Interview with Claire, 20, White British, working class, Roman Catholic. Women, Risk and AIDS Project, Manchester, 1989. Original version including fieldnotes (Ref: BYC11)

This interview is part of the Women, Risk and Aids Project (1989-90) archive which was created as part of the Reanimating Data Project (2018-20).
Original transcript of an interview with Claire, 20, who has a daughter and was previously training as a hairdresser. She had been using the pill, but still managed to get pregnant. She had considered an abortion, but thought she would regret it in the future. Claire has had three romantic relationships, but only one has been sexual, from the age of 16. Her current partner, her daughter's father, is currently in prison for robbery, and she is unsure whether she would like the relationship to continue when he returns, but seems fairly optimistic about it. The sex education she received at her all girls' school was taught through biology lessons, mainly in the context of plants and animals. They had a male teacher, who wasn't taken very seriously. Contraception and reproduction was covered in child studies, but there was nothing about AIDS, as it wasn't a mainstream worry at the time. Her parents are too embarrassed to discuss sex and relationships, but she learnt a lot through her friends, and feels she was well-informed enough at the time of her first sexual debut. She went to her male doctor to arrange using the pill, but he did not offer any further advice on sexual relationships. Claire had heard about AIDS through the news, but feels it is not relevant to her as she only has one sexual partner. She considers those at risk to be people who are 'promiscuous' and bisexuals. She understands safe-sex in relation AIDS as using condoms and not sleeping around, and would make future partners be tested for AIDS before engaging in unprotected sexual activity.