Imagine, gentle readers, me as a young skinny just barely post teen, recently enlisted in the army. Army fatigues, pencil thin mustache, and the waistline of a teenage girl! The setting is a hot and stuffy auditorium with thousands of other new hormone driven recruits listening to a troop medical clinic doctor speak about the terrible symptoms of STD's. At this age, we all had the shield of invincibility that our young horny minds had a way of instilling in us. The lecture could just as easily had been on the ills of forgetting to brush your teeth for all the good it did us!
And yet, the one part of the lecture that stood out was actually when the clinician describe transmission of the AIDS virus, HIV. The disease was so new and was, essentially at the time, a death sentence, everyone actually took note of this part. The army, for all of its "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" homophobia, took a very non-judgmental stance on the issue during this lecture. Facts were presented, using condoms was highly encouraged, and sleeping with prostitutes was highly discouraged. The refrain at the time was that a diagnosis of AIDS was a death sentence. That was pretty much the end of it.
Let's get this straight though, the army was by no means a tolerant and inclusive place. Men that were diagnosed with HIV were medically discharged and sent home almost immediately. In fact one of the food service privates that I had a crush on was diagnosed and sent home fairly unceremoniously amidst a flurry of rumors and innuendos.
For me, the death sentence scare tactics worked well enough to force me into the closet even deeper but not strong enough to overcome my horny young adult sex drive. Soon after basic and my military training, I was shipped off to Germany for two years. While in Germany I came out, and had my very first boyfriend.
A few months after getting out of the army, the case of Ryan White was in the news. For those of you old enough to remember, he was the young boy from Indiana infected from a blood transfusion. I remember being grateful for the story only because the public was finally beginning to see HIV and AIDS as affecting everyone. As more and more famous people were diagnosed, all came to realize that this wasn't just a "gay disease".
The point is as an adult, I haven't known a time that AIDS wasn't part of my lexicon. From my earliest adult years this has been a disease that has not only affected those in the media but friends and close family members. I've seen those closest to me suffer medical problems, lose their entire savings because of medical costs, lose their partners, and in some cases close friends and loved ones have lost their lives.
I've also seen incredible acts of bravery in the face of prejudice and hate. People have come together to create support groups, to lobby for care, and to mobilize in many different ways. My personal contributions have included providing peer education in college, contributing to multiple AIDS research and support organizations, and volunteering for STOP AIDS.
I'm riding for many of the same reasons that others ride. I don't have HIV/AIDS but I have experienced the devastation, pain, and loss, this disease has caused. I have seen good people suffer in hospital beds and die from this disease.
Through it all I have seen progress and I have seen hope. Organizations like San Francisco AIDS Foundation not only foster hope but provide support when and where it is needed. I ride for those that are living with HIV/AIDS and for those that have passed away. I ride because it is one way I can contribute.
If you would like to contribute, please got to the following website: www.tofighthiv.org/goto/papabadgerwalt
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