Leading with Love: Care and Compassion in the Early Days of AIDS

The latest season of the Blindspot podcast, “The Plague In The Shadows,” brings listeners the voices of people who were affected in the early years of the HIV and AIDS epidemics. It includes stories like that of Kia LaBeija, an artist and activist who was diagnosed with HIV as a child soon after her parents both tested positive. LaBeija’s experience shows us how — even in a time when fear and stigma about the disease peaked — many people leaned into compassion that made a difference to those living with HIV and AIDS. She and a longtime family friend, Andre de Shields — the Grammy, Emmy and Tony Award-winning performer (“Hadestown” and “The Wiz”), who has been HIV-positive for decades — join host Kai Wright to talk about how they were touched and impacted by the forces of love that existed in their communities during the onset of the epidemic. Plus, listeners from across the country weigh in with their own stories; and journalist Linda Villarosa, author of  “Under the Skin: The Hidden Toll of Racism on American Lives and on the Health of Our Nation,” joins the conversation with reflections on covering the AIDS epidemic for most of her career.

To hear more of Blindspot: The Plague In The Shadows, listen and subscribe here.Tell us what you think. We're @noteswithkai on Instagram and X (Twitter). Email us at notes@wnyc.org. Send us a voice message by recording yourself on your phone and emailing us, or record one here. Notes from America airs live on Sundays at 6 p.m. ET., and listeners to the broadcast and podcast are invited to join the conversation at 844-745-TALK(8255). Podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts.

Tell us what you think. We're @noteswithkai on Instagram and X (Twitter). Email us at notes@wnyc.org. Send us a voice message by recording yourself on your phone and emailing us, or record one here.

Notes from America airs live on Sundays at 6 p.m. ET. The podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts.