When Communities Assess their AIDS Epidemics Results of Rapid Assessment of HIV/AIDS in Eleven U.S. Cities

When Communities Assess Their AIDS Epidemics is a detailed ethnographic description of the AIDS epidemic in eleven cities in the United States and in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Employing a rapid ethnographic assessment methodology, cities from the Atlantic to the Pacific have implemented Project RARE (Rapid Assessment, REsponse, and Evaluation) efforts. These RARE projects examine the moving edge of the AIDS epidemic through descriptions of high-risk sites and identification of the segments of the populations that are at the greatest risk. Utilizing a series of focus groups and street interviews, local field research teams gain an insider's perspective on HIV risk within social contexts. Benjamin P. Bowser, Ernest Quimby, and Merrill Singer have compiled these critical studies that analyze current conditions, challenges, and recommendations encountered by RARE. When Communities Assess Their AIDS Epidemics is a powerful and engaging text that will appeal to those interested in public health and anthropology. Book jacket.

Benjamin P. Bowser is professor of sociology and social services at California State University at Hayward Ernest Quimby is graduate associate professor of sociology at Howard University Merrill Singer is director of the Center for Community Health Research at the Hispanic Health Council