by Mark S. King | Oct 5, 2019 | Gay Life, Living with HIV/AIDS, My Fabulous Disease, News, Prevention and Policy
When the photo appeared on social media only hours after the Atlanta AIDS Walk last week, it produced gasps and tears. There, standing pensively among the panels of the NAMES Project Quilt display, is a gloriously dressed man in white platforms heels. An enormous...
by Mark S. King | Oct 2, 2019 | Gay Life, Living with HIV/AIDS, My Fabulous Disease, News, Prevention and Policy
“I’m sorry to objectify you,” I said sheepishly to bodybuilder Raif Derrazi. For our videotaped interview, Raif was naked down to the nether regions of his sculpted abs, at my request. “Not at all!” Raif happily responded. “There’s a time and place for everything, and...
by Mark S. King | Sep 30, 2019 | Living with HIV/AIDS, My Fabulous Disease, News, Prevention and Policy
AIDS United, the national HIV/AIDS policy, lobbying, and funding consortium of organizational leaders, has issued an apology and promised to review their policies and procedures after the posting of my (can I say bombshell? Humble bloggers never get to use that word,...
by Mark S. King | Sep 25, 2019 | Living with HIV/AIDS, My Fabulous Disease, News, Prevention and Policy
This is the story of the insidious influence of Big Pharma on our HIV/AIDS leadership and policy-making, and how an experienced activist like me was tricked into delivering messages for the HIV pharma giant Gilead Sciences. I was bamboozled because I didn’t do my...
by Mark S. King | Sep 15, 2019 | Gay Life, Living with HIV/AIDS, My Fabulous Disease, News, Prevention and Policy
Okay, I will admit I had no idea who Gareth Thomas was, beyond hearing on Saturday that a major rugby star in the United Kingdom had disclosed his HIV status. But anyone living with HIV could relate to the heart-breaking video he released announcing he is HIV...