Structural violence, poverty and the AIDS pandemic

Joia S. Mukherjee addresses the linkage between poverty, gender inequality and HIV risk; the worsening of poverty due to the HIV pandemic; and the lack of access to active antiretroviral therapy for the poor. She argues structural violence is connected with a large variety of factors including economic privation, gender inequality, lack of opportunity for education and work, and migration for work increases both the risk of contracting HIV and makes prevention strategies less actionable. Without funding to address economic and educational opportunities, the epidemic can only continue.