A 39-year-old AIDS activist, who became famous after talking about Oprah when she was a young girl and her own experience with the disease, has unexpectedly died.
Hydeia Broadbent, who was 11 years old at the time, shot to fame when she told her story about being born with HIV by her mother on Winfrey in 1996.
The chat icon cried and lost her cool for a couple of seconds as Broadbent spoke. This touching moment became one of the most memorable in the history.
Broadbent has been a HIV/AIDS activist ever since. She spent the majority of her life battling the stigma that surrounded the virus. This was especially true during the AIDS epidemic in the US, in the 1990s, when a diagnosis of the disease meant death.
On February 20, Loren Broadbent posted his daughter’s passing on the Facebook, saying she had been ‘determined to spread hope’.
Kimberley McCoy a family friend said that Broadbent had been on dialysis last year and was receiving life support.
GoFundMe stated that her death was unexpected and suggested Broadbent was on the mend. However, no further details have been provided on her cause.
Hydeia Broadbent became a global star in 1996 when she appeared on Oprah and told the star that she was born with AIDS, abandoned by her mother
Winfrey cried when she listened to the 11-year-old. The touching moment became one of the most memorable in the history her chat show.
Hydeia Broadbent became a global star at age 11 after she told Winfrey her story about being diagnosed with HIV on her show of the same name in 1996.
On February 20, Loren Broadbent posted his daughter’s passing on Facebook, saying she ‘had remained determined to spread the hope’.
‘With deep sadness, I inform you that our dear friend, mentor, and daughter Hydeia passed away today, after having lived with AIDS from birth.
The father, who was deeply saddened, wrote about his daughter on social media.
AIDS was first recognized in 1981, and it killed most of its victims until mid-1990s when powerful retroviral medicines that suppress HIV were developed.
The condition is not curable, but those with it can still live a healthy life, even though they are more susceptible to diseases such as cancer.
It’s unclear whether Broadbent’s diagnosis was a factor in her death.
Broadbent, who was abandoned as a baby by her drug-addicted biological mother in Nevada, was adopted by Loren Broadbent and Patricia Broadbent.
By the time she was four years old, her parents had discovered that she had been HIV positive since birth and had contracted AIDS.
The young girl, who was six years old, had been following her mother around as a social worker raised HIV awareness. She began talking to others about the disease herself soon after.
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