By Sach Takayasu

What was it like for patients during the height of the HIV/AIDS epidemic if you were Asian, Native American, or “Other?” Who fought on behalf of this voiceless community? What were some of the battles? Sarah Shulman’s ACT UP Oral History Project inspired Sach Takayasu to explore these questions. Hear the answers in her oral history interview with the legendary activist, Suki Terada Ports.

Scroll to the end of the article for full transcripts of each audio file.

Columbia University’s Oral History Master of Arts (OHMA) Workshop (10/21/2021), Let the Record Show: A Political History of ACT UP, NY 1987–1993, featured Sarah Shulman, whose oral history interviews, book, and film gave voice to numerous activists whose efforts in fighting HIV/AIDS had previously been ignored by the mainstream media.

In Ms. Shulman’s The ACT UP Oral History Project, several narrators refer to David Wojnarowicz, the artist/poet, as one of the key inspirational figures in their activism. In January 1990, still vibrant and at the height of his career, David came to the University Galleries at the Illinois State University for Tongues of Flame, an exhibition of his works. The director, Barry Blinderman, introduced me to David who greeted me warmly. Unfortunately, lacking social skills, I was unable to engage in a meaningful exchange with him. I always regretted this. 18 months later, David died of AIDS.

Fast forward to today, I am learning in OHMA, those skills I lacked. As though by fate, my first project was interviewing an HIV/AIDS activist, a legend in her own right: Suki Terada Ports. It was like being given a second chance.

Suki and I engaged in our oral history interviews at the Asian/Pacific/American Institute at New York University, OHMA’s partner in this project. Born and raised in New York City, she shared moving stories about the impact of WWII US policies on her family, her lifelong dedication to education, and activism. This post presents some of her reflections on how the epidemic affected a diverse group of people and her efforts to help them. The themes she touches include:

• Obstacles in preventing and treating HIV/AIDS

• Overlapping issues of language, class, education, history and culture

• Food pantries’ assumption about the food needs of a diverse community

I hope you will be inspired by this small glimpse into her arduous journey.

So the local community took action.

One of the causes of this disbelief was the dearth of reporting on how HIV/AIDS affected the various minority communities. Reporting was not possible because back then, data on this population was not collected. Suki talks about what this meant.

Take for example this 1975-1981 CDC form, in contrast with the most recent 2020 census, which disaggregates population data in much more detail:

Suki’s tireless efforts garnered her numerous awards but she highlights one in particular.

Suki mentions that addressing this structural issue, together with the Native American community, took a very long time. Yet the community still faced numerous challenges.

Then there was the issue of languages.

Cultural challenges also surfaced in something as fundamental as food. Food pantries assumed food preferences did not vary across culture and ethnicity.

Tackling these overlapping issues necessitated establishing an enduring entity.

Suki was fighting a war which demanded perseverance, a quality she possessed as a lifelong educator. She not only educated the community, but also policymakers—over and over.

The hard work of Suki, her community, APICHA, and ACT UP, produced significant progress in the fight against HIV and AIDS. However, challenges still remain according to Suki:

“There still are many families throughout the world who don't know about HIV and AIDS because they don't know about their transmission or they don't know about the actual virus.”

And this includes the US, where HIV/AIDS continue to affect many, including Asians, whose number of HIV diagnosis has increased in recent years. Some of the issues raised by Suki persist. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lists “cultural factors” as one of the prevention challenges: “Some Asians may avoid seeking testing, counseling, or treatment because of language barriers or fear of discrimination, the stigma of homosexuality, immigration issues, or fear of bringing shame to their families.”

This post merely scratches the surface of the issues and Suki’s efforts, but was written in the hopes of creating a fuller understanding of what this epidemic meant. I encourage the readers to learn more about the works of Suki and Sarah, starting with some links in the “Resources” section below.

Sach Takayasu is a degree candidate in Columbia University’s Oral History Master of Arts program and contributes to the Weatherhead East Asian Institute’s Oral History project. She served as the inaugural Fellow and an interviewer on the Obama Presidency Oral History Project.

Source of all the audio recordings:

Suki Terada Ports oral history interviews, 2019; OHMA Fieldwork Partner, Sach Takayasu; Japanese American Women Oral History Project; Asian/Pacific/American Institute at New York University.

Resources:

• OHMA Workshop Let the Record Show: A Political History of ACT UP, NY 1987–1993 (recording)

• ACT UP Oral History Project

• Suki Terada Ports (video): Nakazono, Stann. 2017. Suki Terada Ports.

• APICHA

• OHMA

• The Asian/Pacific/American Institute at New York University

• University Galleries of Illinois State University, Tongues of Flame

Written Transcripts for Interview Clips: