American teenager from Kokomo, Indiana, who became a national poster child for HIV/AIDS in the United States after failing to be re-admitted to school following an AIDS diagnosis. As a hemophiliac, he became infected with HIV from a contaminated blood treatment (Factor VIII) and, when diagnosed in December 1984, was given six months to live. Doctors said he posed no risk to other students, but AIDS was poorly understood by the general public at the time. When White tried to return to school, many parents and teachers in Howard County rallied against his attendance due to concerns of the disease spreading through bodily fluid transfer. Western School was actually located in Russiaville outside of Kokomo and was not part of the local Kokomo school system. A lengthy administrative appeal process ensued, and news of the conflict turned White into a popular celebrity and advocate for AIDS research and public education. Surprising his doctors, White lived five years longer than predicted but died in April 1990, one month before his high school graduation.
Before White, AIDS was a disease stigmatized as an illness impacting the gay community, because it was first diagnosed among gay men. That perception shifted as White and other prominent HIV-infected people such as Magic Johnson, Arthur Ashe and the Ray brothers appeared in the media to advocate for more AIDS research and public education to address the epidemic. The U.S. Congress passed a major piece of AIDS legislation, the Ryan White CARE Act, shortly after White’s death. The Act has been reauthorized twice; Ryan White Programs are the largest provider of services for people living with HIV/AIDS in the United States.
On 29 March 1990, White entered Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis with a respiratory infection. As his condition deteriorated, he was placed on a ventilator and sedated. He was visited by Elton John and the hospital was deluged with calls from well-wishers. White died on 8 April 1990. The next day Donald Trump and the singer Michael Jackson, who is from Indiana, visited his family.
Over 1,500 people attended White’s funeral on 11 April, a standing-room only event held in Indianapolis. White’s pallbearers included Elton John, football star Howie Long and Phil Donahue. Elton John performed “Skyline Pigeon” at the funeral. The funeral was also attended by Michael Jackson and First Lady Barbara Bush. On the day of the funeral, former President Ronald Reagan wrote a tribute to White that appeared in The Washington Post. Reagan’s statement about AIDS and White’s funeral were seen as indicators of how greatly White had helped change perceptions of AIDS.
Link to Wikipedia biography