DOCSLIB.ORG

Preventing Hiv by Creating Sista Strength: an Analysis of One U.S.-Sponsored Intervention Into Black Women’S Health

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Preventing Hiv by Creating Sista Strength: an Analysis of One U.S.-Sponsored Intervention Into Black Women’S Health PREVENTING HIV BY CREATING SISTA STRENGTH: AN ANALYSIS OF ONE U.S.-SPONSORED INTERVENTION INTO BLACK WOMEN’S HEALTH Allison Schlobohm A dissertation submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Communication in the College of Arts and Sciences. Chapel Hill 2016 Approved by: Eric King Watts Carole Blair Wahneema Lubiano Patricia Parker Barry Saunders © 2016 Allison Schlobohm ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT Allison Schlobohm: Preventing HIV by Creating SISTA Strength: An Analysis of One U.S.-Sponsored Intervention into Black Women’s Health (Under the direction of Eric King Watts) The United States’ modes of intervening into HIV/AIDS are inextricably sutured to contemporary understandings of blackness. In this dissertation, I explore these articulations by rhetorically examining one state-sponsored intervention into black women’s health—the SISTA HIV prevention program. I use a rhetorical lens to examine this program’s texts and its conditions of emergence, variously focusing on SISTA’s unique materials and the larger cultural, political, and economic forces that give it meaning. Specifically, I trace SISTA’s redeployment of some already-existing tropes of blackness and neo-liberal subjectivity, and I find that the intervention’s attempts to help black women avoid contracting HIV/AIDS are unfortunately complicit in regimes of anti-black oppression that foster the differential impacts of HIV/AIDS it is responding to. I begin my analysis by tracing the historical relationship between public health intervention in the United States and the strategic exclusion of black Americans from state support. I follow this relationship over a period of more than 100 years, highlighting key moments when U.S. public health policy underwent significant change as well as the sordid history of racist legitimation of black suffering. I then use this history to situate SISTA’s particular deployment of tropes of blackness, including the tropes of pathological and Afrocentric blackness and the trope of the strong black woman. Ultimately, I argue that SISTA attempts to help black women become strong, empowered subjects of neo-liberalism, but in doing so it reinvigorates centuries-old logics in the United States whereby the racist expulsion of iii black Americans from structures of state support is authorized by narratives of black irresponsibility and inadequate self-management. iv To the men and women who fight for their lives and the lives of others in the constant struggle against racist oppression. Thank you. v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This project, like all academic projects, may have one name on the title page but is the result of years of collaboration. Many of SISTA’s creators and disseminators were incredibly generous with their time and were willing to speak with me for hours about this program. Conversations with Arlene Edwards, Joan Ferguson, Patricia Frye, Marilyn Moering-Watkins, Amna Osman, Miriam Phields, Tobey Sapiano, Lucy Slater, and Dana Williams all fundamentally shaped this dissertation. My adviser, Eric King Watts, taught me the value of insightful incisions and the work that we, as rhetorical scholars, can do to begin undoing the nefarious entanglements that maintain racism’s tenaciousness. My committee members, Carole Blair, Wahneema Lubiano, Patricia Parker, and Barry Saunders, were incredibly generous throughout both this dissertation process and my graduate career, and most of the ideas in these pages can be traced to classes I took with them, books I read with them, or conversations I had with them. My undergraduate mentor and adviser, Leslie Hahner, first taught me how to use rhetoric’s tools to expose racism and sexism in the United States. Countless other professors and fellow graduate students have guided me and helped me think over the past 10 years, and I owe them all a debt of gratitude. My family and friends have pushed me to be a better scholar at the same time they have helped keep me sane. My friends, especially Erin Arizzi, Jennifer Fink, Marjorie Hazeltine, Amanda Hakanson-Stacy, Lena Kyman, and Amanda Stevens, all provided sustenance when I needed it most. Mary Paul challenged me to think deeply about the men and women who use the tools of public health to make the world a better place, and she made me some really great martinis. My family never stopped believing in me, even when I wasn’t sure I believed in vi myself. I am who I am because of their guidance, and I was only able to accomplish this monumental task because of the infinite support they provided. I’ll never be able to thank them enough. And Joshua Smicker, my partner, best friend, and favorite sparring partner, has loved me unconditionally, even in some quite difficult conditions. I am a better person because of him, and I am truly lucky to have such a brilliant husbando. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ..........................................................................................................x CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................1 Statement of Problem ...........................................................................................................2 Literature Review.................................................................................................................7 Theoretical Orientation ......................................................................................................17 Case Study .........................................................................................................................26 Chapter Descriptions ..........................................................................................................36 CHAPTER 2: HISTORICAL TRENDS IN PUBLIC HEALTH AND BLACKNESS ................43 Nineteenth Century Public Health Interventions into Morality .........................................44 Germ Theory, the Social Hygiene Movement, and Public Health’s Focus on the Individual ...........................................................................................................................50 Syphilis Control, Black Americans, and the United States Public Health Service............60 The Great Depression and Public Health ...........................................................................62 WWII and the Discovery of Penicillin...............................................................................64 The Rise of Epidemiology .................................................................................................65 Black Inclusion in the 1960s ..............................................................................................67 Making Healthy People......................................................................................................69 Black Exclusion in the “New Public health” .....................................................................72 The Move Towards Cultural Relevance ............................................................................74 Conclusion .........................................................................................................................76 CHAPTER 3: PATHOLOGICAL AND AFROCENTRIC BLACKNESS ..................................79 viii The Trope of Pathological Blackness ................................................................................81 Pathological Blackness in SISTA ......................................................................................90 The Trope of Afrocentric Blackness ..................................................................................97 Afrocentric Blackness in SISTA ......................................................................................101 Afrocentricity and the Heteronormative Black Family ...................................................108 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................110 CHAPTER 4: THE STRONG BLACK SISTA ...........................................................................112 The Strong Black Woman ................................................................................................112 The Strong Black SISTA .................................................................................................116 Public Health Discourse and Neo-Liberal Logics of Subjectivity ...................................132 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS ..................................................................................................146 APPENDIX A: “EGO TRIPPING (THERE MAY BE A REASON WHY” ..............................154 APPENDIX B: COVER OF 2008 SISTA U.S. IMPLEMENTATION MANUAL ....................155 APPENDIX C: “STILL I RISE”..................................................................................................156 APPENDIX D: “ALWAYS THERE ARE THE CHILDREN” ..................................................157 WORKS CITED ..........................................................................................................................158 ix LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AIDS Acquired immune deficiency syndrome ASHA American social hygiene association CBO Community-based organization CDC Centers for disease control and prevention DHAP Division of HIV/AIDS prevention at the CDC DEBI Diffusion of effective behavioral interventions EBI Evidence-based
Load more

Recommended publications
  • History of Sex Education Table of Contents
    History of Sex Education Table of contents Introduction 5 The social hygiene movement 9 Schools and character-building organizations 13 The influence of WWI 17 Moving beyond disease prevention 19 Family life education 21 The sexual revolution and culture wars 25 Controversies erupt 29 The culture wars 33 AIDS changes the debate 37 The fight between abstinence-only and comprehensive sexuality education 39 The rise of the abstinence-only movement 43 Abstinence-only programs face criticism 49 Evidence-based programs and beyond 51 The fight continues 55 Looking forward: Sex ed as a vehicle for social change 59 2 3 Introduction Sex education in the United States has great potential to educate both individuals and society. It can give us knowledge about our bodies; debunk harmful stereotypes about sex, race, and gender; provide opportunities for us to think critically about our own values and relationships; and empower us to stand up for our rights and the rights of others to pleasure, bodily autonomy, and consent. This was not, however, what sex education was initially designed to do. Too often, over the past 100 years of American history, it has been used to do just the opposite. 4 5 Those who originally pushed the importance of SIECUS believes, however, that sex education— educating the public about sexuality did so out if done properly—has the power to serve as a of a fear that their comfortable, white, middle vehicle for social change. Understanding the class way of living was being threatened by the history of sex education in this country, the loosening of sexual morals.
    [Show full text]
  • 'Apostles of Continence': Doctors and the Doctrine of Sexual Necessity In
    Med. Hist. (2017), vol. 61(1), pp. 89–106. c The Author 2016. Published by Cambridge University Press 2016 doi:10.1017/mdh.2016.102 ‘Apostles of Continence’: Doctors and the Doctrine of Sexual Necessity in Progressive-Era America TIMOTHY VERHOEVEN* School of Philosophical, Historical and International Studies, Monash University, W609, 20 Chancellor’s Walk, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia Abstract: In the first decades of the twentieth century, a group of doctors under the banner of the social hygiene movement set out on what seemed an improbable mission: to convince American men that they did not need sex. This was in part a response to venereal disease. Persuading young men to adopt the standard of sexual discipline demanded of women was the key to preserving the health of the nation from the ravages of syphilis and gonorrhoea. But their campaign ran up against the doctrine of male sexual necessity, a doctrine well established in medical thought and an article of faith for many patients. Initially, social hygienists succeeded in rallying much of the medical community. But this success was followed by a series of setbacks. Significant dissent remained within the profession. Even more alarmingly, behavioural studies proved that many men simply were not listening. The attempt to repudiate the doctrine of male sexual necessity showed the ambition of Progressive-era doctors, but also their powerlessness in the face of entrenched beliefs about the linkage in men between sex, health and success. Keywords: Abstinence, Sexuality, Masculinity, Social Hygiene, Venereal Disease, Progressive Era Introduction At the beginning of the twentieth century, a group of doctors mobilised against an epidemic of venereal disease that seemed to be sweeping the United States.
    [Show full text]
  • The Religious Right, the Federal Government, and Abstinence Education in the Schools
    Unconstitutional Entanglements: The Religious Right, the Federal Government, and Abstinence Education in the Schools Naomi Rivkind Shatzf IN TRO D UCTIO N ................................................................................................ 496 I. ESTABLISHMENT CLAUSE JURISPRUDENCE ................................................. 498 A. The History of the Establishment Clause in the Supreme Court ... 499 B. The Establishment Clause and School Curricula Cases ................. 502 1. The Creationism and Intelligent Design Cases ....................... 503 2. Establishment Clause Challenges to Abstinence-Only E du cation ............................................................................... 504 II. ABSTINENCE-ONLY SEXUALITY EDUCATION ............................................ 507 A. Federal Funding for Abstinence-Only Education Programs .......... 509 1. Federal Funding Statutes ......................................................... 510 2. Recipients of Abstinence-Only Funding ................................. 513 B . Abstinence-O nly Curricula ............................................................ 514 C. Impact and Outcomes of Abstinence Education ............................ 517 III. THE CONSTITUTIONALITY OF ABSTINENCE-ONLY PROGRAMS ................ 520 A. There is No Secular Purpose to Abstinence-Only Education ........ 520 1. Abstinence Education Does Not Affect Adolescents' Sexual Practices ..................................................................... 522 2. Abstinence-Only Education Is the Product
    [Show full text]
  • The History of Sex Education Provides an Essential Founda- Tion for Understanding the Current State of Sex Education in America
    A History of Sex Education in the United States Since 1900 Valerie J. Huber Michael W. Firmin ABSTRACT: We provide a historical perspective toward the current public school practices of American sex education. The primary time frames include the progressive era (1880–1920), intermediate era (1920–1960), the sexual revolution era (1960s and 1970s), and the modern sex education era (1980s to the present). In each period, we highlight key developments that affect educators’ current decision making as public sex education continues to develop and morph in the context of contemporary society. We show that an apt understanding of sex education’s past is critical for making prudent decisions about its future. The historical record of sex education in American public schools is Arelatively short. Developments after 1900 were the emphasis in this study, but a brief examination of events prior to 1900 provided an important foundation. Cultural and moral gatekeepers made sexual experimentation a forbidden activity during early American history, but those gates were forced open by a series of events after the turn of the 20th century. Sex Education in America Before 1900 Little has been written about sex education before 1900 (Pearsall, 2001). Searches within typical academic research vehicles do not provide much in- formation. Traditionally, in early American history, the home was the place where discussions of sex took place, and, even then, the conversations tended to be minimal, usually a mix of practical physiology and moral instruction, grounded in religious standards (Peterson, 1983). Some children would learn about reproduction from watching animals in the barnyard, since much of early American society was agrarian.
    [Show full text]
  • Jonesgreta-Social-Hygiene-In-Twentieth-Century-Britainlondon-Croom-Helm-1986-8Vo-Pp-180
    Book Reviews example. Moreover, the astringent empiricism of the Parisian clinical school and the "analytic" approach of Pinel could also, with some plausibility, be advanced as contenders for the title of "medicine of the Revolution". What gives Braunstein's claim greater weight is the recognition of the essentially polemical nature ofBrousssais' system, which developed out of a series ofencounters with other strands of contemporary medical and philosophical thought. Braunstein provides, for example, a lucid account of the contrasts between Broussaism and such competing schools as the pathological anatomists, organicists, and experimental physiologists. The principal antagonist of Broussais' system, however, was the medicine and philosophy of the Restoration. This is most obvious is Broussais' polemic in De l'irritation et de lafolie against Cousin's vapid, but seductive, spiritualism. However, But Broussaism was not merely a set of texts: it was a political movement. Students ofmedicine, in particular, flocked to it because they saw a barely-veiled political statement in Broussais' propositions. Physiological medicine became a standard of resistance to the efforts made during the Restoration to negate the consequences of the Revolution, and to impose a new orthodoxy upon the university and ultimately upon society. Medicine bore the brunt of these attacks upon what was seen as a vicious cultural inheritance. In as much as it developed in opposition to such assaults, Broussais' system was, indeed, the medicine of the Revolution. The scope ofthis book goes beyond Broussais' own lifetime. In the discussion of the "heritage of Broussais", later responses to him are considered, including those of Comte and the Positivist school.
    [Show full text]
  • From Social Hygiene to Social Health: Indiana and The
    FROM SOCIAL HYGIENE TO SOCIAL HEALTH: INDIANA AND THE UNITED STATES ADOLESCENT SEX EDUCATION MOVEMENT, 1907-1975 Angela Bowen Potter Submitted to the faculty of the University Graduate School in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in the Department of History, Indiana University October 2015 Accepted by the Graduate Faculty, Indiana University, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts. Master’s Thesis Committee ______________________________ Philip Scarpino, PhD, Chair ______________________________ William H. Schneider, PhD ___________________________ Nancy Marie Robertson, PhD iii Acknowledgments When I tell people that I am writing on the history of sex education in Indiana, the common reply is “that should be a very short thesis.” Nearly everyone that I have mentioned the project to has remarked on the seemingly universal experience of awkwardly watching a bad sex education movie in the gym. Not only has sex education stood out in our historical memories far out of proportion to the time spent on it, but also in our cultural memory. All of this is to say, the topic has proved much more challenging and complex than I dreamed it might be. First, I would like to thank the Social Health Association for sponsoring this project and welcoming me into its offices. Everyone was so generous with their time, stories, and patience as the project took longer than anticipated. Researching the history during a time of profound change for the agency, I developed a deep respect not only for the past leaders, but also for the current staff, board of directors, and school partners.
    [Show full text]
  • United States V. Dennett:The Battle for Sex Education in the Early 1900S
    University at Albany, State University of New York Scholars Archive History Honors Program History 2019 United States v. Dennett:The Battle for Sex Education in the Early 1900s Hannah Breda University at Albany, State University of New York Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.library.albany.edu/history_honors Part of the History Commons Recommended Citation Breda, Hannah, "United States v. Dennett:The Battle for Sex Education in the Early 1900s" (2019). History Honors Program. 14. https://scholarsarchive.library.albany.edu/history_honors/14 This Undergraduate Honors Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the History at Scholars Archive. It has been accepted for inclusion in History Honors Program by an authorized administrator of Scholars Archive. For more information, please contact [email protected]. United States v. Dennett: The Battle for Sex Education in the Early 1900s An honors thesis presented to the Department of History, University at Albany, State University of New York in partial fulfillment of the requirements for graduation with Honors in History. Hannah Breda Advisors: Dr. Kendra Smith-Howard and Dr. Michitake Aso May 10, 2019 2 Abstract The 1873 Comstock Act outlawed the production and distribution of any materials that were deemed to be obscene or capable of arousing adolescents. Mary Ware Dennett, a women's rights activist and pioneer in birth control and sex education, was one of the many who fell victim to this law. Dennett was arrested in 1929 for distributing her sex education pamphlet, The Sex Side of Life, written for her teenage sons after finding the sex education materials produced by the government to be insufficient.
    [Show full text]
  • Downloaded from Studies on the Links Between Race and Venereal Disease During the American Social Hygiene Movement (1910–40)
    UCLA UCLA Previously Published Works Title Charles V. Roman and the spectre of polygenism in progressive era public health research Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/87s989bf Journal Social History of Medicine, 28(4) ISSN 0951-631X Author Keel, TD Publication Date 2015-11-01 DOI 10.1093/shm/hkv035 Peer reviewed eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California Social History of Medicine Advance Access published May 13, 2015 Social History of Medicine page 1 of 25 Charles V. Roman and the Spectre of Polygenism in Progressive Era Public Health Research Terence D. Keel* Summary.The influence of polygenism over twentieth-century medicine and racial science has been an underdeveloped area of study. During the period referred to by historians as the ‘eclipse of Darwinism’, assumptions about separate human ancestry often structured debates across the USA over whether racial heredity was responsible for ‘innate dispositions’ toward certain diseases. This article explores how polygenist carryovers made their way into early twentieth-century medical and public health Downloaded from studies on the links between race and venereal disease during the American social hygiene movement (1910–40). It also recovers the work of the African-American physician, ethicist, and social hygienist, Dr Charles V. Roman, who stressed during this period that the idea of common human ancestry should push public health researchers to think more creatively and critically about the social and environmental factors shaping health outcomes and black susceptibility to sexual diseases. http://shm.oxfordjournals.org/ Keywords: racial science; polygenism; social determinants of health; Charles V. Roman; venereal disease; hereditarianism; American social hygiene movement Introduction Scientists studying public health disparities across racial groups have long debated whether the environment or heredity plays a greater role in shaping dispositions to disease and health outcomes.
    [Show full text]
  • Age of Consent, Gender, & Progressivism
    “GUARDING INNOCENCE” AGE OF CONSENT, GENDER, & PROGRESSIVISM _______________________________________ A Thesis presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School at the University of Missouri-Columbia _______________________________________________________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts _____________________________________________________ by MADALYNN DEMING BEHRENS Dr. Catherine Rymph, Thesis Advisor JULY 2016 The undersigned, appointed by the Dean of the Graduate School, have examined the thesis entitled “GUARDING INNOCENCE” AGE OF CONSENT, GENDER, & PROGRESSIVISM presented by Madalynn Behrens, a candidate for the degree of master of arts, and hereby certify that, in their opinion, it is worthy of acceptance. Professor Catherine Rymph Professor Michelle Morris Professor Colleen Heflin ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This paper would not be possible without the support and assistance of so many people. First, I would like to thank Dr. Catherine Rymph for helping me in every step of this project, including choosing a topic, research, writing, revising, and even completing all of the forms on time. She has helped me to learn how to think more critically about my topic, work independently, and analyze my sources on a deeper level. In addition, she has especially enriched my understanding of the Progressive Era and legal reforms. I would also like to thank Dr. Michelle Morris for serving on my committee and furthering my knowledge of gender and the foundations of women’s political activism in America. Much appreciation is also due to Dr. Colleen Heflin for taking on my thesis with enthusiasm even though it is outside her field. I am extremely grateful for my fellow students’ input on this paper, especially Chris Deutsch, who always asked me about my progress and suggested new sources to consider.
    [Show full text]
  • This Thorniest of Problems: School Sex Education Policy in Scotland 193980
    Edinburgh Research Explorer 'This Thorniest of Problems' Citation for published version: Davidson, R & Davis, G 2005, ''This Thorniest of Problems': School Sex Education Policy in Scotland, 1939- 80', Scottish Historical Review, vol. 84, no. 2, pp. 221-46. https://doi.org/10.3366/shr.2005.84.2.221 Digital Object Identifier (DOI): 10.3366/shr.2005.84.2.221 Link: Link to publication record in Edinburgh Research Explorer Document Version: Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Published In: Scottish Historical Review Publisher Rights Statement: © Davis, G. (2005). This Thorniest of Problems': School Sex Education Policy in Scotland, 1939-80. Scottish Historical Review, 84(2), 221-46doi: 10.3366/shr.2005.84.2.221 General rights Copyright for the publications made accessible via the Edinburgh Research Explorer is retained by the author(s) and / or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing these publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. Take down policy The University of Edinburgh has made every reasonable effort to ensure that Edinburgh Research Explorer content complies with UK legislation. If you believe that the public display of this file breaches copyright please contact [email protected] providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 25. Sep. 2021 The Scottish Historical Review, Volume LXXXIV, 2: No. 218: October 2005, 221–246 ROGER DAVIDSON AND GAYLE DAVIS ‘This Thorniest of Problems’: School Sex Education Policy in Scotland 1939-80 ABSTRACT In recent years, the history of sex education policy in twentieth-century Britain, and the sexual discourses it both reflects and reinforces, has attracted increasing attention from a range of disciplines within the humanities and social sciences.
    [Show full text]
  • Transformation and World War I
    This is Public Health: A Canadian History Transformation and World War I Transformation and World War I . 2 .1 At .the .first .annual .meeting .of .the .Dominion . Commission .for .the .Conservation .of .Natural . Infantile Paralysis: The New Epidemic . .2 .3 Resources .in .January .1910, Peter. .Bryce, .the . Chief .Medical .Officer .of .the .Departments . Canadian Public Health Association . .2 .5 of .the .Interior .and .Indian .Affairs, .urged .the . Typhoid . 2. .6 Commission .to .include .public .health .in .its .focus . on .preserving .and .protecting .the . Inspection in Schools . .2 .7 nation’s .natural .resources . .Bryce . stressed .the .need .to .meet .the . Growth of Public Health Education . 2 .8 challenges .of .the .preservation . Venereal Disease of .infant .life, .the .health .of . school .children, .tuberculosis, . and Social Hygiene . 2 .10 deaths .due .to .industrial . Provincial Structures . 2 .12 causes, .and .disease .prevention . Tubercle bacillus measures . .Tuberculosis .and . Ongoing Challenges . 2 .13 infectious .diseases .spread .by .contaminated .water . were .major .concerns .and .a .Commission .sub- Venereal Disease . 2 .14 committee .was .struck .to .create .a .national .plan . “Spanish” Influenza . 2. .17 for .treatment .and .prevention .of .tuberculosis . and .to .develop .legislation .with .the .provinces .to . National Coordination . 2 .18 prevent .the .pollution .of .rivers .from .sewage .1 The sub-committee. looked. to. Saskatchewan,. which. had become. a. province. in. 1905. and. had. developed. progressive public. health. policies. under. the. leadership of. its. medical. officer. of. health,. Maurice. Seymour .Saskatchewan’s . Public. Health Act, as. 1 . Charles .A . .Hodgetts, .“The .Canadian .Commission .of . Conservation .and .Public .Health,” .Journal of the American Public Health Association .1 .(June .1911): .400–05; .P .J .
    [Show full text]
  • Sex, Disease, and Medicine
    . INTRODUCTION Sex, Disease, and Medicine The most remarkable change in patterns of health during the last century has been the largely successful conquest of infectious disease. Less than one hundred years ago diphtheria, tuberculosis, pneumonia, typhoid, and dysentery consti- tuted this nation’s greatest health threats; epidemics could devastate a city or town with tragic speed. In 1918 an outbreak of Spanish influenza claimed more victims than did combat in World War 1.’ Today these diseases are largely un- der control if not virtually unknown. Although there is considerable debate about the reasons for the decline of these infections-some credit medical advances while others have stressed a rising standard of living, better nutrition, and nat- ural changes in the host-parasite relationshipthere is no doubt that we have much less to fear from infectious disease than we did even a generation ago.* Yet, strikingly, venereal diseases are inadequately controlled, if controlled at all. Given the power of the contemporary media, it seems impossible to be un- aware of the current problem. Herpes, a viral infection that is often transmitted sexually, is according to most reports epidemic, affecting perhaps as many as 20 million Americans. With no effective treatments available, it threatens to become endemic. Even more ominous is the new disease known as Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Found primarily among homosexual males, in most cases this disease poses a lethal threat. Again, there is no known effective treatment. Yet even
    [Show full text]