Timeline is a regular feature in each issue looking back to events and milestones that have helped us evolve into the community we are today.

Nov. 15, 1991

When Magic Johnson went public with the news that he was infected with the HIV virus, women around the country had a lot to say. Ann Copeland, who had tested positive for HIV four years earlier than Johnson’s announcement, was both sorrowful and angered over Johnson’s health. While she was sympathetic for Johnson and elated that national attention had been given to a heterosexual infected with AIDS, Copeland felt belittled because “women were wondering why we weren’t important enough for people to pay attention to this.”

Doctors hoped that Johnson’s announcement would help to raise funds for AIDS testing and prevention programs. Dr. Mark Katz was amongst those in the medical profession hoping that Magic Johnson would inspire action. However, Katz also criticized the lack of testing of anti-AIDS drugs on men, noting that the effects of such drugs on pregnant women and their unborn children were not known.

Johnson’s announcement also included his decision to retire from the Lakers. Many were saddened, even those who were not basketball fans. When word of his status reached the public, calls to AIDS clinics around the country increased dramatically, especially when Johnson revealed that he had contracted HIV from heterosexual sex.

“Not just gay people get AIDS,” Johnson told reporters.