HIV/AIDS is the focus of my doctoral research, where I investigate impacts of the disease in terms of international and strategic security. My work stems from a desire to promote the voices of marginalised groups and individuals, and to ensure that the security we seek in today’s globalised world really is security for everyone. I live in the UK and attend Swansea University, where I studied International Relations, Social Research (MSc) and am currently a PhD candidate.
Gillian Rollason
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HIV and Us: Victim of the stoppable, unstoppable disease
September 27, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Imagine if HIV were an airborne virus? Next time someone next to you on campus sneezed, you could be infected with deadly and incurable disease. And what about mosquito bites? A holiday in Thailand might not seem so appealing then…Would we have developed a cure if the problem was so easily transmitted? Or would be living in a nightmarish dystopia of quarantine and detention centres? Luckily, HIV is not airborne, and despite constant mutations in the virus it is unlikely to ever be as contagious as flu or the common cold. Perhaps just as luckily, the … [Read more...]
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but a few well chosen words can call in an air-strike
March 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Obama is the new Hitler. Libya is overrun by Al Quaeda on drugs. Christian terrorists are killing Gaddafi’s loyal and loving nationals…. Whilst Gaddafi seems to entertain a somewhat sporadic relationship with reality, the power of his language reveals that he is strikingly on-key with his message of terrorist persecution in response to international intervention this week. Whether this message is a clearly defined strategy, a deluded aping of his legitimate sovereign counterparts, or sheer desperation, is less important. There are security … [Read more...]
Facing ‘difficulties’ after brutalizing a population? Obama and David Cameron could learn a lesson from their North African and Arab counterparts
March 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment
After decades of brutalizing the population, political leaders shouldn’t be surprised to find their authority challenged by violent uprisings. But this plight is not only of political elites in North Africa and the Middle East - European and American leaders face serious dilemmas at the United Nations, after years of ignoring the human consequences of their foreign policy abroad. It is hardly surprising that Gaddafi is able to use mercenaries to suppress a popular uprising, despite outrage from the international community at the (continued) … [Read more...]
Aid for AIDS* – Exporting health and expectations (* political revolution optional)
February 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Protect human rights, empower women, create jobs, strengthen the economy, spread democracy, save children, pipe water, grow crops…the benefits of development are a shining torch that many in the international community use to guide their foreign and domestic policy (or so at least, they would have us believe). A few contentious issues arise when we ask ourselves in which direction we are supposed to be ‘developing’ and tensions run high when foreign powers are accused of buying political influence with aid or investment. America might be used to … [Read more...]
‘Hey Sexy Lady!’ Shouting Back Against the Pervs
January 26, 2011 By 4 Comments
“Hey sexy lady! Check THIS out...” [Michael Jackson-esque groin thrust in my direction] ‘Ohh please’ I think 'please wait while I hurry over and give you my phone number, you prehistoric, knuckle-dragging moron’ You may assume that the slimy guy leering at you in the street or beeping his car horn is simply a victim of tragic social ineptitude, but this situation is more sinister. Street harassment ranges from whistles, shouting, and dodgy trouser pocket movements to full blown groping and physical attacks. Where does … [Read more...]
What role do you envision young people playing around the issue of HIV/AIDS?
September 30, 2010 By 2 Comments
By Gillian Rollason Gillian is one of AIDemocracy’s 2010-2011 Issue Analysts. Find our more about Gillian below, and about our Student Issue Analysts. I’m 24, I'm invincible. At least that’s how I feel. But my daily life - how I pay my bills, or what I do at the weekend – could have repercussions far more serious than whether I’m able to make interesting small talk at that student party... The HIV epidemic – which has claimed 25 million people so far - is unique because it is our behaviour that determines patterns of infection and … [Read more...]
