Through Her Tears, Compassion, and Hope, Hydeia Loren Broadbent Changed the Narrative on HIV/AIDS

By: Ranier Simons, ADAP Blog Guest Contributor

Hydeia Loren Broadbent came into this world on June 14, 1984, and the sun set on her life on February 20, 2024.[1] Having been born with HIV, she literally spent her entire life as an advocate for HIV/AIDS prevention and awareness. Hydeia was diagnosed with HIV at a time when HIV was a death sentence, before the advent of the antiviral medications available today, and when HIV/AIDS stigma and fear ran high due to the unknown. As a child, the doctors predicted she would only have a life span of a few years, yet Hydeia defied their odds and lived 39 full, powerful years dedicating her life to making change.

Photo Source: hydeiabroadbent.com

Normalcy and compassion were what Hydeia desired and were the messages she promulgated. When she was seven years old, during a Nickelodeon news special, she told Earvin “Magic” Johnson, “I want people to know that we’re just normal people.”[4] HIV/AIDS carried a dark stigma during Hydeia’s earliest years as it was viewed as an intravenous drug user and gay men’s disease. Before Hydeia’s journey, Ryan White had to legally fight for the right to attend public schools in Indiana, far away from Hydeia’s home of Las Vegas, Nevada, before he died in 1990. Even though she was able to start public school, she endured travesties and abuses no child should have had to process. One time in kindergarten, a teacher aware of her HIV status sprayed Clorox bleach on her when she sneezed.[2] After that incident, Hydeia was homeschooled with tutors until she started junior high school.[2]

Hydeia was born with HIV in 1984 but was not diagnosed until the age of three. She was adopted at six weeks of age before HIV testing was normalized. Hydeia’s birth mother was denied custody due to drug addiction, hence Hydeia ended up in the adoptive system.[2] Hydeia’s adoptive parents had her tested when they were notified by health officials her birth mother had given birth to another child that she and the child were HIV positive. By age five, Hydeia’s condition had progressed to AIDS. She was one of the first pediatric patients treated with AZT. Rubgie Lucas, an infectious disease investigator in Clark County, where Vegas is located, remembered Hydeia stating, "We had to learn how to treat her because the adult medication was too strong."[3] Anthony S. Fauci remembers treating Hydeia at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Regarding her life, he stated, “her accomplishments are substantial.”[2]

Hydeia touched many lives both domestically and internationally. She traveled around the world spreading awareness about HIV/AIDS, advocating for treatment and care, and promoting prevention through abstinence and safer sex practices. She is well known for her activism and high-profile public speaking moments, such as when she was on the Oprah Winfrey Show at age 11. Her passion and mission also gave her a platform on shows such as Good Morning America and 20/20.[5] Hydeia was featured in many publications such as The New York Times, People, National Geographic, Ebony, POZ, and was even on the cover of TV Guide.[5] Her knowledge, poise, and personable nature opened doors for many speaking engagements. She spoke to audiences singularly and as a part of panels at institutions such as Morehouse School of Medicine, Duke University, and UCLA. In 2006, Hydeia was a speaker at the International AIDS Conference.

Photo Source: hydeiabroadbent.com

Hydeia gave of herself selflessly while simultaneously dealing with her own humanity. As she spoke to the world as a child, she still dealt with serious health issues such as blood infections, brain fungus, and heart issues. While navigating the demands of being a very public figure, she had to deal with her personal life. She expressed how hard it was to date given her diagnosis yet was optimistic about finding love and being married one day. During her teen years, at the height of her speaking and advocacy, she dealt with depression and perfection anxiety to the point of resenting being such a public figure and speaking to the world. She stated during an episode of Where Are They Now on Oprah’s OWN network that she had to find her inner peace.

In 39 years, Hydeia experienced more life than most people could handle or even comprehend, no matter how long they lived. She experienced HIV/AIDS from the very beginning before there were many treatments through the advent of antiviral drug cocktails. Her life and message touched millions internationally. Hydeia represented children born with HIV, was the face of African American women living with HIV and was a pioneer who forged her way just like Ryan White. She was once quoted as saying, “…with all that we know about the virus, it is clear to me that contracting HIV/AIDS today is a choice, and we can’t allow anyone the power to make that choice for us!”. Hydeia’s legacy is a life fulfilled and a continuing burning torch of compassion and hope to continue to be passed along until we one day conquer HIV/AIDS.

[1] Schilken, C. (2024, February 2022). Hydeia Broadbent, who teamed up with Magic Johnson in HIV/AIDS fight, dies at 39. Retrieved from https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/hydeia-broadbent-who-teamed-up-with-magic-johnson-in-hivaids-fight-dies-at-39/ar-BB1iJLdt?ocid=socialshare

[2] Langer, E. (2024, February 23). Hydeia Broadbent, young activist for HIV/AIDS awareness, dies at 39. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2024/02/23/hydeia-broadbent-hiv-aids-dead/

[3] Nomura, A. (2024, February 27). Retired county disease investigator reflects on late HIV/AIDS activist from Las Vegas. Retrieved from https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/retired-county-disease-investigator-reflects-on-late-hivaids-activist-from-las-vegas/ar-BB1j04HL?ocid=socialshare

[4] Kornelis, C. (2024, February 23). Hydeia Broadbent, Who Helped Change the Conversation About HIV/AIDS, Dies at 39. Retrieved from https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/hydeia-broadbent-who-helped-change-the-conversation-about-hivaids-dies-at-39/ar-BB1iMwJU?ocid=socialshare

[5] BounceTV. (2020). Community Activist Award 2020 Trumpet Award Bio. Retrieved from https://www.trumpetawards.com/award-honoree/hydeia-broadbent/1184/#:~:text=Broadbent%20is%20also%20considered%20a,Award%20and%20an%20Essence%20Award.

Disclaimer: Guest blogs do not necessarily reflect the views of the ADAP Advocacy Association, but rather they provide a neutral platform whereby the author serves to promote open, honest discussion about public health-related issues and updates. 

Mainstream News Media Has a Long History of Failing the HIV Community

By: Brandon M. Macsata, CEO, ADAP Advocacy Association

The New York Times recently issued a meā culpā for its disastrous failure to adequately cover the emergence of the AIDS crisis in the early days of the epidemic. In many ways the newspaper helped to fuel the stigma still lingering today with their coverage that often included incorrect information or unsubstantiated claims about the disease. Its news miscarriages also included not reporting timely on the emerging crisis as it unfolded, or tucking the stories in the back of the newspaper.[1] Unfortunately, aside from the positive (pun intended) emergence of today's HIV-focused news outlets — such as The Body, HIV Plus Magazine, POZ Magazine, to name a few — people living with HIV/AIDS have continually been let down by the mainstream news media.

"The New York Times had a spotty record of covering the AIDS epidemic in the early 1980s — and gay culture in general. Times staffers reflect on the paper’s past, and what we can learn from it today."[2]

Larry Kramer, one of the most iconic figures in the fight against HIV/AIDS, described the Times' coverage in the early days as nothing less than homophobic. In fact, Kramer's assessment of the newspaper included a blistering indictment because "many millions are dead from a plague that the Times wouldn’t warn the world about.”[3]

Photo Source: NY Magazine

The New York Times wasn't the only culprit fueling HIV-related stigma among the mainstream news media in the 1980s, as was recently documented by HIV Plus Magazine's exposé on the infamous "patient zero" myth. The article, 'Patient Zero': Correcting the Record on a Media-Made Gay AIDS Villain, systematically dissects how Gaëtan Dugas was created into a monster by legacy news outlets, such as Time® Magazine, CBS News' 60 Minutes, and the New York Post.

The 1990s would prove no different. Who could forget the spotty, stigma-fueled news reporting on the HIV diagnosis of the legendary NBA basketball player Earvin “Magic” Johnson in 1991, as well as the death of the Godfather of Gangsta rap, Eric Lynn Wright (better known by his stage name Eazy-E) in 1995.

The long history of checkered reporting by the mainstream news media made it more difficult to dispel the myths surrounding the disease. It fact, systemically poor so-called "reporting" enabled bigots like former U.S. Senator Jesse Helms to demonize people living with HIV/AIDS in the 1980s-1990s, and Vice President Mike Pence to propose morally bankrupt ideas in 2000.

Photo Source: Andrew Kaczynski's Twitter Feed

In 2010, only crickets could be heard when over 10,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in 13 states were placed on waiting lists to access their life saving medications under the AIDS Drug Assistance Program ("ADAP"). Why? Because the mainstream news media barely addressed the public health crisis. At the time, not a single national television broadcast segment by ABC, CBS or NBC covered the ADAP Crisis, as it would be termed. If not for some mainstream news media journalists, such as op-ed columnist Charles M. Blow, then the advocacy to secure the necessary funding would have been even more difficult.

The trend has continued today, with virtually no reporting on the discriminatory design behind HIV treatment in the Affordable Care Act ("ACA") marketplace. Whereas overall people living with HIV/AIDS have been well-served by the ACA, there are still many shortcomings not being covered by the mainstream news media.

It is hard to look back over the years and not come away with the conclusion that the mainstream news media has a long history of failing the HIV community. As a result it has made advocacy even harder!

__________

[1] Soller, Kurt (2018, April 27). Six Times Journalists on the Paper’s History of Covering AIDS and Gay Issues. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/27/t-magazine/times-journalists-aids-gay-history.html.
[2] Soller, Kurt (2018, April 27). Six Times Journalists on the Paper’s History of Covering AIDS and Gay Issues. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/27/t-magazine/times-journalists-aids-gay-history.html.
[3] Artavia, David (2018, May 4). The New York Times Apologizes for Ignoring AIDS. HIV Plus Magazine. Retrieved from https://www.hivplusmag.com/stigma/2018/5/04/new-york-times-apologizes-ignoring-aids.
[4] Broverman, Neal (2018, May 15). 'Patient Zero': Correcting the Record on a Media-Made Gay AIDS Villain. HIV Plus Magazine. Retrieved from https://www.hivplusmag.com/stigma/2018/5/14/patient-zero-correcting-record-media-made-gay-aids-villain.