PrEP uptake as a social movement among gay and bisexual men

Despite PrEP’s effectiveness as an HIV prevention intervention, uptake among gay and bisexual men remains low. Historical involvement in AIDS activism may reveal important ways of mobilising gay and bisexual men to increase PrEP uptake. Data come from a qualitative study to understand New York City gay and bisexual men’s experiences with PrEP. Informed by a constructivist grounded theory approach, we assessed ways in which gay and bisexual men’s relational experiences concerning PrEP were congruent with features of past AIDS activism. Participants’ mean age was 32.5 years, half were men of colour, and over half had been taking PrEP for less than one year. Analysis revealed three primary themes related to AIDS activism strategies: (1) framing, which referenced how participants referred to PrEP as an empowering, liberatory and community-building intervention (2) reactions, which encompassed positive to negative expressions about PrEP and sex; and (3) innovation, which conveyed ways that participants engaged in processes of transferring lay knowledge about PrEP through leadership roles across social and digital encounters. Findings suggest that the ways in which gay and bisexual men communicate about PrEP with peers are consistent with features of AIDS activism. Deploying lay knowledge using framing strategies through peer-based intervention could expand PrEP uptake. However, elements of PrEP stigma must be addressed to engage with the wide-ranging HIV prevention needs of gay and bisexual men.