The AIDS Plague In The 20th Century

Throughout the Age of AIDS film many topics that were related to AIDS were brought up that I did not know anything about before. I did not know that there could so many strings attached to a disease and have such an influence in people’s lives whether it was negative or positive.

The AIDS epidemic in the 1980s, consisted entirely of deaths, illnesses and most of all fear, changing the way society viewed gay men. Being that it was only happening to homosexuals and everyone became super homophobic and believed that the disease was a cause of being gay until it started happening to women too. This affected the entire medical metaphysics in society on what is considered safe methods of having sex and health precautions as well. Before the 1980s hit HIV was thought to originate form Kinshasa which is in Congo. In the 1920 HIV crossed between chimpanzees to humans on the Democratic Republic of humans.(Avert 1). AIDS is caused by HIV and is the last stage of HIV and can lead to death. It attacks every single

Aids is a disease that is increasing rapidly. Even though there is more efficient technology today

According to a report published in the February 1998 edition of “Nature”, scientists identified what they believe is the earliest case of AIDs in a man from the Congo in 1959. (Lerner and Hombs 39) By the end of the year 1980, 80 men would have been diagnosed with at least of the opportunistic infections that are a characteristic of AIDs. (Lerner and Hombs 40) AIDs cases in the 1980s increased dramatically not only around the world but in the United States, primarily in larger cities like Los Angeles, New York City and San Francisco. The numbers of AIDs diagnoses and deaths spiraled out of control throughout the 1980s and towards the end of 1989 there were 117,500 cases of AIDS reported and 89,000 related deaths.(Lerner and Hombs 54) In the

In the 1980s, a mysterious disease began to take the lives of Americans. With the cause unknown, a fear grew among Americans. An unusually high rate of people was becoming sick with strange and rare diseases. When experimental treatments failed to work, people died. This mysterious disease is what we now know as HIV–Human Immunodeficiency Virus. In the past thirty-five years, the HIV has taken many turns in history. Although we do not hear about HIV and AIDS now, it is still a prevalent issue in the United States and in the world.

In Ronald O. Valdiserri’s article “Thirty Years of AIDs in America: A Story of Infinite Hope,” it is said that we have data that shows we have improved in our prevention of AIDs/HIVs diseases over the years. However, Valdiserri’s article also points out that these statistics contained data resulted from inadequate or incomplete information, which makes me question how much do we really know about the improvements being identified.

Angels in America examines the spread AIDS throughout the 1980s and the ways that people reacted towards it. It’s “a serious play about politics, history, spirituality, and death...It was not only an attack on 1980s Reaganism, but also on the conservative movement of the U.S. politics and culture since the end of World War II” (Bronski 58). Angels in America represents an act of resistance and asks the audience whether change is possible. This question takes on a whole new meaning for the audience, who has the added benefit of hindsight.

Moreover, HIV affects everyone across the globe. Today in the community HIV is known as the fear disease. In today society, everyone fears of catching the viruses although they are more dangerous disease out there still the norms about HIV are high. In the early 20s when the virus was first detected, treatments were poor, and the prognosis was death. However, in today society HIV made progress. The once known the death sentence virus turn tables to a manageable disease so how this disease continue to affect the community? First of all, the numbers of new HIV cases continue to increase according to the national Institute of Allergy and infectious Diseases (NIAID). Also according to NIAID more than 1.1 million people in the U.S population are infected and more than 20 percent are unaware of the fact they are infected. Also an average of 50,000 new cases reported each year not even mentions the ones unaware of their

The Black Death took place most nations of the world, and conduced to the most tragic circumstance in mankind. In14th century, the Chinese population decreased 120 million to 80 million. Not only China, but also In London population was 1,000,000 during 1347’s, and it dropped off to 37,000 by the 1353’s (Tignor). In contrast, epidemic AIDS also terrifying disease that is taking over the world gradually, even though modern medical treatment continuing their effort to prevent it. As same as Black Death, AIDS is also causing a staggering loss of life. Around 12 million people have died all over the world since the first cases were reported in 1981(Tignor). Also, 1.5 million people died of AIDS-related causes in 2013. In 2011, the Caribbean became infected with HIV, and around 10,000 died of AIDS. In 2012, in the United States, about 13,712 people died from AIDS. Not only that, but also AIDS expanded towards Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where 92,000 died from AIDS in

AIDS, the disease that's killed 35 million people since the 1970’s and 70 million people to this day are currently living with this disease as it affects their life on a daily basis.

Patient Zero was first diagnosed with Kaposi's sarcoma, a form of skin cancer common to AIDS victims, in June 1980 (The Appalling Saga of Patient Zero). The first recognition of AIDS came in 1981 with an outbreak in homosexual men in New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. Patients were suffering a breakdown in the body's natural defenses that often leads to fatal forms of cancer and lethal bouts of infections. Patient Zero had traveled extensively around the world getting sexual partners in every country he went to. When he was diagnosed, he was warned that he would be putting partners at risk if continuing to have sexual activity, but he still continued in the same pattern, which spread the disease directly and indirectly until he died in 1984.

Primary HIV infection is the first stage and only lasts for a few weeks. Flu-like illnesses may be present during this stage. The second stage is known as clinically asymptomatic stage and typically lasts for an average of ten years. Although major symptoms might not exist during this stage, the HIV-positive person may experience swollen glands. Symptomatic HIV infection is the third stage. As the immune system continues to fail, symptoms surface and become miniscule at first then later leading to more prevalent symptoms. This third stage is generally caused by illnesses, involving cancers and infections, which the immune system would normally fight off but is not able to because the immune system is too weak. Finally, AIDS, Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, develops and is the final stage of HIV. A person is diagnosed with AIDS when they show the symptom called an opportunistic infection. This is when infections take advantage of the weakened immune system. HIV leads into life threatening AIDS and causes the infected individual to feel escalating amounts of pain such as neurotic pain, tremendous headaches, gastrointestinal pain, chest pain, and even emotional pain such as depression. This pain can be intense enough to cease the individual from living a productively normal life. HIV and AIDS can strike anyone at any point in their life and should be taken seriously.

When the AIDS epidemic first exploded, the majority of the general public chose to ignore the disease due to the fact that it mainly struck the LGBT population. It was up to members of the LGBT community to spread awareness not only on how to prevent the illness, but about the very existence of AIDs itself. Unfortunately, access to such information was stalled due to the lack of available methods of communication, leaving LGBT people as unsuspecting victims even to this day. The development of the internet has led to the advancement in communication and information transference – improved traits that have played an important role in the growth and awareness of the present LGBT community. If the community had such methods of communication when

In some parts of the world there are still wars being fought and dictators in power. There are societies which consider themselves at the peak of evolution and progress. They are able to create state of the art automobiles, luxurious homes, efficient and organized industries, complex computerized machinery and atomic weapons. Many societies are governed by a democratic system which herald a belief in freedom.

In this HHMI lecture, the speaker, Dr. Ojiktu, combined basic research and clinical and public health work in her talk just as she does in her everyday work life. She is a medical doctors that sees many patients between the Boston area and a South African province in which 1 and 5 people are infected with the a virus that causes aids. She discuses the microscopic realm of the virus and virus infected cells to AIDS therapies. Dr. Ojiktu treats people with HIV and other infectious diseases. She enjoys linking what is happening here and overseas. She also works on a team to develop programs and do research concerning aids.