“On December 17, 1984, I had surgery to remove two inches of my left lu...” — Ryan White Quote

“On December 17, 1984, I had surgery to remove two inches of my left lung due to pneumonia. After two hours of surgery the doctors told my mother I had AIDS.”

“Most recently my battle has been against AIDS and the discrimination surrounding it.”

“I'm just one of the kids, and all because the students at Hamilton Heights High School listened to the facts, educated their parents and themselves, and believed in me.”

“The desire to move into a bigger house, to avoid living AIDS daily, and a dream to be accepted by a community and school, became possible and a reality with a movie about my life, The Ryan White Story.”

“Listening to medical facts was not enough. People wanted one hundred percent guarantees.”

“I received thousands of letters of support from all around the world, all because I wanted to go to school.”

“AIDS is the biggest challenge, the major disaster facing this country and we would have wished for something more specific and far-reaching.”

“The discovery of HIV in 1983 and the proof that it was the cause of AIDS in 1984 were the first major scientific breakthroughs that provided a specific target for blood-screening tests and opened the doorway to the development of antiretroviral medications.”

“If we ever hope to rid the world of the political AIDS of our time, terrorism, the rule must be clear: One does not deal with terrorists; one does not bargain with terrorists; one kills terrorists.”

“I think these last 10 years have seen just a huge shift in the psyche of this country as regards gay people. I think AIDS had a lot to do with it. So many families who really believed they'd 'never met one' were suddenly confronted with their sons becoming ill, and friends of sons. I think that brought a lot of it into the open.”

“AIDS is a shared truth - it's not selective in its wrath.”