[electronic beeping]
[static fizzling]
[rock music playing]
[narrator] It's August of 1983, and Reno, Nevada,
is hosting its sixth annual gay rodeo.
But this year, the public backlash has been especially harsh.
Out here in the West in the United States, we believe in rodeos,
and we think homosexuals are giving rodeos a bad name.
That's not American. That's not rodeo.
They are forcing themselves upon us and giving Reno a bad name.
[narrator] Their prejudice is fueled by terror.
A new disease is hitting the gay community hard.
It's called AIDS.
Locals have gathered around 8,000 signatures
protesting the rodeo,
identifying those with AIDS as a threat.
I don't plan on dying from this,
and if he would take the hate he's trying to generate and turn it into love,
we might find a cure for this disease.
[narrator] There are nearly 40 million people worldwide
infected with HIV,
about the population of Canada.
It's hit every continent on the planet.
Africa has suffered the most,
with nearly one in every 25 adults living with HIV.
Around 25% of those with HIV
don't actually know they have it.
That's over 9 million people.
So far, there's been over 35 million AIDS-related deaths...
almost the same number of people who are currently infected with HIV.
AIDS is a truly devastating modern epidemic.
But after four decades of activism and scientific research,
how far have we come in finding a cure and battling the stigma?
It makes me f****** crazy.
[narrator] It's Spring of 1981,
and a mystery illness is exploding
across the gay communities of New York, LA, and San Francisco.
Men are inexplicably coming down with cancer
and other mysterious illnesses,
and many are dying within weeks.
[man] Health workers say many patients have never heard of the illness.
People find out some of these things through the national press,
and the national press hasn't give this particular...
syndrome a lot of... a lot of play.
[narrator] As more cases are confirmed across the Atlantic,
in Spain and the UK, it becomes known as the "gay plague."
But nobody understands exactly what it is
or why it's spreading so fast.
Misinformation is rampant.
Of course, the main question is why only gays get the disease.
One clue is this: almost everyone who gets the illness uses this liquid.
It contains a vapor which, when inhaled, acts on the heart.
In the gay community, it's used as an aphrodisiac.
[narrator] But soon it becomes clear.
This disease isn't just targeting homosexuals.
Hemophiliacs and injection drug users
start coming down with the same symptoms.
And their families, too.
[man] Patrick is a hemophiliac.
He contracted the deadly disease from one of his regular blood transfusions.
He unwittingly passed the virus on to Lauren,
who, in turn, passed it on to their unborn baby, Dwight,
who's now desperately ill in hospital.
[Lauren] She knows that her mommy and daddy and brother are very sick.
But what sick and dying means to a child...
Mother ain't gonna die soon...
'cause you ain't very old yet.
[narrator] It's only in 1982
that this mysterious plague earns a name:
acquired immune deficiency syndrome.
The disease is abbreviated A.I.D.S.
and is referred to as "AIDS."
You've probably never heard of it, but experts say that illness is causing
the biggest epidemic in this country since smallpox.
[narrator] But the general response from the US federal government
is crickets.
And when the subject is raised at a White House press conference,
it's treated as a joke.
[man 1] It's a pretty serious thing
that one in every three people that get this have died.
And I wonder if the president is aware of this.
-[man 2] I don't have it. Are you... -[laughing]
-Do you? -[man 1] You don't have it?
Well, I'm relieved to hear that, Larry.
Does the president-- In other words,
the White House looks on this as a great joke?
[Larry] No, I don't know anything about it, Lester.
[narrator] But while the White House ignores the issue,
the global numbers of AIDS victims are growing.
Making matters worse, the federal agencies
best equipped to confront the emergency
have recently had their budgets slashed by the administration.
It isn't until 1983 that scientists uncover the culprit behind AIDS.
It's a virus, and they eventually call it HIV.
The human immunodeficiency virus.
Anyone can be infected.
But still, most of the victims are men in their 20s.
Tilt your head back.
[man] David is 22 years old. All the doctors can do for him
is treat his symptoms, like sore throat and diarrhea,
and cheer him up as he slowly gets worse.
For me, I've pretty much accepted the fact that I'm gonna die.
[narrator] So what makes this virus so deadly?
After decades of research, we now know a lot more than we did then.
White blood cells play a vital role in the body's immune system
by recognizing and fighting infection.
The HIV virus might look like a pretty piece of sea coral,
but HIV is deadly.
The outer coat of the virus locks onto a particular type of white blood cell.
Over time, these cells are killed off,
and the body's ability to recognize and fight infection begins to decline.
When the cells are depleted, the result is AIDS,
and the body becomes lethally vulnerable to diseases like pneumonia and cancer.
By 1983, AIDS is spreading rapidly across the globe,
and nations are terrified.
Because still, most people aren't sure how it's being transmitted.
[man] Like some prison officers demanding protective clothing,
some policemen wearing masks and gloves when dealing with homosexuals.
[narrator] Discrimination and homophobia
start erupting everywhere.
We've had health care personnel refusing to, uh... to care.
We've had, uh, morticians refusing to... to bury our people.
I mean, we've run the gamut of dealing with a panicked response.
[narrator] Ignorance about HIV remains rampant.
In December 1985, a report in The Los Angeles Times
states that half of respondents support a quarantine of AIDS patients.
Forty-eight percent would approve of making those who test positive for HIV
carry identity cards.
And 15% actually favor tattooing AIDS victims.
[man] Recently, a sufferer of the syndrome fell ill on a flight to Washington.
The airline offloaded him
and told him that his name was being placed in their computer,
ensuring that they would never sell him a ticket again.
The following day, he re-embarked on one of their planes,
this time traveling under an assumed name,
wearing sunglasses and a false mustache.
[narrator] But then, children start feeling the weight of the prejudice,
including three-year-old Eve,
who's contracted AIDS through an infected blood transfusion.
The parents at her school in rural Australia
are terrified their kids are at risk.
I don't want her to take any chance of catching it.
-[woman] Do you think there's any chance? -Well, I think there is if she's got AIDS.
[narrator] The truth is,
the US Center for Disease Control has already confirmed
AIDS cannot be spread by casual contact.
It can only be transmitted through blood, sexual intercourse,
pregnancy, and breast milk.
But word has been slow getting out.
By 1984, in Africa,
an estimated 970,000 people are infected.
It's clearly a global epidemic.
As the death toll climbs,
the top priority becomes preventing the spread of AIDS.
We know so little about AIDS,
but what we do know is how it is transmitted.
And therefore, we know how it is prevented from being transmitted.
And people need to practice safer sex.
You put the condom on over-- We always give our banana a name.
Let's call this one, uh... Charles. Call this one Charles.
And then you put the condom over the erect penis
and roll it down, smooth.
And there you have, uh... Charles all ready to practice safe sex.
[narrator] As people start talking more about safe sex,
condom use skyrockets.
Sales increase 25% from 1986 to 1988.
There's also some progress towards treatment.
[man] Never before has so much been known
about a new disease in such a short time.
Research has proceeded at a frantic pace.
A major breakthrough has been a new blood test
that should ensure that, in future,
nobody contracts AIDS from a blood transfusion.
[narrator] But the number of people dying from AIDS is growing daily.
[rock music playing]
When your government fails you, you self-organize,
and that's what happened with AIDS.
[man] Hundreds of calls are received here each day
from members of the public and the gay community.
[narrator] AIDS patients and their loved ones start uniting all over the world,
demanding greater access to experimental drugs,
pleading for more funding,
and taking aim at the bigotry that's emerging around AIDS.
All gay people must unite
to overcome discrimination against people with AIDS.
If we do not...
[crowd applauding]
...we will all suffer.
We will all be defeated.
We will all truly be victims of AIDS.
They simply cannot put us away in leper colonies,
which seems to be what they're-- what they're talking about doing now.
[narrator] People are looking for leadership.
But when the president mentions AIDS at a fundraising gala in Washington, DC,
in support of a policy to screen immigrants,
it doesn't go down well.
Add the AIDS virus to the list of contagious diseases
for which immigrants and aliens seeking permanent residence in the United States
can be denied entry.
[crowd jeering]
[narrator] It's not exactly the rousing call to arms
his audience was hoping for.
For many who have been fighting this battle for years, enough is enough.
It's time to make people and politicians across the world listen.
-Jose Salles. -[woman] John Ferrera.
[narrator] In 1987, on the National Mall in Washington, DC,
activists unveil a massive quilt, larger than a football field.
Each panel commemorates a victim of AIDS.
And with its 1,920 panels,
the AIDS quilt becomes a searing symbol of the crisis,
told through a medium as American as apple pie.
[dramatic classical music playing]
[rock music playing]
It's one of the many creative approaches activists use
to bring the nation's attention to the crisis.
But nobody is more outspoken
than NYC playwright and legendary gay rights activist Larry Kramer.
I, myself, have lost now 18 friends who have died
in my own immediate circle of friends, a community.
I mean, it's like wartime when that--
when you have those kind of statistics that affect you personally.
[narrator] Kramer helps create a whole new performative form of protest:
ACT UP, the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power.
I wanna know why I'm being arrested!
[narrator] With over 140 chapters and thousands of members worldwide,
ACT UP is not only big. They're bold, and they're loud.
This is a group of AIDS victims who've just turned up at the White House
to protest the administration's policy on AIDS.
And they're hoping to be arrested to make their point of view.
[narrator] Activists come in all shapes and sizes,
including Ryan White,
a hemophiliac diagnosed with AIDS at 13 years old,
and given just six months to live.
[clears throat] Excuse me.
I became the target of Ryan White jokes.
Lies about me biting people,
spitting on vegetables and cookies in grocery stores,
and urinating on bathroom walls.
[narrator] This cute Indiana kid becomes a poster boy for AIDS campaigns,
supporting fundraising efforts and raising awareness.
A few months after he passes away,
Congress introduces the Ryan White Care Act...
creating the largest federally-funded program for people living with HIV/AIDS.
Public perception starts to shift in support of those grieving,
and awareness of the universal threat of AIDS grows.
If American politicians muddle their response
to the AIDS crisis at first,
other well-known faces are more sure-footed.
[man] The Princess of Wales felt not the slightest apprehension
about her visit to the Middlesex Hospital and its AIDS ward,
according to press reports.
[narrator] In 1987, Britain's Princess Diana
helps to dispel ignorance,
by shaking the hand of an AIDS patient.
HIV does not make people dangerous to know.
So you can shake their hands and give them a hug.
Heaven knows, they need it.
[crowd cheering]
[narrator] Some of those infected are already in the public eye.
In 1985, actor Rock Hudson becomes the first major celebrity
to announce that he has AIDS.
He dies just two months later.
Sadly, more big names are to follow.
It's soon clear wealth, power, and fame can't protect you.
But they do put a spotlight on the desperate situation.
In 1991, the power of celebrity is harnessed on the red carpet,
where distinctive red ribbons spread awareness of AIDS.
[cameras clicking]
The activism all starts to pay off in the '90s,
and it's a good thing it does.
In 1995, AIDS reaches a sobering milestone,
becoming the leading cause of death in the US
for people 25 to 44 years of age.
It's a grim high point. But at the same time,
big changes are happening in the form of funding and research.
[cameras clicking]
In 1993, President Clinton
sets up the White House Office of National AIDS Policy.
The National Institute of Health expands its AIDS research.
And with great funding,
come great scientific breakthroughs for the treatment and prevention of HIV.
Between 2005 and 2018,
there's a 45% decline in AIDS-related deaths worldwide.
But one troubling side effect of all these scientific breakthroughs:
complacency.
In 2017, people under 25 account for over 20% of new infections in the US.
Only 15% of US high school students say they've been tested for HIV.
And just 66% percent of American men
aged 15 to 44 use condoms on a regular basis.
As people with HIV live longer,
AIDS is a topic that has drifted from the headlines.
And with that drift of attention,
we risk a real drift of funding and of action to beat the virus.
[narrator] To bring attention to the cause, in 2016,
Prince Harry takes an HIV test alongside pop star Rihanna.
We just wanna show people how easy it is to get tested, and how...
you shouldn't be afraid of knowing your status, most importantly.
-We should all be afraid of the stigma-- -Of not knowing.
And you should be afraid of not knowing, afraid of not talking about it.
And we get it. There is a generational gap here.
And we need to smash through that.
The younger generation coming through wanna talk about it,
but there's still that stigma.
[narrator] In 2017, there were nearly 37 million people worldwide
living with HIV/AIDS.
Africa has been the hardest hit.
Nigeria has the highest annual death rate,
and Swaziland, the highest rate of infection.
Unlike most countries, in Russia, the epidemic is growing.
Not coincidentally, a recent poll suggested more than half the population
still have a negative opinion of those identifying as LGBT.
If there wasn't this bigotry and hatred,
that this disease could be eliminated far quicker than you could ever think.
And until we get that bloody dis-- idea out of our head,
that gay people are less than,
then I am afraid we will still be sitting here in 20 years' time,
discussing the same f****** thing. Okay?
[crowd applauding]
[narrator] AIDS activists have taught us the hard way
that staying quiet can be deadly.
Being visible has helped mainstream culture
overcome its fear and biases
and embrace people for who they are.
[crowd] Gay rights!
-[woman] When do we want 'em? -[crowd] Now!
[narrator] We've come a long way.
From the grassroots activists, who first got the world's attention,
to the patients and their caretakers, who battle HIV every day,
to the scientists on the front lines, hunting for a cure.
But today, ignorance and discrimination still exist.
People of all ages and nationalities are being infected.
The worldwide fight against AIDS continues.
[rock music playing]