Ronald Reagan's HIV/AIDS Crisis (pt. 1)

The story of President Ronald Reagan's failure to adequately respond to the HIV/AIDS crisis in the 1980s. In the first part of this two-part series we cover Reagan's rise to the presidency, first term in office, and his initial response to a new mysterious illness.

The presenting sponsor of this season is Freddie, Canada's #1 PrEP provider. To learn more about PrEP and to book your free consultation with Freddie, visit gofreddie.com/dane.

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Special thanks to Molly Bower for joining us on this Ronald Reagan journey!

There are many sources for today's episode, our top sources include:

• How to Survive a Plague: The Inside Story of How Citizens and Science Tames AIDS. David France. 2016.
• Law & Order. Trailer. 1953.
• Compilation of President Reagan's Humor from Selected Speeches, 1981-89. Courtesy: Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
• When AIDS Was Funny. Directed by Scott Calonic. 2015.
• Jerry Falwell and Troy Perry debate the morality of AIDS in 1983. CBC. 1983.
• The Old Time Gospel Hour. Falwell Ministries. 1999.
• Letter from Dr. Don Francis. 1983.
• A Plague of Politics. Atlanta Magazine. 1994.
• Religion, Politics a Potent Mix for Jerry Falwell. NPR. 2006.
• A Disciplined, Charging Army. The New Yorker. 2007.
• Roper Center for Public Opinion Research. Election Results Breakdowns.
• Nancy Reagan’s Real Role in the AIDS Crisis. The Atlantic. 2021.

This episode was researched, hosted, and edited by Dane Stewart with music by Matthew Rogers. Produced by Dane Stewart & Matthew Kariatsumari. Our outro track is Easy to Love by Clara Jones.

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