To use my earlier post on stigma as a jumping-off point, there was a session today titled Religion and New Leadership: the Challenge to Deliver (video available at the link). Speakers included religious leaders from a variety of religious and cultural backgrounds, discussing the role they play in working to control the AIDS epidemic. It was noted that churches haven't completely come to the reality that people living with HIV/aids aren't just a "they;" but that they're also members of their churches, mosques, synagogues, etc. It was emphasized that this sense of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) as an "outsider" or "other" is one of the obstacles that must be overcome in order to fully integrate these individuals into the religious organization.
(Continued at AIDS at 25)