Sex, love, friendship, belonging and place: is there a role for 'Gay Community' in HIV prevention today?
The decade since highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) arrived has been a time of change for gay men in the West. HIV incidence rates have been levelling off--and in some cities, increasing markedly--for the first time since the early years of the pandemic. New sexual subcultures have found expression, including Internet chat rooms, 'poz-only' sex parties, 'barebacking' and crystal methamphetamine use. These circumstances force a re-evaluation of HIV prevention targeting gay communities. We examine the antecedents of current HIV-prevention dilemmas in findings from a qualitative study of gay men who were personally and professionally engaged in HIV/AIDS in Sydney, Australia, in 1997-1998, immediately after the 'protease moment'. The men's lives were characterized by constant and difficult negotiation of gay subjectivities. They did not find a place of uniform belonging in the gay community; rather, ambivalence--toward the gay community and HIV prevention--and fragmentation emerged as themes. Our findings suggest that by the late 1990s, the ethos of safe sex developed in the early HIV/AIDS period was no longer a unifying cultural value. We explore the conditions that led to this shift and the implications for HIV prevention in the 21st century.
Rowe
Matthew S
MS
New York State Psychiatric Institute and Columbia University, New York, USA.
Dowsett
Gary W
GW
D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001315:Australia; D033062:Friends; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology / Q000635:transmission; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000523:psychology; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D012309:Risk-Taking; D021841:Safe Sex / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012747:Sexual Partners; D012919:Social Behavior