Jonathan Van Ness wants to end the stigma around HIV, after he revealed he has been battling the virus since he was 25.
The “Queer Eye” star has been battling the virus – which damages the cells in the immune system and weakens the body’s ability to fight everyday infections and disease – since he was 25, and has said that since going public with his diagnosis earlier this year, he’s found there’s “still so much misunderstanding” surrounding the condition.
He said: “This is only the beginning. I’m quickly realising that there is still so much misunderstanding, so much sensationalising of living with HIV. The stigma and the difficulty around the process of getting treatment is creating that. My work has only really just begun.”
Jonathan received backlash after his admission when a clip surfaced of him “cracking jokes” about HIV, but has said he never intended to offend anyone, and instead was trying to use comedy as a way to “soothe” himself from the devastating news of his diagnosis.
