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The AIDS Pandemic was one of the defining events of the 1980s, infecting approximately 130,000 and killing more than 50,000 individuals in one year at its height in the United States in 1985. Although the virus had existed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for decades, the first official cases were not reported until 1981. The virus, which originated from primates in West Africa, was originally attributed to gay men, leading to the name “Gay-Related Immune Deficiency,” before being called “AIDS,” acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, in 1982.
HIV/AIDS is most commonly spread through exchanging bodily fluids, mainly through unprotected sex and infected needles. The virus develops in three stages, beginning as acute HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), which occurs 2-4 weeks after infection and causes flu-like symptoms. It transitions into chronic HIV, or “clinical latency”, which can last up to 10-15 years and often causes a disappearance of symptoms. Without treatment, chronic HIV develops into AIDS, the deadliest stage of the virus in which the immune system is severely weakened, often leading to rare cancers or other diseases that are not commonly acquired.
Due to the virus disproportionately affecting gay men, this pandemic’s response became highly politicized. President Ronald Reagan did not publicly acknowledge AIDS until 1985, despite the first official report being published in 1981, and his press secretary jokingly called it the “gay plague.” The lack of response led to the rise of organizations like ACT UP, which pressured the government to research and provide treatments and vaccines, and provided space for artists and activists to create works that advocated for awareness and actions surrounding HIV/AIDS. Many political posters were created through activist organizations, as well as more abstract works to comment on the AIDS crisis and the fear that it caused throughout the LGBTQ+ community.
HIV/AIDS still has no cure, and affects a significant number of people, with over one million Americans living with HIV in 2018. Despite this, HIV is now manageable through treatment such as antiretroviral therapy, which slow the effects of HIV/AIDS, as well as prevention measures like protected sex and needle collection programs.
References
Belluz, Julia. "The HIV/AIDS Pandemic, Explained in 9 Maps and Charts." Vox.com, updated July 18, 2016.
"CDC Fact Sheet." CDC.gov.
Finkelstein, Avram. "SILENCE = DEATH: How an Iconic Protest Poster Came Into Being." Literary Hub, December 1, 2017.
"History of HIV and AIDS Overview." Avert.org.
Lopez, German. "The Reagan Administration's Unbelievable Response to the HIV/AIDS Epidemic." Vox.com, updated December 1, 2016.
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Global AIDS Policy Coalition, Graph Showing AIDS Crisis from 1981-1993, 1993. Color lithograph.
Global AIDS Policy Coalition, Graph Showing AIDS Crisis from 1981-1993, 1993. Color lithograph.
This map, published by Harvard University Press for the Harvard School of Public Health, was created to show the gap between the growing number of HIV/AIDS cases and the lack of response by governments across the globe. The map shows the number of cases in women, men, and children of each continent, as well as the staggering gap that began to widen when response to the AIDS crisis plateaued in 1990. The map also exposed the inequalities between “Industrialized” and “Developed” countries, and the disparity in funding toward AIDS research and prevention between nations .
Silence = Death Project, 1987. Poster.
Silence = Death Project, 1987. Poster.
The Silence = Death Project was a collaborative project between six artists and activists in New York City in 1987. Avram Finkelstein, one of the artists, explained in an interview with Literary Hub that, “The poster needed to simultaneously address two distinctly different audiences, with a bifurcated goal: to stimulate political organizing in the lesbian and gay community, and to simultaneously imply to anyone outside the community that we were already fully mobilized. Everything, from the paper we chose to the walls it would be hung on, took into account these seemingly opposite strategic ends.” The simple and bold design that resulted is one of the most widely recognized images associated with the AIDS crisis.
Carlos Alfonzo, Where Tears Can’t Stop, 1986. Acrylic on canvas.
Carlos Alfonzo, Where Tears Can’t Stop, 1986. Acrylic on canvas.
Carlos Alfonzo was a gay Cuban artist that fled to the United States in 1980 after being exiled by Castro. Where Tears Can’t Stop drew inspiration from many sources, including Afro-Cuban and religious iconography, as well as tarot cards and renditions of the “evil eye.” The piece gained recognition for depicting the chaos and confusion that enveloped the LGBTQ+ community and the United States
Lessons from the Past
Lessons from the Past
There are several common threads that connect all of the pandemics we have studied. Each of these illnesses had global repercussions, and drastically changed the way that communities, cities, and countries operate. AIDS, especially, shows a lot of parallels to the current pandemic, COVID-19. The AIDS pandemic caused division and discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community and communities of color, even from the United States government. Despite the discrimination, communities came together to advocate and fight for research and prevention measures, and pressured the government into fully acknowledging the severity of the pandemic.
The sense of community that came from the AIDS pandemic reflects the need for a community during this time, as COVID-19 has resulted in xenophobia, division, and has exposed inequalities that leave marginalized communities vulnerable. The AIDS pandemic showed the danger in lack of government response, as well as the power that people and communities hold when they come together. Although AIDS still has no cure, the perseverance of activists and healthcare workers has led to preventative measures and medications that allow people who are HIV-positive to live normal lives. This is something to be mindful of during this pandemic; that perseverance and community are the most important factors in developing research, treatments, and a possible vaccine.
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