HIV Stigma and Harassment Action
posted: 24/03/2010
Ending HIV stigma and harassment has edged a little closer. An official inquiry is about to begin into progress by public authorities on eliminating disability harassment – and this includes HIV stigma. The Inquiry is called because of recent cases of severe disability harassment neglected by public authorities. Councils and the NHS, among other public bodies, are simply not doing what the law tells them to - eliminate disability harassment.
Last week George House Trust met with the Equalities and Human Rights Commission in Manchester at a consultation into exactly what the disability harassment inquiry should look into.
- We made it plain that the official Inquiry must include HIV and not just people with learning difficulties or mental health problems.
- We said that people with invisible but highly stigmatised conditions like HIV face considerable disability harassment and stigma, and many barriers to complaining.
- We said that public bodies, with rare exceptions, ignore their duty to eliminate HIV disability harassment and stigma.
Over the next year the Equality and Human Rights Commission will investigate and we have offered to help gather HIV evidence. We are working with NAT to make this a nationwide effort.
What will happen?
The Commission has considerable powers to force public bodies to act if they are not doing their job. We have a right to expect things to improve and the least we expect is public campaigns to make HIV stigma and harassment socially unacceptable everywhere, a bit like the Kick Racism out of Football campaign.
The powers the EHRC has to force public bodies to eliminate HIV stigma and harassment means HIV stigma and harassment could really start to fade away. We think the Commission should start using its powers - this is one of the best hopes we have for ending HIV stigma and harassment.
We’ll keep you updated on the Inquiry and how you can give evidence confidentially.
Disability Harassment Inquiry
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