In its short, just-under-30-year history, HIV/AIDS has been cast as various roles under the international spotlight.

In the early 1980s, under the alias Gay Related Immunodeficiency Disorder (GRID), HIV was incorrectly categorized as a disease affecting only gay populations. That was quickly disproved when GRID cases began appearing in heterosexual women, but more misunderstandings arose. When the human immunodeficiency virus was traced evolutionarily back to a virus affecting simian populations in Africa (get country), the Congolese government became defensive, accusing Western nations of continuing its discrimination and scapegoating against Africa.

Overwhelming research now confirms the source of HIV did come from the jungles of sub-Saharan Africa. and those sentiments have since passed. But the African continent seems to bear the scarlet letter by bearing a disproportionate amount of the HIV/AIDS burden. More than two out of every three people infected with HIV live in sub-Saharan Africa, and in 2007, more than three out of every four HIV-related deaths were Africans from sub-Saharan countries (UNAIDS 2007 Epidemic Update).

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HIV/AIDS Pandemic
HIV in the United States
Treatment as Prevention: Antiretroviral Therapy