“The Politics of the Body and the Body Politic: Magic Johnson and the Ideology of AIDS” is a very interesting article written by Samantha King. “on November 8 1991, headlines across the world told the same story, the story that Earvin Johnson, professional basketball player, sports hero, and media personality, had contracted the HIV virus” (King, 1993). Magic Johnson brought the AIDS epidemic to the forefront, instantly the awareness of the virus grew nationwide after Magic’s annocement, not to mention at the same press conference Magic Johnson announced that he was retiring from the NBA. I think it’s safe to say that Magic was considered a sports hero at the time of his announcement; he had won multiple NBA Championships, and MVP awards. He was a heterosexual masculine basketball superstar with a fairly clean slate, so you could only imaging how much this announcement was perceived to taint his legacy at the time.
I found the authors description of Johnson to be very interesting. King described Johnson as being, “A glowing, godlike figure who towers above his adoring followers. His nickname “Magic” only adds to the mystique and power that surround him (king, 1993). This is a powerful statement by King, but as an advocate viewer of the professional sports I understand how people sometimes make the mistake of perceiving athletes who are just as much human as the general public, to be heroes, or even godlike figures. It only takes one negative altercation to changes the public perspective. I think Magic legacy was originally tainted by his announcement, however as time past and Magic returned to the NBA his legacy regained the prestige that once was correlated with Magic. I think Magic’s announcement help educate society and brought awareness t the issue of AIDS. I think Magic did the best he could do from a negative situation and most of all he continues to help and educate people world wide about the virus.
1 comment:
What amazes me in retrospect in contemplating the Magic Johnson story, is that few would have anticipated him to still be alive so many years later. At the time, AIDS (and even being hiv positive) was considered a "death sentence." That he is still alive, and apparently healthy, speak to the hope of living with AIDS. And I believe that has made Magic a spokesperson for continuing to live with AIDS as well.
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