Life in my Shoes is Body & Soul’s pioneering and powerful multi-platform campaign that challenges the fear and misunderstanding surrounding HIV in the UK. At its heart, the campaign seeks to promote empathy through creative mediums that build understanding of what life is like in someone else’s shoes.
In 2009 Body & Soul commissioned OPM to carry out research in secondary schools in order to gauge current attitudes about HIV amongst young people in London. One of the key findings from the report was a strong contradiction between what young people know about HIV and how they said they would behave.
81% knew HIV could not be transmitted by sharing a cup… But only 27% said they would drink from the same cup as someone who was HIV positive.
It is clear that facts alone will not be the driving force for change in behaviour.
We set about to challenge this behaviour by having young people directly affected by this prejudice at the heart of developing the campaign. These people are living with the impact of a lack of empathy, all because of a damaged immune system.
Body & Soul has a track record of engaging young people in creative ways of learning, and this campaign is about reaching out to the thousands of young people that deserve a different reality. We appointed award-winning director Tudor Payne to head up the Life in my Shoes creative and turn stories of stigma and discrimination into a powerful new film, UNDEFEATED. Debuting a fresh and original voice, he holds nothing back in his portrayal of London youth in order to capture a gritty story with a witty and dynamic edge. He is a new voice in British cinema that few will be able to resist.
“The more we can do to educate help educate young people; the more we can to make life easier for those actually living with HIV”.
“This project will hopefully get people talking about HIV more and dispelling any untruths about what is now a very different condition to what it was 20 years ago.”
Body & Soul promotes the respect, dignity and wellbeing of children, young people and families living with and affected by HIV in an environment of aspiration. Our approach is grounded in responsive, expert programming with the aim to maximise choices and pathways for achievement and continuous learning.
the everyday challenges that HIV sets before them and the people they love. We are unequivocally committed to a world free of stigma, and prejudice where HIV is no longer discriminated against and where everyone has access to treatment, love and care.
We believe everyone has the right to live happily and healthily. We aim to counteract the devastation of an HIV+ diagnosis with strategies to reduce isolation and stress; improve health and well being; promote active lives and create a voice for human rights. Our centre is a safe place that helps everyday people deal with