Billy Porter Shares His HIV+ Status
Posted: 5/19/21 at 10:31am
Congratulations to him for being able to be open and free about it. Insane how nobody involved with Pose knew how much art was imitating life.
Updated On: 5/19/21 at 10:31 AM
Posted: 5/19/21 at 10:33am
Posted: 5/19/21 at 10:36am
There's a moving, in-depth interview with Billy right now on Tamron Hall. It repeats at 3:05 a.m. on ABC 7 NY if anyone would like to DVR it.
Posted: 5/19/21 at 11:13am
Posted: 5/19/21 at 12:43pm
Thank goodness you took that brave stance.
"They can live their lives 110% exactly as someone who is HIV negative lives theirs."
I suck at math too.
Posted: 5/19/21 at 12:49pm
No, I'm committed to using words like "exactly" exactly.
Posted: 5/19/21 at 12:54pm
So sorry to hear this... Billy has been, is, and will always be a warrior.
Posted: 5/19/21 at 1:02pm
HIV positive people on medication have life expectancies equal to HIV negative people. HIV positive people who are undetectable can't pass on the virus through sex. They can live their lives 110% exactly as someone who is HIV negative lives theirs.
You don't get to judge a person's reaction from their loved one or even a fan. Ever. And, many people cannot take the medication because their body reacts badly to it or they have other medical problems that preclude them from doing so. So no, not everyone can live their lives "110% exactly" as someone who is HIV negative. It's not an automatic fixall for everyone living with HIV, including the people who do take the medication. What an incredibly ignorant statement. Which includes saying 110%.
So proud of Billy, I had a feeling he was positive for a long time because he always said "I survived the 90s in NYC". Survived. He is a joy, a gift, a super star. And I'm glad he is still here, unlike so many who lost their fight.
Posted: 5/19/21 at 1:47pm
Yeah, none of that is true and people can weep for weeks if they want to. Period.
Posted: 5/19/21 at 2:02pm
Seems like you guys are getting caught up in semantics between 2 sentiments that can both be true at the same time. I don't know the statistics regarding drug reactions, and the availability of these medications to people who aren't wealthy. But if there are obstacles still to overcome in those areas, we can acknowledge those obstacles, and feel sorrow for the people who are experiencing suffering as a result of HIV - all while still acknowledging that many people who ARE receiving the full range of benefits of medication may not appreciate being the subject of pity, because that has the potential to perpetuate common misconceptions about the effectiveness of the medication (which in the grand scheme of things, is extraordinarily effective).
Sounds like we should be reacting to people's experience with the virus rather than to the virus itself: if the person is suffering, that's cause for sadness. If they're not suffering, that's not cause for sadness.
Updated On: 5/19/21 at 02:02 PM
Posted: 5/19/21 at 2:03pm
Okay. Cool. Please see your doctor and take care.
Posted: 5/19/21 at 2:03pm
Thanks JBroadway. That was essentially what I was saying.
Posted: 5/19/21 at 2:06pm
You are not in charge of other people's reaction to anybody's news, nor is it any of your business how people react to news that has nothing to do with you. Life is next to impossible for black men isn this country, for gay black men especially, and HIV positive black gay men? They have experiences uniquely their own. Sometimes people honestly discussing their lives contributes to better understanding within and outside of underserved communities, for example, 110% of the black gay and other men who have sex with men in the United States, many of whom have no idea of their own positive status. Every story like Billy's helps. Every story like Phantom4ever's invisibilizes and harms. You can do your "Don't cry for me, Argentina" bit the next time somebody tells you they got emotional when they found out you are positive.,
Posted: 5/19/21 at 2:30pm
Posted: 5/19/21 at 2:38pm
There isn't an HIV positive advocacy agency or public health department in the United States that does not recognized the tragically underserved community of Black gay men. Too often the message that "it's all taken care of" or "it's all over" is specifically referring 110% to white gay men with access to money and healthcare. If somebody gets emotional over somebody well-known and beloved taking a public stance, it could encourage an untested Black gay man to get tested (lack of testing is a big problem in that demo) or even consider going on PrEP, which every HIV-negative sexually active man who has sex with men should be on. These nuances get lost with blanket statements about a diagnosis being no big deal.
Updated On: 5/19/21 at 02:38 PM
Posted: 5/19/21 at 2:47pm
*Whoops!*
Updated On: 5/19/21 at 02:47 PM
Posted: 5/19/21 at 2:51pm
There also seems to be some miscommunication in this thread about the distinction between feeling sad that someone has HIV, vs. feeling sad that someone has to carry the emotional weight of HIV with them. Many people still experience the stigma of HIV, being seen as "unclean," the emotional labor of having to constantly reassure people that they're undetectable - especially when that's compounded by racism, homophobia, etc. If Billy Porter (or anyone) has experienced these hardships, that's probably worth feeling sad about. But there's a difference between feeling sad about those things / feeling sad for those who still suffer physically, vs. just feelings generally sad that someone has HIV regardless of their viral load or access to effective medicine.
It's not that there's no cause for sadness in any circumstance, but it's important to be conscious, clear, and deliberate about how/where that sadness is directed, so as to not inadvertently contribute to the very stigma you're trying to denounce.
I really think people in this thread are more in agreement than they realize. There is just nuance being lost in generalizations and miscommunication.
