AIDS ActivistsWhile many AIDS activists critiqued Johnson and his response to dealing with the AIDS epidemic, there were several who supported Johnson and believed he could truly make a difference.
AIDS activist Rodger McFarlane strongly advocated for research and education. He was the director of Gay Mens Health Crisis which supported AIDS victims through various services (Hevesi 2009). McFarlane was enthusiastic about Johnson's potential in to taking on the battle against AIDS stigma to educate the world, "If you tried to come up with the perfect person to carry the message of AIDS awareness to the people it ought to reach, you couldn't do better than Magic Johnson" (Newsweek Staff 1991). AIDS activist Reverend Carl Bean is the CEO and founder of one of the oldest national AIDS organizations called Minority AIDS Project in Los Angeles ("Carl Bean"; Newsweek Staff 1991). Bean focuses largely on African Americans and the gay community. He too was very optimistic about the impact Johnson could have on changing the face of AIDS, "All the posters and pamphlets were about white gay males. Now [the movement] has someone who is macho, successful, wealthy, a celebrity, married. This knocks the myths right out of the water" (Newsweek Staff 1991). Many people who had seen the manifestations of the stigma revolving around AIDS were anxious to see what impact Magic Johnson could have. They had yet to come across an HIV positive individual with as much influence as Johnson and thus they saw great opportunities for him to make a difference. |