Emily Crighton, Second Year Medicine
‘I am tired of hearing about AIDS – the fact that it is brought about as a result of sin is rarely mentioned’ (Mass-Observation, 1987).
Homophobic views centre on the idea that homosexuality is an abnormality and deviate from heteronormativity (Ventriglio et al., 2021). Although homosexuality was partially decriminalised in 1967, gay men were still treated as second class citizens. Gay men could be fired from their job for being out as gay and convictions for gross indecency had tripled since the decriminalisation (BBC, 2022). AIDS was poorly understood with many misconceptions about the nature of the disease and in the early 1980s an AIDS diagnosis meant death, this led to fear.
The AIDS crisis had a devasting effect on the gay community in the UK. While the physical damage was profound, so to where the psychological consequences. Furthermore, the stigma and discrimination that emerged from this still have mental health implications for individuals today. The varied public attitudes towards the gay community during the AIDS crisis in the 80s were starkly revealed in the 1987 Mass Observation research project. They surveyed 1300 people, exposing views such as ‘I can’t help feeling that homosexuals have brought it on themselves’ (Mass-Observation, 1987). Stigma resulted from blame and fear, leading to the overwhelming guilt surrounding an AIDS diagnosis. Even now, people with an HIV diagnosis have a higher chance of developing anxiety and cognitive disorders (National Institute of Mental Health, 2022).
Discrimination and apathy towards the community was arguably not limited to individuals. Terrence Higgins was one of the first to die of an AIDS related illness. In 1982, Terry collapsed on the dancefloor of the London nightclub ‘Heaven’. He later died in hospital aged 37 from toxoplasmosis. While it’s difficult to make a clear link between the government response to AIDS with any homophobic motivation, it was felt by the gay community that the government was not taking action because the disease only affected homosexuals (BBC, 2022). In the early years of the epidemic little advice was provided by the government so charities within the gay community such as the Terrence Higgins Trust that was founded a year after his death and the Gay Switchboard were the primary sources of support and public education (The National Archives, 2021).
Lack of knowledge of disease transmission further perpetuated stigma. Before AIDS was identified in 1983 as a bloodborne virus, healthcare professionals would wear gowns, masks, and gloves on the wards, promoting the idea that AIDS could be caught via direct contact. It wasn’t until 1985 that the Department of Health published its first advice and yet many people still believed the disease could be contracted from surfaces such as coffee cups and toilet seats (BBC, 2022). ‘One friend will not sit next to anyone on a bus who looks as if they are gay in case she catches AIDS from them’ (Mass-Observation, 1987). Stigma grew from misinformation and gay men were made to feel different and ashamed (BBC, 2002). The infamous ‘tombstone’ campaign was intended to scare people into reading the information on the leaflets posted to every house. ‘AIDS: Don’t Die of Ignorance’ set morbid tone for the public health campaign launched by the UK government in 1986.
There is a danger that stressing the prevalence of HIV within the gay community gives the impression that only this specific group are affected (Altman, 1998), resulting in further marginalisation. However, without targeted public education and factual conversations of safe sex, gay men are at a higher risk of contracting HIV. To change sexual behaviours and increase awareness of safe sex practices, the Terrence Higgins Trust provided educational leaflets about condoms and safe sex in bars and nightclubs to deliver advice and information specific to gay men and target the community disproportionately dying from AIDs, something the government’s public health response failed to do.
‘Despite the amount of media attention paid to AIDS, I still do not fully understand it. Those who are carriers and those that actually have the disease – it is rather confusing.’ (Mass-Observation, 1987).
AIDS was first known as Gay-related immune deficiency (GRID). Headlines such as the ‘gay plague’ and ‘gay cancer’ painted gay men as responsible for the outbreak (Herbert, 2017). There was also a difference between the portrayal of sufferers that were gay and those that weren’t. Gay men and intravenous drug users were demonised while other sufferers of HIV such as heterosexual women and haemophiliacs were portrayed as innocent victims. The media’s presentation of the AIDs crisis and a lack of understanding within the scientific community allowed an increased aversion towards the gay community (Haynes, 2021).
‘The spread of the disease is disquieting, while one has little sympathy with sufferers whose sexual deviations have been directly responsible for their condition, it is sad to read of those who through no fault of their own are victims of the illness, especially young children’ (Mass-Observation, 1987).
The demonisation of the ‘gay plague’ couldn’t have come at a better time for the politicians who manipulated the epidemic to vilify the gay community and justify increasing homophobic rhetoric. Margaret Thatcher’s political philosophies under the themes of ‘family values’ and ‘Victorian values’ increased the prominence of homophobia and exploited this for political gain (Evans, 1997). The infectious nature of the disease further stigmatised homosexual men and the vitriolic language such as that of the Chief Constable of the Greater Manchester who described gay people as ‘swirling around in a cesspit of their own making’. A disgusting blame and hatred for the gay community that further enforced the idea that homosexuals deserved the disease (Tatchell, 2015). Thatcher captured the party’s anti-gay views stating that children should not be taught that they have an ‘inalienable right to be gay’. The Conservative Party introduced Section 28 to ban local authorities and schools from promoting homosexuality. This denied a generation of children appropriate sex and relationship education when sex education has always been incredibly important to individual and public health. ‘If people kept their private parts to themselves there would be no need for all this panic’ (Mass-Observation, 1987). Sex education through schools and public health campaigns is paramount as not only does a lack of awareness increase the risk of sexually transmitted diseases but also creates the stigma that surrounds them.
The gay community endured overwhelming homophobic repression and the terrifying prospect of catching the disease, all while watching their loved ones suffering and dying from AIDS. The gay community mobilised and campaigned for funding and research into the disease while receiving discrimination whether they were HIV positive or not. Fear and misinformation fuelled the stigma around AIDS and allowed homophobic attitudes to grow, and this makes evident the need for fast and accurate information during a public health crisis.
Reference list
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Archives, T.N. 2021. The National Archives – HIV/AIDS and the LGBTQ+ community: Education, Care and Support. The National Archives Blog. [Online]. Available from: https://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/hiv-aids-and-the-lgbtq-community-education-care-and-support/.
BBC 2022. Aids: The Unheard Tapes – Series 1: 1. Ignorance. http://www.bbc.co.uk. [Online]. [Accessed 15 January 2024]. Available from: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m0018t19/aids-the-unheard-tapes-series-1-1-ignorance.
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Evans, S. 1997. Thatcher and the Victorians: A Suitable Case for Comparison? History. 82(268), pp.601–620.
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Herbert, R. 2017. The Homophobic AIDS Crisis of the 1980s. The Gale Review. [Online]. Available from: https://review.gale.com/2017/05/17/the-homophobic-aids-crisis-of-the-1980s/.
ICPSR 1987. British Social Attitudes Survey, 1987. http://www.icpsr.umich.edu. [Online]. [Accessed 15 January 2024]. Available from: https://www.icpsr.umich.edu/web/ICPSR/studies/3091.
Khan Academy 2017. Emergence of the AIDS Crisis. Khan Academy. [Online]. Available from: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/modern-us/1980s-america/a/emergence-of-the-aids-crisis.
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National Institute of Mental Health 2022. HIV and AIDS and Mental Health. National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). [Online]. Available from: https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/hiv-aids#:~:text=People%20with%20HIV%20have%20a.
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Tatchell, P. 2015. 1980s: a Decade of state-sanctioned Homophobia. Peter Tatchell Foundation. [Online]. Available from: https://www.petertatchellfoundation.org/1980s-a-decade-of-state-sanctioned-homophobia/.Ventriglio, A., Castaldelli-Maia, J.M., Torales, J., De Berardis, D. and Bhugra, D. 2021. Homophobia and Mental health: a Scourge of Modern Era. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences. 30(52).a, D. 2021. Homophobia and Mental health: a Scourge of Modern Era. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences. 30(52).
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