#obvs we cannot individually protect every person in every country but i think it's good to be educated on this

[variousqueerthings]

I don’t know if I’m way behind in this kind of knowledge, but there was a difference for me between logically knowing that women can be HIV+ / get AIDS and seeing numbers for women around the world who are HIV+ or have died from AIDS-related complications

I understand why the narrative is as it is, the way homophobia meant/means a lack of treatment development + a lack of ability to access healthcare, but the way it’s affecting women is massively intersectional with racism/colonialism and poverty, and goes hand in hand with a lack of education because of (you guessed it) homophobia 

I just think everyone should take in these numbers as a matter of education, both to support women around the world and because we’re seeing yet another case of homophobia-is-stopping-people-from-getting-tested/helped with monkeypox:

AIDS epidemic update: December 2000 (worldwide)

compare

AIDS epidemic update: 2021 (worldwide)

here are a few testimonies from british women in the 80s/90s

and Rebel Dykes, the documentary about working class S/M political lesbians in London, talks briefly about awareness raising/invisibility of HIV+ women in the 80s

I’ve also anecdotally had conversations around women and HIV about the rates in middle-aged divorced women, who haven’t been educated on the risks after possible years of sleeping with one partner, apparently that’s a significant risk group (because, again... lack of education+ homophobic institutions) 

#hiv #aids #monkeypox #queer rights #womens rights #colonialism #there's a difference between knowing intuitively and Knowing through educating oneself #think a lot of people still subconsciously think of it as A Disease That Hits Queer Men and trans women and drug users as an afterthought #and faaaar far in the background of that thought is *oh yeah and some countries in africa* #(what countries? some... countries...) #which is our internalised racism and colonialism #and #because it was first used to attack queer men and then gay men for obvs reasons created a lot of mutual aid around it #have a lot more research to do -- mainly want to look for testimonies from women non-western countries #*in #i also wonder whether there are any transmasculine/trans male anecdotes #there's some unlearning to do and some learning to do #obvs we cannot individually protect every person in every country but i think it's good to be educated on this #id hazard some of the countries with the highest rates in women are also countries where it's still illegal to be gay #colonialism and homophobia and the aids epidemic go hand in hand #whaddayaknow... there's always more to intersectionalism than one knows #how do we utilise global connection for good? (not as in *burn yourself out on everything all at once*) #but as in -- we have siblings across the world and our actions affect one another across the world #ex. how covid vaccines were being hoarded #or how statistically at least as many women globally are hiv+ as men... at LEAST possibly more (and there's less resources/education) #or how i think about my transmasc and trans male and non-binary siblings across the world who either do or do not want to be pregnant #or i think about this documentary about the band mashrou leila and the activist sarah hegazi who was arrested/tortured #for unfurling a rainbow flag at one of their concerts and how one man who runs an lgbt+ center in beirut talked about the need #for global queer solidarity #lots of thoughts going in lots of directions apologies ive gone a little off topic on this post