Dr. Thomas F. McDow, Department of History
Rank at time of award: Associate Professor
Abstract
The early history of HIV/AIDS in Africa intersects with the beginnings of the field of global health. This project draws on recent scholarship encouraging more local histories of the epidemic as a way to better understand its dynamics. In particular this project hypothesizes that the Tanzanian invasion (1978) and occupation of Uganda (through 1981) was a vital event in the spread of HIV throughout Tanzania. At the war’s completion tens of thousands of soldiers and militiamen returned to their homes throughout the country. While the first cases of AIDS were recognized in Tanzania in 1983 it was only two years later that every region of the country had at least one case. Histories of HIV frequently overlook the latency period of the virus, this project uses that time lag and the massive population shifts related to the war to understand the spread of AIDS in Tanzania.