That Bleeding Queen – Back to the 80s
Hello again Readers.
I was horrified to read an article on Facebook, 11th November 2015, which immediately took me back to the dark ages of the 1980’s.
The Sun’s HIV Hollywood Actor Story Is An ‘Insidious Headline Grab’, Campaigners Say
The Sun newspaper has been criticised for stigmatising HIV after speculating on the status of a “superstar” Hollywood actor on its front page on Wednesday.
The paper reported that the male star has known he carries the disease for a number of years and is thought to have had “a host of high-profile sexual partners”. It also claimed his lawyers are preparing for a “raft of potential legal claims”.
But HIV campaigners and rights groups have slammed The Sun’s “irresponsible” and “insidious” reporting saying it undoes “years of hard work” in reducing stigma, often a major barrier to testing and treatment.
It stirred up many emotions from a time when misinformation and ignorance spread terror around the globe. I don’t know why the editor of The Sun newspaper feels it is still acceptable to stigmatise people with HIV in this manner.
Having lived for over thirty years now with the physical affects and psychological trauma, caused by the actions of various people and organisations, as well as governments during the 80’s. I strongly feel we must never forget the true human suffering people witnessed and were put through unnecessarily. Together we must make every attempt to prevent the same things happening again today.
The AIDS epidemic officially began on 5th June, 1981, when the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report newsletter reported unusual clusters of Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) caused by a form of Pneumocystis carinii (now recognized as a distinct species Pneumocystis jirovecii) in five homosexual men in Los Angeles.
In the United Kingdom:
The number one chart hit single was Smokey Robinson’s “Being with you”
The average house price: £24,188
The yearly inflation rate: 11.9%
The big hit films were “Chariots of Fire”, “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and 007, James Bond returned with “For Your Eyes Only”.
The first London Marathon was run.
Lady Diana Spencer married Prince Charles.
Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister.
Ronald Reagan was President of the United States.
In June 1982, a report of a group of cases amongst gay men in Southern California suggested that a sexually transmitted infectious agent might be the etiological agent, and the syndrome was initially termed “GRID” or Gay-Related Immune Deficiency.
Health authorities soon realized that nearly half of the people identified with the syndrome were not homosexual men. The same opportunistic infections were also reported among haemophiliacs, heterosexual intravenous drug users, and Haitian immigrants—leading some researchers to call it the “4H” disease.
By August 1982, the disease was being referred to by its new CDC-coined name:
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)
Whilst the fear of the then new 20th Century killer, labelled as a “Gay Plague” sent the world into shock, panic and fear. Men, women and children from the haemophilia community had their lives destroyed overnight. The media went into a frenzy stopping short of using the word apocalypse, doctors where immediately given a free hand to do whatever they wanted, because this was apparently about saving mankind. It also appears ethics, morals, duty of care and the law would be ignored. With the non-consensual testing and research haemophiliacs were subjected to appear to also be condoned by the British Government.
In an article during 1982, The Standard, it states that Dr Seale had been trying to alert public health officials to the implications of the threat of AIDS for nearly two years:
Dr John Seale: “I wrote to both Mrs Thatcher and the Public Health Laboratory Services to suggest blood transfusion policy changes then.”
The face of AIDS
So whilst those working at the Sun newspaper insist on stirring up stigma and negativity towards those with HIV.
I would like to focus on the brilliance of a few people who had the ability to bring happiness to the thousands here in the UK and beyond. Those whose lives were tragically cut short and are still missed by many today.
Kenny Everett
Rock Hudson
Anthony Perkins
Liberace
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Sylvester
Tony De Vit
And I will leave you with some lyrics from the showman himself, lead singer of Queen
Freddie Mercury
“The Show must go on”
“Empty spaces – What are we living for
Abandoned places – I guess we know the score
On and on, does anybody know what we are looking for…
Another hero, another mindless crime
Behind the curtain, in the pantomime
Hold the line, does anybody want to take it anymore
The show must go on,
The show must go on,
Inside my heart is breaking,
My makeup maybe fading
But my smile still stays on”…
