Many of the sessions that I attended during AIDS 2010 discussed stigma, discrimination, and changing social norms. In these sessions, presenters gave talks on both theoretical and practical applications of projects geared towards changing the way in which people look at “the other.” As our conference was titled “Rights Here, Right Now,” sessions were highly dependant on dialogue concerning causes of inequity amongst people. Key stigmatized and discriminated groups discussed were Men Who have Sex with Men (MSM), Illicit Drug Users (IDU), Women, Prisoners, and racial and ethnic minorities (the last not being a major foci but mentioned in passing).

I consider these sessions the “Change the World” sessions by nature of their zeal for creative change. One of the “Change the World” sessions I attended concerned the need for a new outlook on social norms. Each speaker in this session had a particular topic concerning the norms, which stigmatize one group or another.

The last panelist in this session was particularly interesting to me, as he broached a completely unfamiliar social norm for me. This speech discussed the need for social acceptance of transgendered women, that is men (by physical appearance) who feel that they are truly gendered as women. These “trans-women” in Lima, Peru could not get gender reassignment surgeries or proper hormone therapies because of the stigmas within their culture. As a result many trans-women in this culture have taken matters into their own hands—having friends and family members administer silicone injections to create a more feminine appearance. These injections are most often done underground in friends’ homes by non-medically trained individuals.

The thesis of this presentation was to explain that trans-women in Lima, Peru do not have the right to healthcare because the gender norms of their culture exclude transgendered individuals. This means that in this particular culture transgendered individuals are essentially not accepted as human beings.

There was no research done in this study concerning the prevalence of HIV in this community, though such a study would prove useless. If these individuals are denied healthcare, knowing their HIV status would merely mean knowing their death sentence. Without access to treatment an inevitable increase in the presence of HIV in transgendered individuals will occur. The denial of basic human rights to these individuals means more than social exclusion, stigma, and discrimination. It means denial of legal rights and the right to adequate healthcare and treatment.

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