16 - Arkansas, Ruth Coker Burks
This story of support for people suffering with AIDS floored me by bringing me back to the early years of trying to understand what this disease is about to reminding me that no matter how much we think it is "under control", it is not. There is still a disease, and there is still fear.
Arkansas was the 12 state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment on July 28, 1919.
Ruth Coker Burks grew up in Arkansas, losing her father at the early age of five. Following his death, her mother inherited the family plots in their cemetery after fighting with her uncle to ensure there was no potential that her mother and uncle’s family would be buried in the same land. Ms. Burks inherited a total of 262 burial plots.
As “Gay-Related-Immune-Deficiency” (GRID), now AIDS, took hold, people refused to be near gay men in the hospital. Ostracized from society as different and affected people by this plague, they suffered alone without family or community around them. She reached out to the patients, attempting to reconcile families at the end of life. She observed rejection, fear, and hatred to this community, and stood next to them as their primary supporter and care giver. Funeral homes and cemeteries rejected the bodies suffering of AIDS in the unknown time. So she took them to her cemetery and buried them with respect and dignity.
Ms. Burks cared for more than 1,000 people, burying 40 within her cemetery, over 30 years of advocacy. She carried supplies and medications that men could not receive, frequently funded by campaigns by the local drag events and clubs.
As a childhood friend of Bill Clinton, she became the White House consultant for AIDS education during his presidency. Even to this day in her life following her suffering of a significant stroke, she is frequently shunned for her advocacy and support. But it is proven, people lived longer in her care and love.
Why this woman?
Since this series has started, I have been keeping an eye out for new women to fill my gaps. A friend posted a biography about the life of Ruth Coker Burks, and I was floored. This is the type of women I am hoping to learn about more through this research, not just women of notoriety but hidden stories that make the country continue to excel and innovate. Caring and passionate women that make change.
The AIDS epidemic became a national issue in the early 1980s, which means most of my formative life. I remember AIDS classes in middle school when they finally assured that it is not transferable, and should not be an alienating disease. Now, awareness is much stronger, at least around me. But I fear it becomes the “old cause” or the forgotten need. It is still here and still stigmatizes people.
I’ve had colleagues and friends that have suffered with HIV. And they have not shared it with me. Because of stigma? Because of fear? It is important to have people like Ruth give unquestioning, unassuming love for people that are suffering as in many cases the only person they can turn to. I am glad to know people like her have always been there. For everyone.
Arkansas was the 12 state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment on July 28, 1919.
Ruth Coker Burks grew up in Arkansas, losing her father at the early age of five. Following his death, her mother inherited the family plots in their cemetery after fighting with her uncle to ensure there was no potential that her mother and uncle’s family would be buried in the same land. Ms. Burks inherited a total of 262 burial plots.
As “Gay-Related-Immune-Deficiency” (GRID), now AIDS, took hold, people refused to be near gay men in the hospital. Ostracized from society as different and affected people by this plague, they suffered alone without family or community around them. She reached out to the patients, attempting to reconcile families at the end of life. She observed rejection, fear, and hatred to this community, and stood next to them as their primary supporter and care giver. Funeral homes and cemeteries rejected the bodies suffering of AIDS in the unknown time. So she took them to her cemetery and buried them with respect and dignity.
Ms. Burks cared for more than 1,000 people, burying 40 within her cemetery, over 30 years of advocacy. She carried supplies and medications that men could not receive, frequently funded by campaigns by the local drag events and clubs.
As a childhood friend of Bill Clinton, she became the White House consultant for AIDS education during his presidency. Even to this day in her life following her suffering of a significant stroke, she is frequently shunned for her advocacy and support. But it is proven, people lived longer in her care and love.
Why this woman?
Since this series has started, I have been keeping an eye out for new women to fill my gaps. A friend posted a biography about the life of Ruth Coker Burks, and I was floored. This is the type of women I am hoping to learn about more through this research, not just women of notoriety but hidden stories that make the country continue to excel and innovate. Caring and passionate women that make change.
The AIDS epidemic became a national issue in the early 1980s, which means most of my formative life. I remember AIDS classes in middle school when they finally assured that it is not transferable, and should not be an alienating disease. Now, awareness is much stronger, at least around me. But I fear it becomes the “old cause” or the forgotten need. It is still here and still stigmatizes people.
I’ve had colleagues and friends that have suffered with HIV. And they have not shared it with me. Because of stigma? Because of fear? It is important to have people like Ruth give unquestioning, unassuming love for people that are suffering as in many cases the only person they can turn to. I am glad to know people like her have always been there. For everyone.
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