Aids Awareness - Paris

Can anyone guess what this publicity is about?

Well, this is a 2006 anti-AIDS campaign by the city hall of Paris (Paris protège l’amour means Paris protects love).

In the photo, we see a sunset on a historical building with a moon in the backdrop. But when you take a closer look, the moon is… a condom! It aims to promote condom use among the population, encouraging safe sex. Personally, I believe it’s neither obscene nor vulgar but rather a clever way to raise awareness.

The reason for writing about this is that such publicity is unthinkable in my country, where 5.7 million people are infected. India has unfortunately overtaken South Africa as the country with the largest number of people living with HIV. People would be outraged if they saw this kind of publicity in public places, considering it vulgar. AIDS is still a taboo subject that isn’t openly discussed.

It’s not just about the poor, sex workers, or uneducated. Think about the trendy city young men and women smoking cigarettes and sipping cocktails. They are part of the cosmopolitan elite, supposedly upwardly mobile and well-informed. This group is more open to talking about AIDS, but when it comes to personal responsibility, they seem to turn a blind eye. It’s strange.

I hope one day India will be open enough to talk freely about this issue.

P.S. This is an old post we just found on our PC.