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The Age Of Aids By Rock Hudson

Good Essays

a) One of the most powerful scenes in the documentary “The Age of Aids” is the scene where society learned about the death of the well-known actor Rock Hudson. When Rock Hudson died from AIDS, panic emerges all over the United States. It was then evident that AIDS was not a “gay man 's disease”, but rather a disease that anyone could contract. Now women, straight men, and the rest of the population were at risk of contracting AIDS. This scene is very powerful because it demonstrates that society is ignorant and does not care about others unless something affects them, loved ones, or someone famous. Furthermore, when gay people were believed to be the only individuals that could be affected by AIDS, society did not care because the …show more content…

In that scene, the memorial quilts were laid out in front of Congress by family members in memory of loved ones who passed away from AIDS. When the first AIDS quilts were being placed in front of Congress, forty thousand Americans had already died of AIDS. This scene is very powerful because it really emphasizes the impact that AIDS had on Americans. Seeing the crowds of people standing around the AIDS quilts really puts into perspective how serious AIDS was and that many people showed support and hoped that a cure could be found or the spreading of AIDS could be stopped. The United States government and many Americans were now able to realize the impact that AIDS was having on American citizens. They decided that changes had to be made to help stop the spread of AIDS and possibly help cure the individuals infected by it as it was now becoming a worldwide epidemic. I found it very painful to watch people come up to the AIDS quilts and remember loved ones that passed away from this tragic disease. Watching people share memories with others and cry was difficult as well because it angered me as what came to my mind was the United States government not doing anything to put a stop to the spread of AIDS. All the government had to do was provide some money to the United States Center for Disease Control (CDC) and they would try to find a cure for AIDS or find a way to stop it from spreading

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