It’s not an ambulance… Photo by Randy Stern

To quote Barbra Streisand: “Memories, may be beautiful, but yet/ What’s too painful to remember/We simply choose to forget.”

Sorry, those were the first lyrics that came to mind when thinking about this blog post.

Today is World AIDS Day. It is not a topic of discussion across the Blogosphere, but it has touched the game in various ways. Whether the impact was positive or negative, to have the discussion of the HIV virus in the context of baseball always constitutes an awkward dance.

Perhaps I should discuss this awkward dance by pointing out key names and organizations that have put the two entities of baseball and HIV/AIDS in the same room.

GLENN BURKE: When he arrived with the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Oakland, California-native had a lot of promise. He was a brilliant minor leaguer that scouts love to watch. Upon arriving with the big team, he continued his rise to the game with enthusiasm and a willingness to show his teammates he can play. Though he gave the world the “high-five,” Burke dealt with some demons. Beyond Burke’s homosexuality, he contracted HIV which was quickly converted into AIDS. His life was also spiraling out of control due to the way he was sent off from the game – ostracized by it – eventually hitting levels beyond bottom. A year before he died, Burke’s AIDS diagnosis was made public. The Oakland A’s did reach out to him to raise funds for his care. He would become only the first baseball player to come out, but not the first to have contracted AIDS – and died due to complications of the disease.

ALAN WIGGINS: No discussion of baseball and AIDS is complete without talking about the quick San Diego Padres/Baltimore Orioles second baseman who died of complications from AIDS prior to Burke’s death. It’s been said that he contracted the disease through his extensive drug use possibly leading back to his playing days. Neither Burke or Wiggins are poster subjects for AIDS in baseball – they shouldn’t be. However, his daughter, Candice of the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx, continues to advocate the cause of HIV/AIDS in her father’s name.

THE SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS: In 1994, the Giants teamed up with the Until There’s a Cure Foundation for a unique promotion that would break a wall between the game and the virus. Until Earvin “Magic” Johnson made his announcement of his HIV status, any support for fundraising for the virus was kept away from presumably masculine institutions due to the stigma of the majority of the virus’ victims – gay/bisexual men. Once the door opened up that the virus is not exclusive to this population – and it can hit anyone – the Giants felt an obligation to the fans they had not been able to reach out to for an annual fundraiser to bridge the HIV/AIDS (and the GLBT community) with the game. This year, the newly crowned World Series champions held its 17th annual Until There’s a Cure Day. They know that as long as the virus is still out there, the Giants will be there to help raise funds to do something about it.

ROBERTO ALOMAR: Supposedly, there are accusations stating the former Toronto Blue Jays/Baltimore Orioles/etc. star has AIDS. This news had been under the radar for no particular reason – except for the Postseason. Is this true? When there are more accusations than confirmations – you have to question the facts. But, what if it was true? How will the fans perceive this future Hall of Famer? I can only imagine the outrage considering the circumstances of these accusations – including his wife stating he exposed her to the virus. Whether or not it is true, I can feel the discussion rising to the surface again throughout the game. Perhaps it will come with a lesson for anyone to take responsibility with their lives outside the ballpark.

ALMA MARTINEZ: Being the Los Angeles Dodgers’ representative of this year’s “People Magazine’s 30 Stars Among Us,” it was a leap of faith to give the spotlight to this woman from Redondo Beach. What Martinez have done for the past sixteen years have been bridging care and concern with people throughout Los Angeles who are low income and HIV-positive. Her Sin Barreras/Friends non-profit group achieves this by bridging medical care, providing food and social opportunities to these people on the outskirts of life. For the Dodgers to support her and the cause she works hard to provide the best services for is indeed a major step. For Major League Baseball to honor her is gratifying indeed to this particular fan!

THE HEIRLOOM: Of course, this is the first time I’ve discussed a cause on this blog. It is something I am very familiar with as to the number of people I’ve known over the years who had contracted the virus and/or have died due to its complications. I am HIV-negative. I came into the disease with full knowledge of what it can do and the stigmatism it continue to have upon me and my people. I delayed coming out in the 1980s because I feared that I could easily die from it since there were no tethers or nets in the gay community to keep others from not contracting it. Since the Magic Johnson revelation, I made sure to do what I can to keep myself safe from contracting the virus.

Yet, I do not wear a red ribbon. Why should I? My views of HIV have been beyond the point of asking for a cure. It is wondering when the ignorance and stupidity around the virus will end so we can go forward in ensuring its demise. This anger is not just aimed towards those who stigmatize whole populations of people with the pall of the virus, but rather those who are supposed to do something about it. For example, I get angry when someone who is HIV-positive is acting irresponsibly putting people I know at risk. I also get angry at others who try to create more drama around someone’s confirmed or supposed HIV status even for public consumption.

To channel this anger, I do what I can to help support the events and organizations involved with providing HIV/AIDS services in the region. In the spring, I support one of the walk teams for the AIDS Walk here in the Twin Cities, supporting the Minnesota AIDS Project. I have also continued as a photographer to the area’s Dining Out for Life, supporting the Aliveness Project. In my current grad school Residency, the organization I am working with, the One Voice Mixed Chorus, participates in HIV-related events around the year.

Yet, I am concerned that the game, as a whole, is not doing anything else about this cause beyond what the World Champions are doing. It will take a sea change in terms of looking at HIV/AIDS from a stigmatized point of view. It will take more than just avoiding jokes and clubhouse behaviors to respect the disease that has been in our midst for the past 30 years. I do not have the answers in doing so. I’ll leave that up to you to find ways to help Major League Baseball and all organizations associated throughout baseball to find a way to humanize the cause with the game.

Thirty years is too long for people to avoid a subject like this.

The Heirloom/Randy supports the following HIV/AIDS resources…
Minnesota AIDS Project
The Aliveness Project
Calendar of World AIDS Day event from the Minnesota Department of Health
World AIDS Day 2010