Who was Ryan White?

Ryan White at the age of 14, adjusting an earphone for simultaneous translation during a live interview in Rome.

Ryan White contracted HIV at age 13 following a blood transfusion he received as a result of hemophilia. Growing up HIV-positive in Indiana, Ryan experienced discrimination as a result of his status. His brave fight to educate others about HIV and end the discrimination of which he was a victim made national and international headlines.

In 1984, Ryan was expelled from his school in Kokomo, Indiana due to fear of AIDS. Ryan was forced to participate in classroom activities via telephone. His family fought the superintendent’s decision in court and Ryan was able to return to school following a judge’s ruling in his favor; however, he was tormented when he returned to school. Students frequently insulted him and wrote degrading statements on his locker. His mother experienced widespread discrimination as well, including store clerks who refused to hand her change in order to avoid touching her. Restaurants discarded plates and silverware used by the White family, and someone even fired a gun into a window of the family home.

The Whites moved to Cicero, Indiana in 1987, where Ryan was treated as a regular student. The school board in Cicero held conferences for parents and residents to discuss HIV/AIDS in an effort to educate the community and encourage compassion rather than fear and discrimination. A student at Ryan’s new high school was quoted as saying, “When he first came a lot of people were really scared, but Ryan helped all of us to understand.” In 1988, Ryan testified before the President’s Commission on AIDS and stated, “Because of the lack of education on AIDS, discrimination, fear, panic and lies surrounded me. I was labeled a troublemaker, my mom an unfit mother, and I was not welcome anywhere. People would get up and leave so they would not have to sit anywhere near me. Even at church, people would not shake my hand. This brought on the news media, TV crews, interviews and numerous public appearances. I became known as the AIDS boy. I received thousands of letters of support from all around the world, all because I wanted to go to school.”

Ryan fell ill during his senior year of high school. Several celebrities and public figures, including Vice President Dan Quayle, President George H.W. Bush, Donald Trump, Michael Jackson and Elton John, called while Ryan was in the hospital and offered their support to him.

Ryan’s mother, grandparents and Elton John were with him when he passed away on April 8, 1990; he was 18 years old. Even in death Ryan could not escape the hatred and discrimination; by 1992 his gravesite was vandalized four times.

Within a few months of his death, the United States Congress passed the Ryan White CARE (Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency) Act. The act provided Federal funds to cities, states and community-based organizations for medical and social services for individuals living with HIV/AIDS. The CARE Act was reauthorized in 1996, 2000 and 2006, when its name was changed to the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Modernization Act. Administered by the Department of Health and Human Services, HIV/AIDS Bureau, the Ryan White program serves over 500,000 people annually.

Ryan’s story was told in a number of magazines and television shows; his life was even the subject of a TV movie.Those who work in the HIV/AIDS field credit Ryan White with opening dialogue on the disease and reducing prejudice. At a time when HIV was considered a gay disease or a drug addict's disease, Ryan would say, “I’m just like everyone else with AIDS, no matter how I got it.”

The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program

The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program is authorized by Federal law, first enacted in 1990, that funds services for people living with HIV disease that cannot pay for the care they need. The Ryan White legislation spells out who is eligible for services and describes how the money can be used. The Ryan White program awards grants under five sections of the Act: Part A, B, C, D and F.