Black AIDS Institute (BAI), the nation’s only Black HIV organization focused on ending HIV and stigma in Black communities, has released their Juneteenth conversation with celebrity and activist Billy Porter about how his recent HIV disclosure has freed him from shame. This personal story highlights how the intersecting stigmas of being Black, gay, and living with HIV fuel the epidemic among Black Americans and present a tangible barrier to accessing lifesaving HIV prevention and treatment options. Featured as a part of BAI’s Black Voices Matter campaign, which amplifies celebrities who are using their platforms to support the Black HIV movement, this moving conversation was released on social media on Juneteenth to honor individual Black freedom and inspire healing.

“The Black Voices Matter conversation with Billy Porter is critical because 40 years into the HIV/AIDS epidemic, we know that stigma is a key driver of HIV into Black communities. While Billy’s fearless public disclosure is unique, his traumatizing life experience is not. It underscores the importance of talking about HIV and defeating systemic anti-Blackness so that we can access proven HIV prevention, and treatment options to end the cycle of HIV in Black communities in the next 10 years under the President’s Ending the HIV Epidemic national initiative,” said Raniyah Copeland, President and CEO, Black AIDS Institute.