HIV/AIDS is another influential source of global queering. The legacy
of the epidemic for the globalization of gay culture is complex and
far-reaching, and it extends well beyond the professionalization (and
even the homogenization) of gay-rights activism around the world. In
particular, ambitious and often controversial safe-sex campaigns designed
to curb the spread of the epidemic are credited with disseminating
a “Western model of homosexuality.” These campaigns—which originated
in the United States and Western Europe and were later exported
to the developing world by NGOs, multilateral organizations such as
the World Bank and the Pan American Health Organization, and private
charities such as the American Foundation for Aids Research—shattered
many taboos in regions such as Latin America by featuring images
of same-sex couples, especially males, and frank sexual language about
ways to prevent HIV infection.