Twenty-five years ago, two women, brilliant and brave women, gave a landmark speech on the AIDS epidemic at the 1992 Democratic National Convention in New York City. Elizabeth Glaser, who was one of the two women speakers had contracted AIDS from a blood transfusion, passed it on to her children, and would shortly lose her life to it in 1994 (Lucas, S. & Medhurst, M., 2009). Elizabeth, who during her speech, referred to herself as the “strange spokesperson” for such a group – was a well-to-do white woman. After all, Americans during this time persisted in stigmatizing it as an affliction of non-whites, drug addicts, low socio-economic status peoples and/or gay men (Lucas, S. & Medhurst, M., 2009). Elizabeth started out just a mom, fighting for the life of her children and her own. She unknowingly passed the virus to her daughter Ariel through her breast milk, and her son Jake, in utero (Lucas, S. & Medhurst, M., 2009).
Elizabeth’s speech during the 1992 Democratic National Convention, was a plea for new leadership in Washington to bring about the narrative that AIDS is “everyone’s problem” and that the nation faced a “crisis of caring.” ((Lucas, S. & Medhurst, M., 2009).
What culminated Elizabeth’s crusade to AIDS awareness, is when during trying to treat her daughter Ariel, that drug companies and health agencies …show more content…
Also, according to Norman Mailer, who was present during the speech, described it as “the floor was in tears, and conceivably the nation as well.” The roving cameras captured open weeping in the audience as the two mothers spoke of their children, and they finished to thunderous, standing ovations normally reserved for the presidential candidates themselves (Ham, B.
Elizabeth’s speech during the 1992 Democratic National Convention, was a plea for new leadership in Washington to bring about the narrative that AIDS is “everyone’s problem” and that the nation faced a “crisis of caring.” ((Lucas, S. & Medhurst, M., 2009).
What culminated Elizabeth’s crusade to AIDS awareness, is when during trying to treat her daughter Ariel, that drug companies and health agencies …show more content…
Also, according to Norman Mailer, who was present during the speech, described it as “the floor was in tears, and conceivably the nation as well.” The roving cameras captured open weeping in the audience as the two mothers spoke of their children, and they finished to thunderous, standing ovations normally reserved for the presidential candidates themselves (Ham, B.