Mother continues fight
against AIDS, hatred
Rebecca Merritt
OrtQOn Ur-, Cmtuutl
Ryan White was forced to
move from his hometown in
Indiana because* kids nl
school called him a "fag." Hi*
family continuously r»x:«lvt*d
hale mail and a bullet was
shot through a window in
their house
White, who died at age 1H
in 1990. vvas a hemophiliac,
who contacted the AIDS
virus through a blood trans
fusion Hut residents of Koko
mo. fnd treated him with the
same phobia and hatred
faced by gay men who are
infected with the disease.
"Because of this til,sea so
i ailed AIDS, our lives turned
around overnight. People
thought because he had AIDS
he was l»d " said Ryan's
mother, Jeanne White "Rvan
knew how the gay communi
ty was treated because he
was treated the same way."
Jeanne White was in
Kugene Friday to explain her
son's battle with AIDS at a
University seminar. Since
'i• *r mii> s death she has ded
irated her life to educating
young people
"If you have sex. you're at
risk for this disease and that's
about all of us. ' White said
"Why can't everyone see that
this is everybody'* problem?"
Ryan White was diagnosed
with the AIDS virus when he
was 13 Doctors gave him
throe to st\ months to live.
White, a single mother
who worked for a GM facto
ry. said doctors told her that
Ryan could not infect others
through everyday contact.
She assumed people in her
hometown would be under
standing
However, aftor the town
learned about the illness,
Jeanne White had to fight the
school district in court just so
her son could attend school.
The Whites won in court hut
were still ostracized by the
community, Ryan came to
school for the first time to
find his ha ker spray painted
with obscenities.
Kvan White'* battle against
AIDS put him in the nation
al spotlight He became close
friends with Elton John and
co-hosted an AIDS benefit
with Elizabeth Taylor Royal
ties from a made-for-televi
sion movie about hi* life and
a $16,500 loan from Elton
John enabled the White fami
ly to move to a community
that was more oc« opting of
Ryan and his disease
Joanne White said her
son's illness taught her to be
more accepting of others and
brought her closer to the gm
community.
"When Ryan was firs! diag
nosed, a lot of people in the
gay community stepped out
to help," she said Once you
have AJDf* you're just like
everyone else who has AIDS.
You want to stay alive "
Speakers highlight of workshop
Pete Schneider
f<3> ire Grmpae .0»v l-rntumut
The fight against AIDS got a
little closer to home for some
students this weekend when
they participated in a workshop
called "Riskv Business AIDS —
Chi the Trail of a Killer ”
The conference, organized b\
the University's Substance
Abuse Prevention Program
1SAPP) Inst week nt the l-ane
County Fairgrounds was nttend
ed by more than ion University
students Ten nationally and
internationally known AIDS
activ ists took the podium during
the seminar, speaking out on a
variety of AIDS-related topics
"This is an AIDS information
program that is unlike any oth
er that has been in this town,'
said Miki Mm <- program c oordi
nator "Because of the caliber of
the speakers plus the message
they have, it's not just your Imsic
AIDS 10J that you would get in
college It s the* newest and iiest
from the people who know thr
ums! about the fight against
AIDS "
"The Is*st is learning more in
depth information about people
with the disease.” said Susie
Dunne, a University business
major who attended the semi
nar “l learned a lot more about
AIDS than 1 c ould have from a
class or a newspaper "
Mac e attributes much of the
suc c ess of the program to the
fac t that many of the speakers
were HIV positive who spoke
from both a jiersonal and profes
sional level
The con (ere nii' began Inst
Thursday with n sneak preview
of "Sw.nrt*.'' a Kaiser Parma
nente educational theatrical pro
duction geared toward youth
HIV prevention The perfor
mance focused on the facts of
the HIV virus, its transmission
and attempted to dispel many of
the myths and superstitions sur
rounding AIDS infections
The weekend seminar started
w ith the presentation of feanne
Thit n an AIDS
information pro
it ram that is unlike any
other that has been in
this tow n Because of
the i ahber of speakers,
plus the message they
have, it's not just your
basil AIDS 101 that
you would get in col
lege It's the new est atui
best from the people
w ho know the most
about the fight against
University Substance Abuse
Prevention Program coordinator
White on Friday morning
White, an internationally regard
ed AIDS activist, is the founder
and president of the Ryan White
Foundation in Indianapolis, IN
Many remember the made
AIDS
- MIKI MACE
//
for-TV' movie about her son
Rvan'n bout with the HIV' virus
that he acquired through a blood
transfusion In White's speech,
she told the painful story of how
people in her community
refused to let her son attend
school and fon *td her family out
of town.
Among the other presenters
vs is Owe (ones, president of the
SAMPS projw t in Washington.
D.C Jones started tfie National
AIDS Quilt program The names
of thousands of AIDS victims
an* stitched on the quilt. In his
presentation on Saturday. Jones
fieM nlwid how the massive quilt
is viewed in Washington D.( by
more than two million v isitors
each year
The conference was one of the
many SAPP organizes each year.
SAPPs overall goal is to provide
life skills to students and cover
the issues on campus that would
not normally be covered in a
classroom setting. In doing so.
SAPP features prominent pro
fessionals and activists who are
working in the fields that SAPP
covers
"Our program is about real life
stuff, riot just theory," said
Mai e, who regards SAPP as one
of the University's best kept
secrets "What we do is bring in
people who are working in the
field so the students get more of
a hands-on approach, more of a
human-gut approach."
Students participating in the
program received upper divi
sion credit The cost was S40
[**r i redit hour, which included
all fees, hooks and materials,
plus a meal on Friday.
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■ POLICE BEAT
The following incidents were
reported to the University Offic«
of Public Safety and the Kugene
police department Ian it 17
• Burglary was re|X>rted Jan H
from a University greenhouse on
the 1300 block of Franklin.
According to police reports, two
men posing as greenhouse
employees entered a building and
removed a 400-watt sodium bulb
valued at $80.
• A 21 year-old man was cited
for possession of less (bun one
ounce of marijuana and criminal
trespass )an. 11 on the 500 block
of Fast 13th Avenue According
to polii e reports, o police officer
observed a drug transaction in
progress and contacted the sus
pect
• A 37 year-old man w as cited
for drinking in public at the inter
section of Franklin Boulevard
and Villard Street on jan 11
• An 18-year-old student
repurted vandalism Jan 11 on the
1900 block of Abler Street. Two
tires on his vehicle were slashed
•A ;
ed a theft )an 1 - in l’acifi< Hall
According to poli< e reports,
unknown subjects tampered with
his personal computer and
removed some memory c hips
• A ^5-year-old man w is
arrested on two outstanding theft
warrants Jan. 1:1 on the 1400
block of Alder Street
• A 4 i vear-old man Vvas cited
for throe counts of theft on Jan.
14 on the 700 block of East 13th
Avenue. According to police
reports, the suspect was stealing
books from one location and
returning them for wish at anoth
er.
• A 22 vear old male l.ane
Community College student was
arrested Jan 16 for felony drug
sales on the 1300 block of Pat
terson Street According to
police reports, a police officer
observed the suspect hand
another male a small package
The officer recognized the sus
pect from an earlier drug arrest.
The officer approached the sus
pect and received permission to
sean h him, finding $10 in i ash
and several small baggies of
marijuana The suspect later
admitted selling marijuana
• A (I-year-old man was i ited
for theft in the second degree
Jan 17 on the 1300 block of
Columbia Street According to
police reports, an OPS officer
witnessed the suspect cutting a
bicycle lock with bolt cutters
•Compiled by Joe Harwood
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