Abstract

This ethnography focuses on the work of HIV peer educators at the non-profit organization of Center for Youth of Hope (CEYOHO) in Gaborone, Botswana. Drawing on Jarrett Zigon’s theory of the moral breakdown and ethical demand, I argue that from a moral breakdown of HIV, intimacy can facilitate the ethical demand or motivation for developing new moral subjects. During this moral reshaping, intimacy is part of a process that involves practices of educated hope, trust, knowledge, and accountability. More specifically, intimacy through friendship and companionship between peer educators and clients allows them to hope together for an educated future that involves HIV prevention and the de-stigmatization of those living with HIV. Through testimonies given by peer educators about their experiences as individuals infected and affected by HIV, this ethnography aims to counteract dominant frameworks that continue to stigmatize those who are “infected” and rather “bring a face to HIV.”

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