VOA英语2010年-Finding Shelter from AIDS at Nkosi’s Haven

Some 30 years into the HIV/AIDS epidemic¹, stigma² and discrimination continue to take a toll³. For example, in South Africa, some young, HIV positive mothers can find themselves homeless and shunned⁴ by their families. But there is a place where they can find shelter.

It's called Nkosi's Haven⁵ – named after Nkosi Johnson, a young, black South African boy. Nkosi was the star of the 13th International AIDS Conference in Durban in 2000. Infected with HIV at birth, the frail⁶ child called for better medical treatment and encouraged HIV positive people to be open about their status.

"Care for us and accept us," he said, "We are all human beings." Nkosi Johnson died a year later at age 12.

 
Nkosi's Haven
Nkosi johnson, 13th International Aids Conference, Durban, 2000
Nkosi and his adoptive mother Gail Johnson, a white South African, had been working to help young HIV positive mothers. Women just like his biological mother. Nkosi's Haven was founded in 1999 in a Johannesburg suburb.

"We've got the two houses next door to each other in Berea, where I have 9 moms and 47 kids. And then on the First of December last year we officially opened our Nkosi's Haven Village, which is a main house with lots of cottages. And here I've got 31mothers and 94 children," says Johnson.

The village is on two and a half acres of land just south of Johannesburg.

Timing⁷ is critical

Prospects⁸ for haven residents have improved greatly over the last 10 years. That's because antiretroviral drugs – or ARVs - are much more available. But timing is critical.

 
Nkosi's Haven
Hillary Clinton and Gail Johnson
"I'm not losing as many moms or children. But we had the death of a baby this year. We've got longer life span with the mothers. They look a lot healthier. But also because of the denial still in so many people's minds a lot of the moms are coming just too late. They weigh about 24 kgs and sometimes we can't turn them around," she says.

Denial, stigma and discrimination, says Johnson, greatly reduce the chances of survival for infected mothers and children.

Johnson says, "You might have a 26 year old woman living with her parents and the parents will keep her hidden. So she will not be able to access the drugs because she'll be put in the corner type of situation. Then a neighbor might intervene and it's too late. It's too late to turn her around even if she gets put on ARVs."

Fear, ignorance and taboos¹⁰

"A lot of the moms are refusing to be tested when they're pregnant. So, for example, a lot of my toddlers, my two or three year olds, are infected and they shouldn't be," she says.

Gail Johnson says culture and tradition can make talking about sex difficult or even taboo⁹. And that can open the door to HIV infection.

"You know, it's sexually transmitted in South Africa. You know, that's just nonnegotiable. But in the black community, people don't talk sex very comfortably or easily. And because it's a sexually transmitted disease they find it difficult to deal with. You know what I mean. A parent has to be open about sex to be able to discuss HIV/AIDS with their teenage kid," she says.

Upon arrival at Nkosi's Haven, young mothers are counseled first about accepting their HIV positive status.

"Very often," says Johnson, "we find the mom has not disclosed to her children that she is positive. So, you've got kids moving in with us where everyone just talks HIV/AIDS because we normalize it totally. And (those children) are wondering why the hell they're here. So mom is counseled around disclosure to her children. And then another step further after that is mom is counseled around having her children tested if they have not been tested."

To break the cycle, Johnson says young women need to be empowered enough to say no to unprotected sex.

"You have to teach them the physiological¹² side of sex," she says, "the psychology¹³ of sex. You work at building their esteem¹⁴, their ego¹¹, which, in turn, will allow them to say no. But at the moment they are so vulnerable because in their culture the woman hasn't much say at the best of times."

At the same time, she says boys must be taught that it's ok to have smart, strong women in their lives.

Nkosi's Haven relies on donations from many sponsors to keep its doors open. Johnson says she hopes 2011 will bring a better economy in South Africa so the haven's projects can continue to grow.

1 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

2 stigma   

n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头

参考例句：

• Being an unmarried mother used to carry a social stigma.做未婚母亲在社会上曾是不光彩的事。
• The stigma of losing weighed heavily on the team.失败的耻辱让整个队伍压力沉重。

3 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

4 shunned   

v.避开，回避，避免( shun的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was shunned by her family when she remarried. 她再婚后家里人都躲着她。
• He was a shy man who shunned all publicity. 他是个怕羞的人，总是避开一切引人注目的活动。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

6 frail   

adj.身体虚弱的；易损坏的

参考例句：

• Mrs. Warner is already 96 and too frail to live by herself.华纳太太已经九十六岁了，身体虚弱，不便独居。
• She lay in bed looking particularly frail.她躺在床上，看上去特别虚弱。

7 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

8 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

9 taboo   

n.禁忌，禁止接近，禁止使用；adj.禁忌的；v.禁忌，禁制，禁止

参考例句：

• The rude words are taboo in ordinary conversation.这些粗野的字眼在日常谈话中是禁忌的。
• Is there a taboo against sex before marriage in your society?在你们的社会里，婚前的性行为犯禁吗？

10 taboos   

禁忌( taboo的名词复数 )； 忌讳； 戒律； 禁忌的事物（或行为）

参考例句：

• She was unhorsed by fences, laws and alien taboos. 她被藩蓠、法律及外来的戒律赶下了马。
• His mind was charged with taboos. 他头脑里忌讳很多。

11 ego   

n.自我，自己，自尊

参考例句：

• He is absolute ego in all thing.在所有的事情上他都绝对自我。
• She has been on an ego trip since she sang on television.她上电视台唱过歌之后就一直自吹自擂。

12 physiological   

adj.生理学的，生理学上的

参考例句：

• He bought a physiological book.他买了一本生理学方面的书。
• Every individual has a physiological requirement for each nutrient.每个人对每种营养成分都有一种生理上的需要。

13 psychology   

n.心理，心理学，心理状态

参考例句：

• She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
• He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。

14 esteem   

n.尊敬，尊重；vt.尊重，敬重；把…看作

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• The veteran worker ranks high in public love and esteem.那位老工人深受大伙的爱戴。