Mobile Register Profiles Jeanne White, Mother of Ryan White

The Mobile Register on Monday profiled Jeanne White, the mother of Ryan White (Curet, Mobile Register, 9/13). Ryan White, perhaps the most well-known HIV-positive hemophiliac, was banned in 1985 from attending school after he was diagnosed with HIV. White successfully sued in court, but was subjected to taunting and insults from his classmates after returning to school. In 1987, his family moved to another school district, where White was "generally accepted." After his death in 1990, many AIDS advocates said White "served as a deterrent to bigotry throughout the nation" (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 6/5/01). Since her son's death, Jeanne White has "continued to dedicate herself to Ryan's dream of easing the stigma and discrimination faced by so many people with HIV/AIDS," according to her Web site, the Register reports. According to White, although access to antiretroviral drugs and other HIV/AIDS treatments is "empowering," it creates "false hope" because the "public is lulled into thinking that the epidemic is under control," according to the Register. "It's important to keep AIDS awareness alive," adding that it is "especially" important "during a time when so many causes, including terrorism prevention, are vying for limited funds," White said, according to the Register. White will serve as the grand marshal of the Mobile, Ala., AIDS Walk on Sept. 19 (Mobile Register, 9/13).

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