Positively Spoken was an oral history project collecting the life stories of people who were born with and grew up living with HIV.
Since the late 1980s, sound recordings telling the unique stories of people living with HIV have been collected at the British Library Sound Archive. The acclaimed BBC documentary “Aids: The Unheard Tapes” is based on stories from this archive.
Young people who have grown up with HIV have insightful and important stories to tell too, but these had not been recorded or collected. In 2021, the Positively Spoken project set about changing that.
How it worked
Positively Spoken provided a safe space for people who have grown up living with HIV to share their stories, which were then archived in the British Library, thus ensuring they are included in the social history of HIV in the UK.
Some interviews were even conducted by young peer researchers, who were part of the project team. Participants could choose to keep some or all of their story hidden for up to 100 years. Over 30 of these stories were collected. Listen to sound clips below.
This project has officially ended now. However if you are interested in finding out more, please contact: [email protected]
