A Loss of Moral Experience: Understanding HIV-Related Stigma in the New York City House and Ball Community

I incorporated qualitative methods to explore how HIV-related stigma functions in New York City's House and Ball Community (HBC). From January through March 2009, I conducted 20 in-depth 1-on-1 interviews with a diverse sample of New York City HBC members. Interviews addressed perceptions of HI...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:American journal of public health (1971) 2013-02, Vol.103 (2), p.293-299
Main Author: GALINDO, Gabriel R
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome
Adolescent
Adult
AIDS
Biological and medical sciences
Black or African American
Black People
Community
Ethics
Female
Gender
General aspects
Hispanic or Latino
HIV
HIV Seropositivity - psychology
Homosexuality, Male
Human immunodeficiency virus
Humans
Influence
Interviews as Topic
Male
Medical sciences
Men
Minority & ethnic groups
Minority Groups
Miscellaneous
New York City
Oppression
Prejudice
Public health
Public health. Hygiene
Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine
Qualitative research
Research and Practice
Social Stigma
Stigma
Teaching. Deontology. Ethics. Legislation
Transgender persons
Young Adult
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Summary:I incorporated qualitative methods to explore how HIV-related stigma functions in New York City's House and Ball Community (HBC). From January through March 2009, I conducted 20 in-depth 1-on-1 interviews with a diverse sample of New York City HBC members. Interviews addressed perceptions of HIV-related stigma, the treatment of HIV-positive members in the community, and the potential impact of HIV-related stigma on risk behaviors. HIV-related stigma contributes to a loss of moral experience for HBC members. Moral experience (i.e., threats to what really matters in a community) disrupts established social connections and hinders the attainment of "ball status" (i.e., amassing social recognition) in the local world of these individuals. My recommendations address HIV-related stigma in the New York City HBC from the vantage of moral experience and highlight the need for longitudinal studies of individual house members and for the implementation of stigma-focused interventions in the community that utilize the unique ball status hierarchy and HBC network to influence social norms surrounding the treatment of HIV-positive community members.
ISSN:0090-0036
1541-0048
1541-0048
DOI:10.2105/AJPH.2012.300916