Where were you when Magic shocked world?
Johnson’s HIV announcement was 18 years ago this week
 | On Nov. 7, 1991, Lakers guard Magic Johnson announced at a news conference he would retire after being diagnosed as HIV positive. |
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A press conference was called at the Forum. Magic Johnson had something to say.
Television cameras were on. Reporters waited. The world held its breath.
Then gasped.
On Nov. 7, 1991, the beloved Lakers guard announced he had contracted the virus that causes AIDS and would be retiring from professional basketball immediately. How could this be?
A physical taken before the 1991-92 season revealed that Johnson had tested positive for HIV, but his wife, Cookie and their unborn child did not have the virus. He said at that time he would dedicate his life to "battling this deadly disease."
Over the past 18 years, Johnson not only has become a face to the deadly disease, but has shown how well you can live with HIV if you catch it early. Today, Johnson is not only one of the 50 greatest all-time basketball players, he is part Lakers owner, a successful businessman and philanthropist, who has awarded more than $1.1 million to community-based organizations that focus on HIV/AIDS education and prevention.
He also has established four HIV/AIDS clinics and co-created the award-winning "I Stand With Magic" campaign, designed to end HIV/AIDS in the black community.
Kenny Smith, TNT analyst told USA Today in 2006, "Before then, people were ostracized, in my estimation, for having the disease. Magic was the person, because his name reached far beyond sports, to make (HIV) acceptable, more a disease than a mark of shame."
Johnson said having the right attitude and catching the disease early are two keys to living with the disease.
"You have to be really good about living with your diagnosis or your illness," Johnson said on the Oprah Show earlier this year. "I never felt like I was defeated and that I was going to give up and that it's over. I think that's why I've been living with HIV so long. I've always said 'OK, I'm going to do all the things I have to do and I know I'm going to be here for a long time."
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