By Rakeah Glass
Program Manager, The Institute for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
(March 11, 2024) On March 10, The Institute for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at Chase Brexton acknowledged National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day by remembering the life and legacy of national HIV/AIDS Activist Hydeia Broadbent, who passed away on February 20, 2024.
Hydeia Broadbent spent the majority of her 39 years educating and advocating on behalf of people, like herself, living with the virus. During the time she began appearing on national television talk shows, Hydeia gave a cherubic face and fresh perspective to an illness of which many were ill informed.
Born HIV positive on June 14, 1984, Hydeia’s start in life moved quickly. Shortly after birth, Hydeia was abandoned by a substance use disordered mother and by age 3, Hydeia was in foster care. By age 5, prior to being adopted by her foster family, Hydeia developed AIDS. The following year, with her parents’ support, Hydeia began sharing her story. Not many had seen the face of a child with HIV/AIDS, especially, one as young and precocious with a message of life and death.
As Hydeia matured, surpassing doctors’ life expectancy predictions for her, she encountered challenges not unlike many teenagers and young adults, but always peppered with the implications of how her status differentiated her from the rest. This societal-imposed differentiation only fueled her message of education, inclusion, and acceptance.
It is in the spirit of amplifying Hydeia’s legacy that The Institute for EDI encourages you to consider learning about ways in which you can further your knowledge and extend compassion toward those living with HIV/AIDS.
At Chase Brexton, the POWER Project provides HIV/AIDS resources and education with a mobile unit that can be brought onsite by request. POWER also offers rapid HIV testing and Hep C testing. In addition, the POWER team can provide both PrEP and PEP linkage to care. To learn more about partnering and volunteering with POWER, contact Tonya Williamson at twilliamson@chasebrexton.org
