Rubber or Fidelity? Posters between Protection and Morality

Condoms protect against infection: “At least use a rubber!” – in 1987, this slogan was broadcast on prime-time television and circulated as a pop song. Posters urged people to take up the fight against a virus that linked sexuality with death, lifestyle with morality, and the most intimate acts with society at large. The “Stop Aids” campaign launched by the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health in 1987 set the standard for how the public would deal with the HIV virus. Working together with Swiss AIDS Federation, the Swiss Aids Federation, which celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2025, advertising agencies developed a whole visual universe dedicated to this health crisis. The “Stop Aids” appeal set the tone for promoting prevention: in sober, non-discriminatory language, with a pinch of irony and an effort to avoid moral judgments. These goals were not always met. And yet, the call for everyone to adapt their own sexual behavior and drug habits to the new threat did help to slow down the spread of the virus. In retrospect, the Stop Aids campaign is regarded as seminal, demonstrating how we can all be motivated to take personal responsibility for our actions.