Educational Media Reviews Online

This program is the story of two women, a mother with AIDS and her daughter, and the opposite ways they communicate and cope with it. Pinki, the mother, became infected through a blood transfusion used to treat her bone marrow cancer. She is an outspoken activist for AIDS education. Pinki believes in full disclosure in order to educate others and fight the ignorance and avoidance that surrounds the AIDS epidemic in South Africa. Pinki is shown speaking openly to students, miners, on the radio and in church. She is determined to live her life to the fullest, sometimes at a cost to her family. Her daughter, Ntombi, deals with her mother’s illness very differently. Through candid interviews, she talks about how ashamed and embarrassed she is when her mother talks about AIDS. Ntombi would like it if her mother never spoke about it. Ntombi’s attitude reflects the avoidance of AIDS that her mother is trying to fight. It would have been interesting to hear more about what the father’s and other family members reactions were.

A Red Ribbon Around My House is part of a 25 cassette series entitled “Steps for the Future” that focuses on living with AIDS in South Africa. This documentary utilizes alternating interviews with Pinki and Ntombi intertwined with live shots of them at parties, lectures and dinner. An interview with Pinki at a cemetery where multiple funerals and overcrowded burial plots provides a stark backdrop for her thoughts on death and living. There are some English subtitles, but more would have been helpful.

This program puts a face to the AIDS epidemic and reflects the struggles of individuals, families and communities. A Red Ribbon Around My House would be a good addition to any public or academic library collection on AIDS. Recommended.