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Effects of the Criminalization of HIV Transmission in Cuerrier on Men Reporting Unprotected Sex with Men

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 July 2014

Barry D. Adam ,
Richard Elliott ,
Winston Husbands ,
James Murray  and
John Maxwell
Barry D. Adam
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Windsor Windsor, ON N9B 3P4Canadaadam@uwindsor.ca
Richard Elliott
Affiliation:
Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network Toronto, ON, Canada
Winston Husbands
Affiliation:
Research and Program Development, AIDS Committee of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
James Murray
Affiliation:
AIDS Bureau, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, Toronto, ON, Canada
John Maxwell
Affiliation:
Special Projects, AIDS Committee of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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Abstract

This paper reports on the perceptions and practices of men who have frequent unprotected sex with men in a socio-legal environment defined by the 1998 decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v. Cuerrier. HIV-positive people are increasingly finding themselves in court since Cuerrier, and many are trying to take account of legal reasoning in their own conduct. The judicial construction of behaviour likely to transmit HIV relies on a set of presumptions concerning individual responsibility, rational and contractual interaction, and consenting adults that raises a series of ambiguities and uncertainties among HIV-positive people attempting to implement them in everyday life. While some express support for the reasoning in Cuerrier, others struggle with practical dilemmas in sexual interaction, and a minority strand of ethical reasoning advances a “buyer beware” principle. This latter view occurs in a social environment where HIV-positive people experience strong disincentives to disclose in the face of potential rejection or discrimination once their sero-status is known. Examination of the social consequences of Cuerrier raises questions about the viability of relying on the enforcement of disclosure, through threat of criminal prosecution, as an effective method of HIV prevention, especially when most practical, day-to-day HIV prevention occurs when safer sex is practised consistently regardless of disclosure.

Résumé

Cet article dresse un portrait des perceptions et des pratiques des hommes qui ont des rapports sexuels fréquents et non protégés avec d'autres hommes dans un climat sociolégal défini par la décision, en 1998, de la Cour suprême du Canada dans l'affaire R. c. Cuerrier. Depuis cette décision, les personnes séropositives se retrouvent de plus en plus souvent en cour et plusieurs d'entres elles essaient d'incorporer des raisonnements légaux dans leurs propres comportements. La construction judiciaire des comportements à risque en matière de transmission du VIH repose sur un ensemble de présuppositions concernant la responsabilité individuelle, les interactions rationnelles et contractuelles ainsi que les adultes consentants. Ces présuppositions suscitent une série d'ambiguïtés et d'incertitudes chez les personnes séropositives qui essaient de les incorporer dans leur vie quotidienne. Tandis que certaines personnes supportent le raisonnement dans l'affaire Cuerrier, d'autres luttent avec les dilemmes pratiques dans les interactions sexuelles, et une minorité avance un raisonnement éthique qui repose avant tout sur la mise en garde. Ce type de raisonnement est commun dans un environnement social dans lequel les personnes séropositives sentent des pressions les incitant à ne pas divulguer leur séropositivité, d'autant plus qu'elles risquent de faire face à un rejet ou une discrimination suite à cette divulgation. Un examen des conséquences sociales de Cuerrier mène à un questionnement sur la viabilité d'une stratégie de renforcement de la divulgation par la menace d'une poursuite en cour criminelle comme méthode efficace de prévention du VIH, d'autant plus que la prévention de la transmission du VIH a lieu, de façon pragmatique et quotidienne, lorsque les gens se protègent lors des rapports sexuels plutôt que de se fier sur la divulgation.

Type
Research Article
Information
Canadian Journal of Law and Society / La Revue Canadienne Droit et Société , Volume 23 , Issue 1-2 , April 2008 , pp. 143 - 159
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Law and Society Association 2008

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