Addressing the Inequality Epidemic

Globally, HIV risk and the health of HIV positive people are linked with structural inequalities, such as poverty, racism, and homophobia. This article summarizes key features of the structural approach to social work practice and applies the perspective to working with people affected by HIV/AIDS in the United States. Structural factors influencing HIV risk and health include housing, an individual-level factor; health care access, a community-level factor; and homophobia, a societal-level factor. Structural inequalities at each level are critical to understanding the context of HIV risk and should be assessed and addressed in social work practice in the field of HIV/AIDS. KEYWORDS: critical theory, HIV/AIDS, inequality, oppression, structural social work