I spent a considerable amount of my time this summer researching and shadowing William Brawner—an HIV positive HIV/AIDS activist who runs a youth center for kids affected and infected by HIV—and the fruits of my labor were materialized today; as the cover story for this week’s Philadelphia Weekly. I hope you’ll read the piece and let me know your thoughts.
A preview:
Already 90 minutes late, William Brawner pumps the gas pedal of the rental van, jumps the curb and pulls up next to the 10 teenagers waiting in front of a half-abandoned warehouse on East Allegheny Ave., home to HAVEN, the drop-in center for HIV-positive kids.
The kids cram into the white van and let him have it.
“Will, we love you and all but it’s 9 o’clock,” one says as the others groan in agreement. Brawner, who opened HAVEN last January, laughs then turns up the radio and pulls away in the direction of I-95 and Washington, D.C., where in a few hours he’ll introduce Magic Johnson at an event aimed to spark talk about the plague so many have forgotten.
Comments 3
Big ups, BJK. No small feat to get a gosh darn cover story on a major metro alt weekly. Fascinating topic – great find. I know how long you worked on it.
Posted 11 Sep 2008 at 4:32 pm ¶Great article, Brian. Congratulations!
Posted 12 Sep 2008 at 1:23 am ¶Brian,
Thank you so much for the great article about my son, and the work he is doing with Haven. I must admit that I was nervous when I learned you were doing it. While most of the feedback he’s gotten since his disclosure has been positve, some people are outraged by his behavior as a youth. As his mother, and the person who has always tried to protect him, I still worry despite the fact that he’s almost 30. Your article helped people understand the additional burden AIDS places on young people who are already struggling with issues of sexuality, self-esteem, peer pressure, school, etc. Thank you for your fair and balanced report.
Posted 18 Sep 2008 at 5:15 pm ¶Post a Comment