Politics and Health

Running Head : Politics of Health

The Politics of Health : AIDS in South Africa

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Abstract

AIDS is currently an epidemic in South Africa . As of 2003 , about 40 million South Africans were infected with HIV while at least 20 million died of AIDS . But instead of doing something about this crisis , the South African government opted to remain silent . In the process , the country 's blacks ended up marginalized - deprived of drugs and other medical services that would have allowed them to live

lives of dignity despite their illness

The Politics of Health : AIDS in South Africa

It is very easy for intellectuals and politicians to make grandiose statements about the universality of exploitation . Ironically , it is this ability of theirs that alienates them from the masses . For the hoi polloi , exploitation is not a theory that is analyzed - it is a way of life . The common people do not need a philosophical or theoretical gloss in understanding exploitation because they are already being exploited almost every day of their lives (Brittan , 1978

The blacks in South Africa are one example that will validate the aforementioned arguments . They do not need to verbalize their exploited state , as evidences of their situation are all around them . Their everyday routines are marked by alienation - corrupt law-enforcement agencies , Apartheid legislation , police brutality , unfair labor practices in mines and factories (Brittan , 1978 . At present , they are also at the exploited end in the AIDS epidemic in their country

The...