[Health and power: the political emergence of AIDS/HIV in Brazil].

This analysis of the construction of political responses to AIDS in Brazil is grounded on a study of the epidemic since its first appearance, against a backdrop formed by the recent history of Brazilian health policy, the period's emerging social movements, and data on AIDS/HIV evolution. Together with period documents, oral sources constitute a fundamental part of the research. The article sees official responses to AIDS from the time of the disease's political emergence in Brazil as evolving through different stages and eventually -- after some problems and not without certain limitations--becoming characterized first and foremost by society's participation.