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Public health then and now: The Tuskegee Syphilis Study, 1932 to 1972: Implications for HIV education and AIDS risk education programs in the black community

Author

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  • Thomas, S.B.
  • Quinn, S.C.

Abstract

The Tuskegee study of untreated syphilis in the Negro male is the longest nontherapeutic experiment on human beings in medical history. The strategies used to recruit and retain participants were quite similar to those being advocated for HIV/AIDS prevention programs today. Almost 60 years after the study began, there remains a trail of distrust and suspicion that hampers HIV education efforts in Black communities. The AIDS epidemic has exposed the Tuskegee study as a historical marker for the legitimate discontent of Blacks with the public health system. The belief that AIDS is a form of genocide is rooted in a social context in which Black Americans, faced with persistent inequality, believe in conspiracy theories about Whites against Blacks. These theories range from the belief that the government promotes drug abuse in Black communities to the belief that HIV is a manmade weapon of racial warfare. An open and honest discussion of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study can facilitate the process of rebuilding trust between the Black community and public health authorities. This dialogue can contribute to the development of HIV education programs that are scientifically sound, culturally sensitive, and ethnically acceptable.

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas, S.B. & Quinn, S.C., 1991. "Public health then and now: The Tuskegee Syphilis Study, 1932 to 1972: Implications for HIV education and AIDS risk education programs in the black community," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 81(11), pages 1498-1504.
    • Handle: RePEc:aph:ajpbhl:1991:81:11:1498-1504_7
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    Cited by:

    1. Richard L. Sowell & Kenneth D. Phillips & Carolyn Murdaugh & Abbas Tavokali, 1999. "Health Care Providers’ Influence on HIV-Infected Women’s Beliefs and Intentions Related to AZT Therapy," Clinical Nursing Research, , vol. 8(4), pages 336-354, November.
    2. Marcella Alsan & Marianne Wanamaker, 2018. "Tuskegee and the Health of Black Men," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 133(1), pages 407-455.
    3. Michael Hennessy & Kathleen M. MacQueen & Brenda Seals, 1995. "Using Factorial Surveys for Designing Intervention Programs," Evaluation Review, , vol. 19(3), pages 294-312, June.
    4. Aburto, José Manuel & Kristensen, Frederikke Frehr & Sharp, Paul, 2021. "Black-white disparities during an epidemic: Life expectancy and lifespan disparity in the US, 1980–2000," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 40(C).
    5. Madeline Y Sutton & Simone C Gray & Kim Elmore & Zaneta Gaul, 2017. "Social Determinants of HIV Disparities in the Southern United States and in Counties with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), 2013–2014," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(1), pages 1-12, January.
    6. Adrian Bangerter & Franciska Krings & Audrey Mouton & Ingrid Gilles & Eva G T Green & Alain Clémence, 2012. "Longitudinal Investigation of Public Trust in Institutions Relative to the 2009 H1N1 Pandemic in Switzerland," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 7(11), pages 1-8, November.
    7. Branden B. Johnson, 2004. "Arguments for Testing Ethnic Identity and Acculturation as Factors in Risk Judgments," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 24(5), pages 1279-1287, October.

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