Preventing AIDS, producing mothers: a sociological reading of HIV/AIDS posters aimed at women in the 1980s and 1990s

This article offers a sociological analysis of the representational frameworks constructed around women in HIV/AIDS prevention campaigns published in the United States during the 1980s and 1990s. We argue that the recurring use of the category of 'mother' progressively supplanted and diluted the broader category of 'woman' within these campaigns. The notion of motherhood, as portrayed, was shaped by six intersecting dimensions: (a) advice, (b) autonomy, (c) care, (d) guilt, (e) pleasure, and (f) social support. Drawing on a qualitative analysis of visual campaign materials, we contend that mothers gained visibility in the context of the epidemic primarily through imperatives of care and assistance situated within the domestic sphere. In relation to the six dimensions identified, the data reveal that women were consistently portrayed as universal caregivers, with male partners largely absent from the visual discourse. We conclude with a critical reflection on how women were included and represented in prevention campaigns, with a specific focus on the visual rhetoric of public health posters. Ethical, effective, and inclusive communication-especially concerning sensitive issues such as HIV/AIDS-remains a central concern for contemporary public health. Campaigns that blame or stigmatise women, even subtly, risk alienating their intended audiences and reproducing social inequalities, rather than fostering care and expanding access to healthcare. Preventive efforts are more constructive when they incorporate extended family networks-particularly in the case of Black and low-income women, who often depend on relatives, partners, and public health services. Contributions to the literature.