Sites of Sickness, Sites of Rights? HIV/AIDS and the limits of human rights in British prisons

Janet Weston

doi:10.1080/14780038.2019.1585012

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis article considers one specific strand of discussion around HIV/AIDS, in order to think about the uses and limitations of human rights discourse in late twentieth century Britain. HIV/AIDS presented particular problems for prisons, which were initially presented as breeding grounds of infection. This shifted with the rise of human rights language and laws in the 1990s, but talk of rights for prisoners was not as comfortable a fit as talk of equivalence of care. This story is situated in the broader context of attitudes towards crime, HIV/AIDS, and rights in late twentieth century Britain.

Highlights

This article considers one specific strand of discussion around HIV/AIDS, in order to think about the uses and limitations of human rights discourse in late twentieth century Britain
Prisoners were primarily seen as a risk to others, especially in the 1980s as fears of a heterosexual epidemic were at their height
As public panic abated and talk of human rights and health rights became more common in the 1990s, the idea of these rights for those in prison was raised but gained little traction

Summary

Introduction

This article considers one specific strand of discussion around HIV/AIDS, in order to think about the uses and limitations of human rights discourse in late twentieth century Britain.

Results

Conclusion