HIV/AIDS

On the eve of the 7th International Conference on AIDS, we talk with the man in charge of the previous conference, Doctor Robert Wachter. Wachter's new book, "The Fragile Coalition," chronicles Wachter's struggle to make the conference a forum for both scientists and AIDS activists.

Baritone Sanford Sylvan. He portrayed Zhou Enlai in John Adams' "Nixon in China." He's a regular in Peter Sellars' repertory company, having played in "The Marriage of Figaro," and "Cosi Fan Tutte." He's playing the title role in Adams's "Death of Klinghoffer," which has its American premiere at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in September. He also has his first solo record, "Beloved That Pilgrimage," on which he is accompanied by pianist, David Breitman. (on the Nonesuch label).

Yesterday President Bush voiced his opposition to federally funded needle exchange programs to stop the spread of AIDS. Today Terry talks with activist Rod Sorge (pronounced like George).He's the director of PWA's (People with AIDS Working for Health, Inc.) Harm Reduction Institute, a program that runs a needle-exchange program in New York City. Giving out needles in New York is against the law and Sorge and his group have been arrested for it. Sorge runs ACT-UP's needle exchange program.

Writer and critic Doris Grumbach. In her new memoir, "Coming Into The End Zone," Grumbach chronicles the 70th year of her life, faces the specter of her impending death, as well of the deaths of several of her friends due to AIDS. (It's published by Norton).

Doctor Jonathan Mann, the director of the 1992 International Conference on AIDS. That conference has already become controversial, because the site of the conference was moved from Boston to Amsterdam. That decision was made because of the U.S. government did not give assurance that people with AIDS would be able to enter the U.S. to attend the conference. Mann is a professor of epidemiology and international health at the Harvard School of Public Health, and the former head of the World Health Organization's Global Program on AIDS.

We talk with Washington Post sports writer Mike Freeman about yesterday's revelation that basketball great Magic Johnson has tested positive for the AIDS virus.

Author David Feinberg. His new novel, "Spontaneous Combustion," is the further adventures of an HIV-positive man in New York City. (It's published by Viking).

Walter Gunn is an epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta. He talks to Terry about the flu season, which came early this year. Americans are battling three different strains of the virus. He also talks about whether or not it's worth getting a vaccine.

Terry Gross talks with two people who are working to spread the word about AIDS.
1) Rashidah Hassan ("reh-shee-dah heh-ssan") is the Executive Director of BEBASHI ("beh-bah-shee"), short for "Blacks Educating Blacks About Sexual Health Issues." It's a Philadelphia-based group that used down-to-earth strategies to warn people of color about AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Lou Reed's new album, "Magic and Loss" and Robbie Robertson's album "Storyville."

Television critic David Bianculli previews "Nickelodeon Special Edition: A Conversation with Magic." on the Nickelodeon network in which Magic Johnson discusses AIDS with a group of kids. (David says, don't miss it).

Reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer Vernon Loeb. He's been reporting from the Far East for the last several years. He'll talk with Terry about the problems facing the region like the explosion of AIDS in Thailand and especially Bangkok; the repression and ethnic fighting in Burma; and the amassing on the Thai/Burmese border of refugees fleeing repression in Burma.

Composer John Corigliano, Composer-in residence with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. His composition "Symphony No. 1" is Corigliano's personal statement about the AIDS crisis. The first three movements of the Symphony are dedicated to three of his lifelong musician-friends who died of AIDS. Corigliano was inspired to write the composition after seeing the AIDS memorial quilt. (Corigliano: Symphony No. 1, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Daniel Barenboim -- on the Erato Label, #2292-45601-2).

In the first ten years of the AIDS epidemic, the Food and Drug Administration approved only two drugs to treat the disease. Yet a third drug, approved last month, took only eight months. Health economist Peter Arno's new book, "Against The Odds" tells how AIDS activists have sparked sweeping reforms of the drug approval process, and sped up access to drug development for all illnesses.

Monette's book "Borrowed Time: An AIDS Memoir," published in 1988, was one of the first memoirs to be published about AIDS. It told the story of his lover's two year struggle with AIDS. Since then, Monette has watched another lover die of AIDS, and has been diagnosed with AIDS himself. Monette's new memoir about his life before he came out of the closet at the age of 25 is called "Becoming a Man: Half a Life Story."

Lawyers Suzanne Goldberg and Mark Huvard. Both are contesting a recent federal court ruling which allows employers to slash insurance coverage for AIDS patients. Representatives of the American Medical Association, the Association of Retired Persons, and the American Bar Association have all written letters to the U.S. Solicitor General, stating that the ruling was wrong. The original plaintiff in the case has already died from AIDS complications.

In 1980, AIDS activist and former Jesuit seminarian Martin Delaney was suffering from life-threatening hepatitis. He treated it with drugs then unapproved in the U.S. In 1985, Delaney founded Project Inform--which gathers information and facilitates access to AIDS treatments. Delaney has helped bring Compound Q, an unapproved AIDS drug, out of China. His life and work are discussed extensively in Jonathon Kwitny's controversial new book, "Acceptable Risks."

Maupin served in Vietnam and worked for Jesse Helms in his pre-Senate days. When he moved to San Fransisco, he came out of the closet. He was a journalist for several years before writing his "Tales of the City" series, which blended gay and straight storylines. His latest novel, "Maybe the Moon," expounds on Hollywood's hypocrisy, as seen through the eyes of a little person actress. His partner Terry Anderson joins him for the interview.

Preston is quickly emerging as a voice for gay writing; his work is being archived in many universities for new gay and lesbian studies departments. He has edited many anthologies including "Hometowns" and "Safe Sex." He is a former editor of "The Advocate," and occasionally writes for "Harper's" and "Interview." Preston also writes and defends gay pornography. He recently finished editing "A member of the Family: Gay Men Write About Their Families."

Kramer is considered the "voice of articulate rage," railing against the government for its indifference to AIDS. His plays include, "The Normal Heart," and the new "The Destiny of Me."Kramer founded the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT-UP) and the Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC). Terry will talk with him about being a writer, an activist, and a person with HIV.