.1371/journal.pmed.0040256 |doi-access=free }}</ref> These claims, known as [[AIDS denialism]], have been examined and rejected by the scientific community.<ref name=consensus>{{cite web |author=Various |publisher=[[National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases]] |date=January 14, 2010 |url=https://www.niaid.nih.gov/topics/HIVAIDS/Understanding/howHIVCausesAIDS/Pages/HIVcausesAIDS.aspx |title=Resources and Links, HIV-AIDS Connection |access-date=February 22, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100407225045/http://www.niaid.nih.gov/topics/HIVAIDS/Understanding/howHIVCausesAIDS/pages/hivcausesaids.aspx |archive-date=April 7, 2010 }}</ref> However, they have had a significant political impact, particularly [[HIV/AIDS denialism in South Africa|in South Africa]], where the government's official embrace of AIDS denialism (1999–2005) was responsible for its ineffective response to that country's AIDS epidemic, and has been blamed for hundreds of thousands of avoidable deaths and HIV infections.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Watson J |title=Scientists, activists sue South Africa's AIDS 'denialists' |journal=Nature Medicine |volume=12 |issue=1 |page=6 |date=January 2006 |pmid=16397537 |doi=10.1038/nm0106-6a|s2cid=3502309 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Baleta A |title=S Africa's AIDS activists accuse government of murder |journal=The Lancet |volume=361 |issue=9363 |page=1105 |date=March 2003 |pmid=12672319 |doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(03)12909-1|s2cid=43699468 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Cohen J |title=South Africa's new enemy |journal=Science |volume=288 |issue=5474 |pages=2168–70 |date=June 2000 |pmid=10896606 |doi=10.1126/science.288.5474.2168|s2cid=2844528 }}</ref> Several discredited [[conspiracy theories]] have held that HIV was created by scientists, either inadvertently or deliberately. [[Operation INFEKTION]] was a worldwide Soviet [[active measures]] operation to spread the claim that the United States had created HIV/AIDS. Surveys show that a significant number of people believed—and continue to believe—in such claims.<ref name="infektion">{{cite web |last=Boghardt |first=Thomas |title=Operation INFEKTION Soviet Bloc Intelligence and Its AIDS Disinformation Campaign |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/vol53no4/soviet-bloc-intelligence-and-its-aids.html |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |year=2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514230328/https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/vol53no4/soviet-bloc-intelligence-and-its-aids.html |archive-date=May 14, 2011 }}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. 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