India, Dec. 8 -- Stigma is like a hair in your mouth that is invisible to the eye, you can feel it constantly, it's an irritant, you learn to live with it, but it constantly makes you feel that your mouth has been contaminated by something you have no power over, that your mouth has been colonised.
Millions of people across the world battle stigma in their daily lives. They are stigmatised for different reasons-the colour of their skin or their race, their sexual orientation, or gender identity. They are shamed for having suffered sexual violence and having 'lost their purity'. Widows, people with disabilities, people suffering from diseases-everyone can be stigmatised and subjected to hate, disgust, shame, and rage.
Research on stigma sh...