VCU speaker series to explore HIV/AIDS epidemic from local, national, global perspectives

By Brian McNeill

A multidisciplinary speaker series at Virginia Commonwealth University will explore the topic of HIV/AIDS from local, national and global points of view.

The series, organized by the Humanities Research Center in the College of Humanities and Sciences, is titled “HIV/AIDS: Local, National, and Global Perspectives” and will feature nine events, from Feb. 2 to April 18.

“Scholars from a range of disciplines are now writing important studies of this ongoing tragedy,” said Richard Godbeer, Ph.D., director of the Humanities Research Center and a professor in the Department of History. “The HIV/AIDS crisis has had a profound impact on individual lives and local communities, the medical world, national and international politics, cultural attitudes and economics. It is shaped by and in turn has shaped our perceptions of race, class, gender and sexuality.”

The series aims to give careful attention to the HIV/AIDS epidemic that continues to destroy lives and wreak havoc in countries across the globe. It will examine the interplay between medical, political, cultural, literary and artistic spheres of thought and activity, as well as explore the interrelationships between local, national and global events in the late-20th and early-21st centuries.

“This is a remarkable opportunity to show how multiple disciplines can contribute in different ways to our understanding of a crisis that is best understood from a range of perspectives,” Godbeer said.

All of the events are free and open to the public.

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“The Changing Landscape of HIV Prevention and Treatment: A History of Virginia’s Epidemic”
Feb. 2 at 7 p.m.
University Student Commons, Forum Room

Elaine Martin, director of HIV Prevention Services, Division of Disease Prevention, Virginia Department of Health, will speak about the history of Virginia’s response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic over the past three decades.

 

 

“Richmond, Va., and the HIV/AIDS Epidemic: Personal Histories of Outreach and Education” Feb. 9 at 7 p.m. Cabell Library Auditorium  

A panel of activists and community organizers who have been involved over the years in local responses to the HIV/AIDS epidemic will talk about their experiences and Richmond’s history of addressing the multilayered challenges presented by the virus throughout the community.

 

“Left Behind: Ending AIDS in Black Communities in America” Feb. 23 at 6 p.m. University Student Commons, Richmond Salons I-II

Phill Wilson will talk about his work as director of the Black AIDS Institute. Founded in May of 1999, the Black AIDS Institute is the only national HIV/AIDS think tank focused exclusively on black people. The institute’s mission is to stop the AIDS pandemic in black communities by engaging and mobilizing black institutions and individuals in efforts to confront HIV. The institute interprets public and private sector HIV policies, conducts trainings, offers technical assistance, disseminates information and provides advocacy mobilization from a uniquely and unapologetically black point of view. This event is co-sponsored by LGBTQ Initiatives in the Division for Inclusive Excellence.

“HIV + Women’s Oral Histories, or What Can a Humanist Tell Us about Treatment and Prevention in an Era of Biomedical Supremacy?” Feb. 29 at 4 p.m. University Student Commons, Richmond Salons I-II

Jennifer Brier, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of History and the Program in Gender and Women’s Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago, will talk about her current research project on women living with HIV/AIDS. This event is co-sponsored by the Department of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies.

 

 

“Sent by the Ancestor: Women, HIV, and Islam in Mali” March 16 at 4 p.m. Humanities Research Center Seminar Room, 920 W. Franklin St.

Christopher A. Brooks, Ph.D., a professor of anthropology in the School of World Studies in the College of Humanities and Sciences, and Salim Coumare, a professor at the Abdoul Karim Camera School in Segou, Mali, will speak about their research on the experiences of women living with HIV/AIDS in Mali. This event is co-sponsored with the anthropology program in the School of World Studies.

 

“Educated through Laughter: Satires and HIV Prevention Media in Francophone West Africa” March 30 at noon Humanities Research Center Seminar Room, 920 W. Franklin St.

Christine Cynn, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies at VCU, will speak about her current book project, “The ABCs of HIV Prevention in Sub-Saharan Africa,” which examines United States-sponsored HIV prevention media in sub-Saharan Africa. This event is co-sponsored by the Department of Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies. 

 

 

“Fig Trees” April 5 at 4 p.m. Cabell Library Auditorium

Professor John Greyson, Department of Film, York University, Canada, will talk about his documentary film “Fig Trees,” which follows South African AIDS activist Zackie Achmat and Canadian AIDS activist Tim McCaskell as they fight for access to treatment for HIV/AIDS. This event, which will include a screening of “Fig Trees,” is made possible in part by a Quest Global Impact Award.

 

“The Fiction of Best Practices: the Novel and the NGO” April 14 at 4 p.m. Cabell Library Auditorium

Professor Neville Hoad, Ph.D., Department of English, University of Texas at Austin, will speak about his current book project, which examines literary and cultural representations of the HIV/AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa. This event is made possible in part by a Quest Global Impact Award.

 

 

“South Africa’s Constitutional Transition and AIDS: A Personal Account” April 18 at 5 p.m. Cabell Library Auditorium

Justice Edwin Cameron, who sits on the Constitutional Court of South Africa, will speak about his personal involvement in the struggle to ensure just and humane treatment of people living with HIV/AIDS in South Africa. This event is made possible in part by a Quest Global Impact Award.

 

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