AIDS: The Lost Voices

AIDS: The Lost Voices - Prison Officer Geoffrey Pearce OAM

Geoffrey Pearce O.A.M. was a prison corrections officer at Long Bay Jail in New South Wales who, shortly after completing his training at 21 with his whole life and career ahead of him, was deliberately stabbed with a needle contaminated with HIV-positive blood by an inmate from the Jail’s AIDS wing, The Malabar Assessment Unit. There was no clear motive for the attack: colleagues and inmates alike described Pearce as a ‘gentle giant’ who came to the job “with no ego” and was genuinely committed to assisting inmate rehabilitation. Diagnosed HIV positive following the incident, he nonetheless returned to duty and turned his diagnosis and the publicity surrounding the assault into a platform for education, confronting the fear and stigma of the early 1990s by demonstrating that people living with HIV were not contagious in everyday settings and could lead relatively normal lives. His consequential advocacy left such a profound mark in a short time that he was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 1998 and, in 2020, had a correctional facility named in his honour: the Geoffrey Pearce Correctional Centre. All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the: XTRA Tea Blog AIDS: THE LOST VOICES - Geoffrey Pearce OAM [https://www.thelostboysofsoho.co.uk/extratea/aids-the-lost-voices-geoffrey-pearce-oam] ---------------------------------------------------- Outro Music 'If I Can Dream' by Elvis Presley Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/track/3C6pSIVeBKIbSpCFtaw1r8?autoplay=true] Apple Music [https://music.apple.com/gb/album/if-i-can-dream/1675583175?i=1675583434] Amazon Music [https://music.amazon.co.uk/tracks/B07JHD1WC2?do=play&agent=googleAssistant&ref=dmm_seo_google_gkp_tracks&explicit=false] YouTube Music [https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=26m0ny0Vy7I&feature=gws_kp_track] ---------------------------------------------------- Background Music - Always On My Mind (Piano Cover by Riyandi Kusuma) Stream Riyandi Kusuma on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/artist/2mopkIQxw9oLxUUUd0DdxK] Stream Riyandi Kusuma on Apple Music [https://music.apple.com/us/artist/riyandi-kusuma/1440319761] Follow Riyandi Kusuma on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/riyandikusumaa/] ---------------------------------------------------- Elvis Presley - Always On My Mind (Piano Cover by Riyandi Kusuma) Watch on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llAK1j_gHX4] ---------------------------------------------------- Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE [https://free-songs.de/my-music/] ---------------------------------------------------- Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS, featured in this podcast which has no (Zero) commercial gain. No copyright infringement intended - * British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers

AIDS: The Lost Voices - Long Bay Jail, Australia

Long Bay Jail in New South Wales has long been regarded as Australia’s “toughest prison,” and in the 1980s and 1990s it became notorious as the site of the prison system’s AIDS wing, initially called the Malabar Assessment Unit and grimly referred to by inmates as “death row.” Press coverage from the era documents tense confrontations as prison officers staged strikes and protests when inmates labelled “AIDS carriers” were not segregated and were moved into the main population, reflecting both genuine fear of infection among staff and vocal hostility from other prisoners unwilling to share space with those infected. Within that fraught environment, individual stories emerged: transsexual inmate Tanya Spence forming a relationship with fellow inmate David on the segregation wing, and Neil Carroll, a convicted armed robber who redirected his sentence into AIDS peer-support work and, later, playwrighting, producing several AIDS-awareness plays performed for inmates and the broader public — acts that complicated a narrative otherwise dominated by fear, stigma and institutional conflict. All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the: XTRA Tea Blog AIDS: THE LOST VOICES - Long Bay Jail, Australia [https://www.thelostboysofsoho.co.uk/extratea/aids-the-lost-voices-long-bay-australia] ---------------------------------------------------- Background Music: Dancing on My Own by Brooklyn Duo YouTube Music [https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=EZ3UIyQ01lU] Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/track/2g2IYIXc0FDGf0HDkEC0rL?autoplay=true] Apple Music [https://music.apple.com/gb/album/dancing-on-my-own/1469473180?i=1469473192] Amazon Music [https://music.amazon.co.uk/tracks/B07T9GXQYN?do=play&agent=googleAssistant&ref=dmm_seo_google_gkp_tracks&explicit=false] Follow Brooklyn Duo on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/brooklynduo/] ---------------------------------------------------- TV Documentary inside Long Bay Jail c.1987 Watch on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1K5diUSXOg] ---------------------------------------------------- Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE [https://free-songs.de/my-music/] ---------------------------------------------------- Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS, featured in this podcast which has no (Zero) commercial gain. No copyright infringement intended - * British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers

AIDS: The Lost Voices - Prison Activist Brian Carmichael 3/3

In the third and final episode of Prison and HIV Activist Brian Carmichael, we hear the sentencing outcome of Brian’s 2001 conviction after an incident in which a police officer, having kicked his feet from underneath him, alleged that Brian’s subsequent fall caused an injury and led to a battery charge; Brian contests the ruling, mounting an appeal that winds its way through the courts while he and his then partner relocate to New York City, a move that becomes both refuge and new terrain for his activism as he navigates legal uncertainty, personal upheaval and the broader struggle for justice. Upon his release thirteen years later, he resumed his activism, highlighting the appalling conditions and unnecessary deaths of fellow inmates at Rikers Island. Celebrating years of sobriety and sober living, Brian uses his voice and long-standing experience as an activist to raise attention to these abuses; his testimony and campaigning are widely regarded as a valued contribution in calls for meaningful reform. All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the: XTRA Tea Blog AIDS: THE LOST VOICES - Brian Carmichael [https://www.thelostboysofsoho.co.uk/extratea/aids-the-lost-voices-brian-carmichael] ---------------------------------------------------- Connect with Brian Carmichael: Facebook Instagram [https://www.facebook.com/BrianPatrickCarmichael] X.com [https://x.com/ActivistBrian] Visual AIDS [https://visualaids.org/artists/brian-carmichael] ---------------------------------------------------- Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE [https://free-songs.de/my-music/] ---------------------------------------------------- Outro Music: 'Nothings Gonna Stop Us Now' by Sarah Potenza & Dave Audé Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/track/7LtbBjCWggO2RgZQeDtYAq?autoplay=true] Apple Music [https://music.apple.com/gb/album/nothings-gonna-stop-us-now-extended/1876607174?i=1876607177] Amazon Music [https://music.amazon.co.uk/tracks/B0D9WSB5BZ?do=play&agent=googleAssistant&ref=dmm_seo_google_gkp_tracks&explicit=false] YouTube Music [https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=5Obr58et254&feature=gws_kp_track] Connect with Sarah Potenza: Website [https://www.sarahpotenza.net/] Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/iamsarahpotenza/?hl=en] TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@sarahpotenzamusic] ---------------------------------------------------- Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS, featured in this podcast which has no (Zero) commercial gain. No copyright infringement intended - * British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers * Music 'Nothings Gonna Stop Us Now' by Sarah Potenza & Dave Audé

AIDS: The Lost Voices - Prison Activist Brian Carmichael 2/3

In this second episode of three, prison HIV activist Brian Carmichael is released on parole and takes up a post as manager of a sober living programme, determined to enforce its rules and rebuild his life; his attempts to introduce structure are met with a false allegation from a resident, which, though ultimately vexatious, unleashes a barrage of harassment from authorities that Brian believes stems from the public profile he gained campaigning for better care and services for inmates with HIV/AIDS—work that drew intense press attention despite him being HIV‑negative at the time—and that continues to shadow him as he tries to translate activism into everyday rehabilitation of both himself and his service users. Despite the personal danger, Brian continued to press for reform, refusing to be silenced even as the stakes and the consequences escalated. All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the: XTRA Tea Blog AIDS: THE LOST VOICES - Brian Carmichael [https://www.thelostboysofsoho.co.uk/extratea/aids-the-lost-voices-brian-carmichael] ---------------------------------------------------- Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE [https://free-songs.de/my-music/] ---------------------------------------------------- Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS, featured in this podcast which has no (Zero) commercial gain. No copyright infringement intended - * British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers

AIDS: The Lost Voices - Prison Activist Brian Carmichael 1/3

California’s Medical Facility in Vacaville had long carried a reputation for poor care of inmates diagnosed with AIDS and HIV. By 1992, Brian Patrick Carmichael — though HIV negative himself at the time — began speaking out after witnessing friends and fellow prisoners die of undignified deaths at the hands of the prison authorities; he helped establish Pastoral Care Services, organising round‑the‑clock vigils to accompany those in their final days and hours. With the support of fellow inmates Charles Wyatt Perry, Laos Schuman, Peter Yvanovich and more than 100 others, Carmichael alerted the press, politicians and the public to the appalling conditions, undertaking medication protests and hunger strikes to force attention and change. Although the changes were slow, they began to take effect, and with the support of ACT UP San Francisco and fellow inmates, Brian never relented in his advocacy. That persistence, however, came at a cost: while incarcerated he and his comrades suffered retaliation from prison authorities, and on release—after being diagnosed HIV‑positive—his activism had made him a marked man, exposing him to what seemed to be further reprisals by the police. Despite the personal danger, Brian continued to press for reform, refusing to be silenced even as the stakes and the consequences escalated. All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the: XTRA Tea Blog AIDS: THE LOST VOICES - Brian Carmichael [https://www.thelostboysofsoho.co.uk/extratea/aids-the-lost-voices-brian-carmichael] ---------------------------------------------------- Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE [https://free-songs.de/my-music/] ---------------------------------------------------- Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS, featured in this podcast which has no (Zero) commercial gain. No copyright infringement intended - * British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers * News Audio Clips - (Channel and Presenter self identified)