Aunty Gracelyn Smallwood’s Impact on HIV Prevention with Dr Geraldine Fela
When HIV arrived on Australian shores in the early 1980’s, politicians and healthcare workers were worried the virus would run rampant throughout remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
However, this was not the case, due in no small part to the highly successful health promotion campaigns and public health programs rolled out around the country by Aboriginal-controlled medical services from 1987. The most famous of these was “Condoman”, a First Nations superhero, modeled off the comic book character, the Phantom, whose safe-sex directive “Don’t be shame, be game! Use a Condom!” captured hearts and minds across the continent.
Aunty Gracelyn Smallwood, nurse, midwife and proud Birrigubba, Kalkadoon and South-Sea Islander women was central to the success of the public health response. Her advocacy took her from her hometown of Townsville all the way to the highest offices of Australia’s HIV and AIDS response where she played a part in shaping a world-leading approach to the virus.
Dr Geraldine Fela, Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in the Department of History and Archaeology, Macquarie University, joined Danny Chifley on 2SER Breakfast to discuss Aunty Gracelyn’s work and impact on HIV prevention.
To find out more about Aunty Gracelyn and the work of other nurses and political figures who helped shape Australia’s response to HIV and AIDS, check out Dr Fela’s latest book Critical Care; Nursing on the Front Line of Australia’s AIDS Crisis
