LGBTQNATION: “LGBT History Month profile: AIDS Activist, Pedro Zamora” (Via Equality Forum) (Inglés)

Pedro Zamora was an AIDS activist who appeared on MTV’s reality series “The Real World.” As the first openly gay and openly HIV-positive person on a television series, he brought national attention to HIV/AIDS and LGBT issues.
Zamora was born into poverty in Havana, Cuba, the youngest of eight. The family lived in a small house with a dirt floor.
When Zamora was 8, he immigrated to Florida with his parents and two of his siblings as part of the Mariel boatlift. The family settled in Hialeah, Florida. Zamora’s mother died when he was 13. He threw himself into schoolwork and extracurricular activities. An honors student and captain of the science club and cross-country team, he became one of the school’s most popular students.
Zamora learned he was HIV-positive after donating blood. He decided to pursue a career as an AIDS activist. In 1993, he testified before Congress, arguing for the improvement of AIDS education programs.