“What are you going to do about it?” asked a 98-year-old woman, whose face was worn with the struggles of her past. I immediately mentioned my desire to go to graduate school and the research I hoped to pursue. She shook her head and smiled. Again, she asked, “What are you going to do when you go back to America?” For the first time, I was at a loss for words. This seemingly small moment during my internship with Ikamva Labuntu became a defining moment in not only the time I spent in South Africa, but in my life as well. As I have finally arrived home, this question still haunts me, leaving me to reflect upon one of the greatest issues plaguing the great nation: the AIDS pandemic.
South Africa has been deemed as one of the leading countries infected with HIV and AIDS, with an estimated 5.2 million people affected. Yet, the young people are generally the most affected, with approximately one-in-three women between the age of 25-29 living with HIV and AIDS and over 25 percent men between the age of 30-34. However, this has led to disastrous effects on the nation’s children. With very limited education concerning the disease, especially within the townships, the mother generally passes on the virus to the child through vaginal birth or breast-feeding. Raising a sick child in an environment where the family already struggles with health and employment leads to additional hardships and unfortunately, leads to a devastating 1.4 million orphaned children fighting for their survival. Many students within my class were able to experience this during our time at the Christine Revell’s Children Home and while dispersing school uniforms to the children of Alexandra. Yet, with the rapid spread of the disease and increase of deaths, why is this disease still afflicting South Africa and what can be done be about it?
Before arriving to South Africa, these answers seemed simple and uncomplicated: the government needs to provide education and more contraceptives and more specifically, condoms. Looking back on my theory and then reflecting upon what I learned during my journey, I can only laugh at how little I really knew. Yet, one experience was able to teach me how these questions are not simple and even worse, the answers are even more complicated. During my stay in Cape Town, I interned with a family social services organization called Ikamva Labuntu, in which I was able to go into the townships and talk to locals about their experience and health in South Africa. I was able to talk to orphaned children, mamas (foster mothers), single mothers, and those who were just trying to get through the day. I learned that the health centers within their areas, while free, are unaccommodating and most women wake up at 3am to go to these centers; only to leave at 4pm. Furthermore, most individuals afflicted with the disease had the Anti-Retrovial medication but are so poor they do not have the food mandatory to take with the medication. Additionally, I learned that condoms were not the problem: it’s sexual education and the nation’s mindset.
Upon talking to the community, I discovered that condoms were free and widely dispersed. However, people are not using them for their intended purpose and instead, are using them for water balloons, a “cure” for arthritis, shoes, and the list goes on. Yet, the most shocking part was that women did not understand the concept of birth control or upon asking about the state of “sexual education,” they immediately discussed gender roles. In this mindset, sexual education is simply teaching women how to clean and take care of their family, etc. This pervasive thinking is generally found within the younger generation, who holds a stigma against condom use and accepts men’s ‘right’ to a woman’s body. Many of my fellow students even found it custom for young kids and adults ask if we were married or how many children we had. This generational thinking and a lack of effective and accurate education have led to unsafe practices and teenage pregnancies.
While my observations certainly do not apply to all of South Africa or fully provide the necessary answers to my questions (as there are numerous factors and complexities to the issue), it is a starting point. I, along with my fellow students, we were able to learn more about the AIDS pandemic than we thought possible. Now, the question remains: What are we going to do about it?