Communication and expressing, not speaking, on AIDS

Abstract

The aim of this article is not to quibble over the extent, character or purpose of speaking of Africans as people who do not communicate about something that evidence suggests they do speak about. It is not for this author to exhaust the theoretical possibilities by which communication can be said to not have taken place when it is accepted that someone has spoken. The point is to present a persuasive account that says it is strange and harmful that Africans are labelled silent on HIV/AIDS, when evidence shows them speaking about it. Hence, silence is briefly described, illustrations are offered of respected people presenting Africans as silent, and three major conceptual ways by which people are described as not communicating are interrogated. A key contribution of the article is to render it problematic to simply say Africans do not communicate on HIV/AIDS, or to say that our silence is not communication. The conclusion advocates that we avoid repeating without change the history of silencing others, and rather imagine and communicate towards possible futures in which mutual respect and recognition may stand a better chance. This is thus not a call for silencing talk about silence as regards HIV/AIDS, but a call for better communication that commands the respect of each individual.

Keywords:

• Africa
• communication
• conceptual ground
• HIV and AIDS
• language
• meaning
• recognition
• silence
• theory