Arik Hartmann: Our treatment of HIV has advanced. Why hasn't the stigma changed?
Arik Hartmann: El tratamiento del VIH ha progresado. ¿Por qué nuestro estigma no?
Arik Hartmann is tackling the ignorance and misinformation surrounding HIV/AIDS. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
by showing y'all a photo,
enseñándoles una foto
have probably seen before.
of the things that come to mind,
las cosas que les vengan a la mente
of those things, those words.
esas palabras?
to look at me.
when you look at me?
cuando me ven?
de allí de la foto
as he was dying from AIDS-related illness,
de una enfermedad causada por SIDA
published in "Life Magazine."
separating me from Kirby
que me separa de Kirby
in the way that we treat HIV and AIDS.
manera que combatimos el SIDA y el VIH.
of those with the virus evolved alongside?
el virus no ha evolucionado a la par?
when it's so easily managed?
reacción cuando es fácil de manejar?
easy questions to answer.
de responder.
of so many different factors and ideas.
in the '80s and '90s,
del SIDA durante los 80s y 90s.
had a very obvious impact
tuvieron un gran impacto
a un grupo de personas
was this very awful thing
que ya estaban marginados en la sociedad.
were already on the fringes of society.
to use the two almost interchangeably --
ambos términos casi intercambiablemente:
Republican National Convention,
Convención Nacional Republicana,
that gay stood for: "Got AIDS yet?"
significaba: "¿Ya tuviste SIDA?"
to understand the virus more
mejor el virus
had increased its territory.
había incrementado su alcance.
of Ryan White in 1985,
from a contaminated blood treatment,
tratamiento de sangre contaminado
in America's perception of HIV.
de EE.UU. sobre el VIH.
to these dark corners of society,
esas personas marginadas de la sociedad,
worthy of their empathy,
como dignas de empatía,
and that perception, it still lingers.
y esa percepción, todavía perdura.
for these next few questions.
para las siguientes preguntas.
were aware that with treatment,
conscientes de que con tratamiento
fend off AIDS completely,
defenderse del SIDA por completo,
that with treatment,
que con tratamiento,
an undetectable status,
un estado indetectable
virtually uninfectious?
en personas sin infecciones?
of the pre- and postexposure treatments
tratamientos pre- y post-exposición
that reduce the risk of transmission
el riesgo de transmisión
that we have made in fighting HIV,
que hemos logrado al combatir el VIH,
to dent the perception
moldear la percepción
of the virus and those living with it.
sobre el virus y quienes lo viven.
I'm downplaying the danger of this virus,
estoy subestimando el peligro del virus,
the harrowing past of the AIDS epidemic.
de la epidemia del SIDA.
that there is hope for those infected
en aquellos infectados
it was in the '80s.
de muerte que era en los 80s.
this question myself initially:
y yo pregunté esto al principio:
Why haven't they been vocal?
¿Por qué no lo expresan?
or these statistics,
o en las estadísticas,
a very easy question for me to answer.
muy fácil de responder para mí.
lo cual hace que
in the closet, so to speak.
en público, por así decirlo.
to us as our medical histories,
personales como nuestras historias médicas
in a very sensitive space.
perceive us when we're honest
al ser honestos
for the HIV-positive population.
con VIH positivo.
is the price that we pay for transparency,
es el precio a pagar por la transparencia,
as someone without HIV?
como alguien que no tiene VIH?
physical indications you have the virus.
físicas que digan que uno tiene el virus.
and share my story.
y compartir mi historia.
I was a sophomore in college
de segundo año en la universidad
I was sexually active,
era sexualmente activo
to minimize the risk that sex carries.
minimizar el riesgo que trae el sexo.
because I wasn't always safe.
porque no siempre estaba a salvo.
before we're flat on the ground,
y estamos en el piso,
and I didn't think much of it.
y no le di tanta importancia.
by a herd of wildebeest.
pisoteado por una manada de ñus.
like nothing I have felt before or since.
que nunca antes había tenido.
of fever and chill.
and it was difficult to walk.
y era difícil caminar.
I had some prior exposure to disease,
estaba expuesto a enfermedades
I had read a bit on HIV,
había leído poco del VIH,
that this was seroconversion,
que era una "seroconversión"
acute HIV infection.
una infección aguda de VIH.
to the HIV antigen.
el antígeno del VIH.
goes through this phase of sickness,
por esta etapa de enfermedad
there were these physical symptoms
aparecieran estos síntomas físicos
the virus pretty early.
muy temprano.
just to hit the nail on head,
solo para quitar la duda,
the next morning with the results,
al día siguiente con los resultados.
and speak to the doctor on staff.
la médica que estaba a cargo.
wasn't what I was expecting.
that this wasn't a death sentence,
que esta no era mi sentencia de muerte,
to put me in contact with her brother,
ponerme en contacto con su hermano
since the early '90s.
principios de los 90s.
but I was deeply touched.
and human warmth,
for that first exchange.
por ese intercambio.
I was a physical mess.
fui un desastre en lo físico.
me iba bien.
they weren't oblivious.
no eran ajenos a ello.
I'd been diagnosed with HIV,
había sido diagnosticado con VIH,
and I didn't want them to worry.
y no quería que se preocuparan.
on the couch and they were crying,
en el sillón y lloraban
to see that they cared.
touch anything of mine,
anything I had cooked.
so don't think that passed me by.
no crean que dejé pasar eso.
their aversion got gradually more obvious
su rechazo se volvió más obvio
from the bathroom,
del baño.
to wash my clothes on a hotter setting.
en modo caliente.
o fluidos vaginales
had shared my status with her parents.
le contó a sus padres.
medical information to strangers.
personal con extraños.
in a roomful of 300 of y'all,
en una sala de 300 personas
something I was comfortable with,
algo que me hacía sentir cómodo
with their daughter living with me.
con que su hija viviera conmigo.
in a religious household
en un hogar religioso
from such an unlikely source.
que no creía capaz.
college-educated people,
personas "educadas universitarias",
of the LGBT community,
de la comunidad LGBT,
at the end of the semester.
al final del semestre.
to remedy their ignorance,
that was now a part of me
que ahora formaba parte de mí
about my status,
sobre mi estado,
being the everyday advocate.
"ser defensor de lo cotidiano".
the point of this everyday advocacy,
la idea de esta defensa cotidiana,
don't want to be called it.
que nos llamen ignorantes.
synonymous with stupid.
de estupidez.
uno está antes de aprender.
coming from a place of ignorance,
venir de su lugar de ignorancia,
una oportunidad de aprender.
spread some education,
difundir algo de educación,
situations for others
situaciones para otros
down the line that humiliation.
haven't been all positive.
no han sido del todo positivas.
due to religious pressures,
debido a presiones religiosas,
en educación sexual
on anything sexual.
en general con cualquier tema sexual.
occur between heterosexual partners,
infecciones son entre heterosexuales,
women, especially women of color,
sobre todo negras,
It never has been.
nunca lo ha sido.
all be concerned with.
and reach beyond what was around me.
allá de lo que me rodeaba.
of online dating apps,
de las citas online y las aplicaciones,
targeted towards gay men.
available guys within a radius.
en un radio cercano.
to meet your future gay husband
tu futuro esposo gay
de heterosexuales
they could date on their phones.
podían tener citas en el móvil.
what you saw or read,
lo que veías o leías,
you can meet up, you can do other things.
podías conocerlo, hacer otras cosas.
I obviously stated that I had HIV,
obviamente puse que tenía VIH,
questions about my status.
preguntas acerca de mi estado.
both positive and negative.
tanto positivos como negativos.
that I've mentioned before.
que ya he mencionado antes.
were passing remarks or assumptions.
negativos eran supuestos que dejé pasar.
about my sex life or my sex habits.
o de mis hábitos sexuales.
I put myself or others at risk.
with these passing ignorant remarks.
con estos comentarios ignorantes.
it's common to hear the word "clean"
escuchar la palabra "limpio"
who is HIV negative.
que tiene VIH negativo.
is being unclean, or dirty,
after a day in the field,
después de un día en el campo,
por el estigma
from disclosing their status,
no expresen abiertamente su estado,
within their own community,
verdaderamente angustioso.
have been a lot more numerous,
positivos fuesen más
about the risks of transmission,
riesgos de transmisión,
about my experiences,
who were newly diagnosed with HIV
sido diagnosticados recientemente
what step to take next.
and they felt dirty.
se sentían sucios.
to immediately calm them,
inmediatamente,
with AcadianaCares,
AcadianaCares
we have in our community
que tenemos en nuestra comunidad
with people I knew personally
que conocía personalmente
have this safe space to feel human again,
seguro para sentirse humanos de nuevo,
the resources they needed
que necesitaban
the most humbling aspect
el aspecto más aleccionador
on those who were suffering like I did,
en quienes sufrían como lo hice yo,
who were in the dark,
estaban en el lado oscuro
and it wasn't a good place to be.
y no era un buen lugar para estar.
all different backgrounds,
weren't as informed as I had been,
como yo lo estaba,
from a place of fear.
who were too afraid to show their faces
mucho miedo de mostrar sus rostros
con algunas cosas en mente.
or gamble I took
riesgo o apuesta que asumía
this real and this tangible impact.
un impacto real y tangible.
that we encounter for the good,
and push it even further.
y llevarlo más allá.
is dealing with HIV,
o sabe de alguien que enfrente el VIH,
you have in your community,
qué fuentes existen en su comunidad
more on the disease,
sobre la enfermedad,
that you can access
nacionales para acceder
to find me after this talk
de encontrarme después de esto
"to see the forest through the trees,"
"que el árbol no tape el bosque".
see the human through the disease.
al ser humano detrás de su enfermedad.
to see numbers and statistics
all the faces behind those numbers.
que hay tras esos números.
thinking those things, those words,
pensando esas cosas, esas palabras,
looking at David Kirby,
al mirar a David Kirby,
que piensen en la "persona".
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Arik Hartmann - NaturalistArik Hartmann is tackling the ignorance and misinformation surrounding HIV/AIDS.
Why you should listen
Arik Hartmann was diagnosed with HIV in 2014 at his college campus clinic after a bout of flu-like illness. After disclosing his HIV status to roommates, he was faced with increasing ostracization and ultimately was asked to leave the home he had been renting. From that moment he decided to always be open about his HIV status and to use it open a dialogue and educate others. He began tackling the ignorance and misinformation surrounding HIV/AIDS within his local community in Louisiana, and more surprisingly in the gay community. Using dating apps like Grindr and Tinder as a medium for HIV advocacy, he began to educate strangers about HIV/AIDS and to help those newly diagnosed acquire treatment and care. Hartmann believes that by being transparent with our illnesses and health we can all engage and educate those around us -- and hopefully dispel damaging stigmas.
Though his advocacy is HIV oriented, Hartmann is a passionate naturalist and can be found catching snakes and frogs in his free time. He has worked with the United States Geological Survey assisting in coastal ecology and herpetological research. He received his undergraduate degree in Resource Biology and Biodiversity from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He currently lives in Gainesville, Florida and plans to pursue a master's degree in wildlife ecology.
Arik Hartmann | Speaker | TED.com