Sample Chapter - Historic Marker - Ryan White
Sample Chapter - Historic Marker - Ryan White
Central Indiana Road Trips
Sample Chapter From
Historic Marker
Ryan White
Location:
Hamilton Heights Middle School, 420 West North St., Arcadia (Hamilton County, Indiana) 46030
Installed
2019 Indiana Historical Bureau and Hamilton Heights School Corporation
ID#:
29.2019.1
Text
Side One
Kokomo native Ryan White was diagnosed with AIDS in 1984 after contracting the virus from a contaminated hemophilia treatment. He faced intense discrimination from his community in a time of fear and misunderstanding about AIDS and was prevented from attending school in his hometown. Hamilton Heights High School welcomed White in 1987 after the family moved to Cicero.
Side Two
Anticipating White’s arrival, Hamilton Heights developed an acclaimed AIDS education campaign. White raised national AIDS awareness while battling the disease and spoke before the Presidential Commission on the HIV Epidemic. He was named Sagamore of the Wabash for his advocacy. The Ryan White CARE Act, providing funds for HIV/AIDS treatment, passed soon after his death.
Ryan White (December 6, 1971 – April 8, 1990)
The son of Hubert Wayne and Jeanne Elaine (Hale) White, Ryan was native to Kokomo, Indiana. When his parents had him circumcised at birth, the bleeding continued long after it should have stopped. The medical staff at St. Joseph Memorial Hospital diagnosed him with severe hemophilia A. The diagnosis required him to be treated with weekly transfusions of a pooled plasma blood product called factor VIII.
Hemophilia
Hemophilia is more prevalent in males and is usually genetic in origin. It is caused by a lack of blood clotting proteins in the blood. Prolonged bleeding after an injury, deep or large bruises, pain and swelling in the joints. In most patients bleeding only occurs after a cut, scratch or surgery. In severe cases bleeding can occur for no reason. One concern is internal bleeding which may go undetected for a long time. Bleeding into the brain after a head bump is also a concern. There is no cure for the disease. Treatment includes regular injections of a clotting agent specific to the form of hemophilia the patient has.
Factor VIII
Factor VIII is a protein which is manufactured in the liver. It is a key element in the body's ability to coagulate blood after an injury. Blood plasma donations from blood donors can be used to provide Factor VIII to patients suffering from certain types of hemophilia.
HIV
A virus causes the disease called HIV (human immunodeficiency virus). This virus attacks cells in the human body that help fight off infection. The disease makes those afflicted more vulnerable to other diseases and infections. Left untreated, HIV progresses into AIDS.
AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome)
AIDS is the late-stage form of HIV after it had damaged the body’s immune system to a large degree.
Causes
HIV is caused by unprotected sex with an infected person or intravenous drug use in which users share needles with an infected person. It can also come from contaminated blood products, which is how Ryan White contracted the disease. Left untreated, the average life span is about three years. Once AIDS sets in, life expectancy is about one year. Once a patient contracts HIV, there is no cure. Modern HIV drugs can delay or prevent people with the disease from progressing to AIDS. Today donated blood is tested for HIV, however testing was not available in the 1980's, as AIDS was a completely new disease.
History
The condition known as AIDS was first discovered in 1981. As it was such a new disease there was a lot of fear about it, as it was a fatal disease with unknown causes. It was not until the cause of the condition, the HIV virus, was not discovered until 1984. Researchers believe that the disease originated in chimpanzees and migrated to humans sometime before 1930. Chimpanzees are a source of food in Africa. Researchers think that hunters came into contact with infected blood during hunting expeditions during that time in the region around Cameroon. Some contracted the disease, and it began spreading. Sometime in the early 1980's the disease began to appear in Western countries. The means of transmission was not well understood, and many doctors believed it could spread by casual transmission. Because the disease was so new and since it was fatal it was natural for people to fear those that had it. This was the case for Ryan.
Ryan Diagnosed With AIDS
Ryan was diagnosed with AIDS on December 17, 1984, during a lung biopsy. At that point, doctors believed he had only six months to live. He did improve and requested readmittance to his school at Western Middle School in Russiaville. Concerned parents at the school pressured the school board to deny his request. He was allowed to attend for one day, however half of the school's students stayed home on that day. In April he was allowed to return, however many of the parents withheld them from school and started an alternative school.
Schism in the Community
Division within the community continued. The school required him to use a separate bathroom and eat his lunch with disposable utensils. He had few friends, and he was unhappy. The family received death threats. The situation peaked when someone fired a bullet through a living room window when the family was not at home. The White family decided to leave Kokomo.
Move to Arcadia
Hamilton Heights High School welcomed him to classes August 31, 1986. The school had held educational sessions with the students prior to his admission and some students shook his hand when he appeared.
National AIDS Spokesman
Ryan became a national spokesman for AIDS during the last years of his life. He appeared on several national television shows and spoke to the President's Commission on the HIV Epidemic in 1988. His last public appearance was with former President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy during the Oscar ceremony on March 29, 1989. His health deteriorated further, and he passed away on April 8, 1990