AIDS and South Africa: The Social Expression of a Pandemic

CLAUDIA C. BERMUDES RIBIERO DA CRUZ Partner, Consumer Insight AgencyJEFFREY D. LEWIS Economic Advisor in the International Trade Department and the Prospects Group in the World BankMARILYN MARTIN Director of Art Collections for Iziko Museums of Cape Town, South AfricaHOWARD PHILLIPS Associate Professor in the Department of Historical Studies, Faculty of Humanities, at the University of Cape Town, South AfricaJEFFREY D. SACHS Director of The Earth Institute, Quetelet Professor of Sustainable Development, and Professor of Health Policy and Management at Columbia University, USASONIA ERLICH SACHS Pediatrician interested in pediatric issues in developing countries, especially childhood malaria and AIDS orphansVIRGINIA VAN DER VLIET Social Anthropologist, South AfricaCAL VOLKS Director of the HIV/AIDS Unit at the University of Cape Town, South AfricaDIANA CHAPMAN WALSH President of Wellesley College, USA

The HIV/AIDS pandemic striking South Africa is of historic proportions. More people are living with AIDS in South Africa than in any other country in the world. Just in the past decade, the life expectancy in South Africa has dropped from 67 to 43 years. The social and economic impact of this disease is hard to overstate. However, what is striking is the paucity of thoughtful, reflective scholarship and writing on the subject. AIDS and South Africa: The Social Expression of a Pandemic addresses the economic, social and cultural impact of HIV/AIDS as it relates to South African society.

AIDS is still a very topical and controversial issue

Too Poor to Stay Alive; S.E.Sachs & J.D.Sachs Why is South Africa the HIV Capital of the World? An Institutional Analysis of the Spread of a Virus; K.D.Kauffman HIV/AIDS in the Context of South Africa's Epidemic History; H.Phillips South Africa Divided Against AIDS: A Crisis of Leadership; V.van der Vliet Assessing the Demographic and Economic Impact of HIV/AIDS; J.D.Lewis HIV/AIDS in South Africa: Can Art Make a Difference?; M.Martin From Policy to Practice: The Anthropology of Condom Use; C.C.Bermudes Ribero Da Cruz The Role of Tertiary Institutions in the HIV/AIDS Epidemic; C.Volks Afterword: Challenges and Lessons; D.L.Lindauer & D.Chapman Walsh