"Researchers warn of hard choices ahead and a need for some countries to take more responsibility for their national programmes."
This weeks blog post is the last part of a three-part blog post written by Tariro’s intern Megan Bauer. The first post discussed the history of HIV/AIDS, the second looked at the various groups who have been accused of spreading HIV throughout time, and this last post is going to discuss how to take this information and act on it now.
Making solutions, not problems:
Since the beginning of the HIV/AIDS epidemic there has been blame. Various groups throughout time have been accused of causing and spreading AIDS and these same groups as well as new ones continue to be blamed today. What problem does blame solve? It offers no solutions or answers, it only creates anger and hostility against the groups who have been given that burden of blame.
There are books, websites, and studies dedicated to researching and proving who had the initial case of AIDS and who is to blame for spreading it. There are tons of resources that could be used for making a better future, but instead they live in the past. Education about what HIV is and how to prevent is it important, but why continue looking for an answer to a question that will never be found? Even with extensive research, we will never know what group had the first case of AIDS, and how does that information really matter?
What benefit do we get out of living in the past? We are simply creating more problems and leaving less solutions by focusing on who caused it. Instead we should be looking towards the future and finding a cure for this epidemic that has now been plaguing people’s lives for 30 years.
Focusing on the future:
We need to take all of our resources and reroute them to focus on finding a cure and helping those in need. With more research focused towards finding a cure, we can be that much closer to a solution. If people let down their guards and take away the anger and hostility, we can work toward helping others who are struggling, and put more energy towards preventing HIV from being spread. It isn’t important where it came from, but how we handle it and solve it now.
The question never should have been who caused it, but how can we fix it.
Thank you readers:
I hope that you enjoyed and took interest in this three-part blog piece. All of these thoughts and ideas had been going on in my head for a while and it was great to able to share them with you. I hope that the history of HIV/AIDS may have offered some clarity, that the accusations post offered some recognition, and that this post offered some motivation to make a change.