1988. HIV/AIDS: Vito Russo – ‘Why We Fight’
To mark this year’s World AIDS Day I’m publishing a speech given by queer rights and AIDS activist Vito Russo at a couple of ACT UP rallies in 1988.
Russo was one of many who were appalled at the intransigence shown to the AIDS crisis by governments, politicians and the media*. As he said:
“If I’m dying from anything, I’m dying from homophobia…I’m dying from the fact that not enough rich, white, heterosexual men have gotten AIDS for anybody to give a shit.”
Russo died on 7th November 1990. And maybe it’s worth wondering why, on this World AIDS Day a third of a century into the AIDS crisis, we still don’t have a cure.
VITO RUSSO:
A friend of mine in New York City has a half-fare transit card, which means that you get on buses and subways for half price. And the other day, when he showed his card to the token attendant, the attendant asked what his disability was and he said, I have AIDS. And the attendant said, no you don’t, if you had AIDS, you’d be home dying. And so, I wanted to speak out today as a person with AIDS who is not dying.
You know, for the last three years, since I was diagnosed, my family thinks two things about my situation. One, they think I’m going to die, and two, they think that my government is doing absolutely everything in their power to stop that. And they’re wrong, on both counts.
So, if I’m dying from anything, I’m dying from homophobia. If I’m dying from anything, I’m dying from racism. If I’m dying from anything, it’s from indifference and red tape, because these are the things that are preventing an end to this crisis. If I’m dying from anything, I’m dying from Jesse Helms. If I’m dying from anything, I’m dying from the President of the United States. And, especially, if I’m dying from anything, I’m dying from the sensationalism of newspapers and magazines and television shows, which are interested in me, as a human interest story — only as long as I’m willing to be a helpless victim, but not if I’m fighting for my life.
If I’m dying from anything — I’m dying from the fact that not enough rich, white, heterosexual men have gotten AIDS for anybody to give a shit. You know, living with AIDS in this country is like living in the twilight zone. Living with AIDS is like living through a war which is happening only for those people who happen to be in the trenches. Every time a shell explodes, you look around and you discover that you’ve lost more of your friends, but nobody else notices. It isn’t happening to them. They’re walking the streets as though we weren’t living through some sort of nightmare. And only you can hear the screams of the people who are dying and their cries for help. No one else seems to be noticing.
Thank you for sharing this speech with your readers.
It is astounding at how little people know about AIDS/HIV even now even though it is a disease that still effects many. It is even more surprising at the stigma still attached to the AIDS virus. I wanted to recommend a memoir about the subject that is educational, informative and inspiring. It is called “Don’t Stop Dreaming” by author Dr. Russell Tomar (https://russtomarmd.com/). This book offers a first hand account from someone who was right in the middle of the tragic start of the AIDS epidemic. The author shares his struggle with finding a cure as well as trying to understand the cause and treatment of the disease. I feel it is the duty of each individual to educate themselves on things like this that have had such a profound impact on such a large number of people and this book was the perfect way for me to do that.
I went to one of his and his boyfriends loft for a party in 1986. I will always remember
His smile!