Module 2: Historical and Socioeconomic Health Risks

Goal of Module 2:
To examine the historical and sociological factors that put Native communities at increased risk for HIV infection.

Addressing HIV/AIDS is not an easy task in itself. Addressing HIV/AIDS among Native populations is even more difficult. It involves the health and psychosocial effects of many other issues: a traumatic history, homophobia and discrimination, poor communication, poverty, and substance abuse. In order to address HIV/AIDS among Native populations, it is essential to understand and respond to these historical and social barriers.
Contents

2 Impacts of Contact and Colonization

This module discusses the impact of HIV/AIDS on Native Americans and the health and psychological legacies of contact and colonization.

Topics include:

  1. History and Trauma


  2. Impacts of Contact and Colonization


  3. Discrimination and Homophobia


  4. Effective Communication


  5. Biological Factors


  6. Poverty


  7. Violence and Powerlessness


  8. Trust and Lack of Confidence


  9. Substance Abuse


  10. Healthcare Funding for Native Communities


  11. Structural Barriers to Intervention/Prevention

Native communities still experience trauma as a result of colonization. Native people suffer from depression, marginalization, alienation, identity confusion, substance abuse, violence, and suicide. All of these traumas play a role in the transmission of HIV/AIDS among Native people.

  • Study the colonization history of your community. How did Native people in your location get to be where they are today? Who did they come into contact with? How were they treated by the colonizers?
  • What type of intergenerational trauma has your community experienced as a result of colonization? Study the diagram above, and think about physical and psychological health problems that seem to transfer from generation to generation. (Click here for an interactive diagram.)