Allies and Education -- Dallas Buyers Club

I saw Dallas Buyers Club last night which ended up being somewhat timely with the fact that today is World AIDS Day.

I heard on Sirius Radio that some gay activists are unhappy with this movie in that it portrays a straight (and initially homophobic) man's efforts to (somewhat unintentionally) make a difference in the availability of medicine in the early days of the epidemic. Because many gay people were taking similar steps in this type of effort as well.

I now wonder if those critics actually saw the movie before commenting. A big part of the movie focuses the main (close-minded, homophobic) character's growth as he struggles with having AIDS and being told he has about 30 days left to live. Over time he gains an unlikely best friend, a transvestite who becomes a bit of an adopted little brother and his partner in the buyers club.

The movie presents some very interesting topics of discussion...or at least some food for thought. The guy is shockingly homophobic in the beginning. His customers are almost exclusively gay--does he become accepting because they're making him money or because he sympathizes with them as someone dealing with AIDS?

The movie is also an interesting view of what was going on at the beginning of the AIDS epidemic, how the pharmaceutical companies approached the opportunity and "buyers clubs" that formed in response.

Matthew McConaughey, Jennifer Garner and Jared Leto all did a fantastic job in this movie--although the weight loss by the two male leads is a bit unnerving. Good for accuracy but also concerning for their health. The acting by all involved was high-caliber.

I definitely recommend the movie, and will watch to see if any of the (well deserved) Oscar buzz around Jared Leto's performance turns into a nomination...or maybe more.

World AIDS Day 2013

Reflecting a bit on the fact that today is World AIDS day. It's interesting that even though I've been "mostly out" for at least the last 10 years of my life "up north", the only people I've known to have HIV or AIDS were while I was living in my southern hometown--including two hair stylists who died from the disease.

I know many more gay men (both friends and acquaintances) now, but know of none who are HIV positive. I guess there could be many factors to why this is the case. In the late eighties/early nineties our understanding of HIV was quite different--especially in the south. Maybe the positive men I knew contracted the virus before they learned much about it. Perhaps some of my current friends and acquaintances are keeping their positive status private--we don't ask, and actually don't talk about it much. Also, my generation had practicing safe sex drilled into our heads.

Today we hear and read that infections are on the rise in our community--which is sad and somewhat bewildering. It seems to generally be attributed to the disease no longer being seen as a death sentence--but it obviously still greatly effects the rest of your life.

My wish on this World AIDS day is that the youth of our community continue to take this horrible disease very seriously and have the respect to take care of themselves.