News for North Texas
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Study Up For 'Think': Ending An Era of Fear

Drriss & Marrionn
/
flickr
How did Dallas become known as such a friendly place for LGBT-issues fundraising? Advocates will explain how the "The Dallas Way" came to be, at 1 p.m.

Mike Grossman remembers when women switched hairdressers in the early '80s, afraid they might get AIDS from their gay male stylists. He was a founding board member of the Oak Lawn Counseling Center, which set the tone for programs across the country. Grossman, The Resource Center's CeCe Cox and longtime advocate Evilu "Pridge" Pridgeon join Think host Krys Boyd at 1 p.m. to talk about "The Dallas Way."

In October 1985, fear gripped Dallas residents of all orientations as the AIDS epidemic swept the nation. Discussion of the fatal syndrome circulated myths, personal worries, social anxieties and political concerns, D Magazine reports.

Three years later, the fear remains and the pestilence perseveres. In another piece spanning seven daysfollowed the stories of 61 AIDS volunteers, therapists, doctors and afflicted persons.

Penny Krispin recounts her initial encounter with HIV--the first death in Dallas County caused by AIDS--and her moral dilemma as a nurse in HIV medicine for The Dallas Way's storytelling series, "Outrageous Oral."

http://youtu.be/ccRI1F_tyQg

In 1988, Ron Woodroof founded the Dallas Buyer's Club, one of the largest distribution centers for experimental AIDS treatment, according to The Dallas Morning News. That, of course, inspired the dramatic film of the same name.

'Normal Heart,' originally a play, was adapted into a television film to teach and to remember the era of outbreak.

In a 30-year timeline of AIDS, apprehension and terror transform into hope.

Today, the legacy continues with high-profile fundraising we'll hear about during the show - but also, there's grassroots outreach like a thrift store as well as free HIV testing called "Out Of The Closet."

While support is growing in Dallas, the city is No. 1 in HIV infection per capita in the state, according to The Dallas Voice.

Listen to Think Monday through Thursday at noon and 9 p.m. on KERA 90.1 or stream the show live.