In November of 1991, Los Angeles Lakers point guard, and basketball superstar, Earvin “Magic” Johnson sent shockwaves around the world when we announced that he had contracted HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. He announced that he would be retiring from the NBA, at the height of his decorated career, no less.
Currently, 1.1 million people in the United States are living with HIV. While most regions of the country have seen a slow decrease in the number of new HIV cases each year, the number of new infections in the South has continued to grow at a steady rate and accounts for just under half of all cases in the US.
