Brazil, known for both its deep historical inequalities and its growing role as a powerful nation in the global economy, has been recognized as exemplary in the way it has responded to its significant AIDS epidemic, particularly by providing universal access to state of the art medical care, including expensive antiretroviral medications. This ethnography from the fields of medical anthropology and social medicine explores how it is to grow up living with or affected by HIV and AIDS when the right to health is respected. To what extent have Brazil´s social responses transformed the everyday lives of people afflicted by HIV or AIDS? Through historically oriented interpretations and analyses driven by a critical perspective, the author presents how the lives of this group of Brazilian children and adolescents are transformed within in a social paradox that he terms diseases of poverty-privileged responses. Many lessons can be learned from this country's approach to the AIDS epidemic and from the stories of these children, adolescents and young adults who were born afflicted by HIV/AIDS. Social science researchers, public policy officials, health care professionals and social movement activists alike will find this an easy read, but will also discover many theoretical and applied insights that will motivate discussions, further research, and challenge how we think about warranting healthcare as a human right.
