Iconic Madonna and her AIDS activism
A recent interview with People magazine reminded us how iconic Madonna is with the LGBTQ community as she talked about her AIDS activism back in the days.
This is no surprise: Madonna had been ardent pioneer supporter of the LGBTQ community back when she wasn’t famous and there wasn’t a term like “LGBTQ ally” around.
Iconic Madonna and her advocacy
In her interview, Madonna talked about life during the AIDS crisis in the 1980s.
“When the AIDS epidemic first came to New York and I was living on the Lower East Side, my best friend was HIV-positive,” Madonna said.
She narrated that when she went to visit her friend at St. Vincent’s Hospital, she could smell death all over the AIDS ward.
Among her friends who died during that time were her best friend, Martin Burgoyne, and her dance instructor, Christopher Flynn.
Because of this experience, she spoke out about AIDS and gay rights even during the 1980s. In fact, she held an AIDS benefit concert and a major benefit dance marathon during that period.
Iconic Madonna’s constant support
Since then, Madonna has always been at the forefront of defending and supporting the LGBTQ community. It’s not just an act but something she lives and breathes.
Billboard came up with a list of the many times she’s served as an inspiration for LGBTQ people
However, here’s that struck us: she actually offered words of support and advice to Ellen DeGeneres– the two didn’t know each other personally back then– just as the now-famous TV host was about to come out.
Check out Ellen’s remembrance of that time below:
What’s more, Madonna always speaks on the subject wherever she goes and whenever she cans.
For example, when she presented the Vito Russo Award to Anderson Cooper during the 2013 GLAAD Awards, she dressed up in a Boy Scout uniform to mock the Boy Scouts’ homophobic membership ideals.
Iconic Madonna vs. discrimination
Recently, Madonna announced her move to Portugal and her promise to come out with a new album, as well as a new film on LGBTQ discrimination.
This proposed movie will be an adaptation of Andrew Sean Greer’s novel, The Impossible Lives of Greta Wells, with the pop icon writing and directing the movie.
“Why does this book appeal to me? Why did I want to adapt it into a screenplay? Because it touches me on so many levels and it deals with so many important topics,” she said in an interview with Harper’s Bazaar.
“Right now, more than ever, it’s an extremely timely story to tell,” she added.
While Madonna is considered by many as a celebrity icon and a pop icon, she will always be an LGBTQ icon for us.