Patient Zero
Hundreds of thousands of people have died of AIDS in the United States since the mid-1980s. Is it true that one man’s shame was the cause of it all?
Shame is complicated. The first episode of Shame Rules! explores the story of Gaetan Dugas - the “Patient Zero of AIDS” in North America - and explores a theory that a shame-fueled rage caused him to intentionally spread the disease to dozens of other men. Along the way we’ll touch on topics related to internalized homophobia, conversion therapy, Typhoid Mary, cluster studies, and typewriter therapy.