Pandemic Sexuality

Travis Hunter-LullTravis was born in the mid 1980s and never knew a world without HIV/AIDS. In this episode, he recalls how the disease shaped his early sexual exploration, and how the skills he learned to manage risk have become useful in the age of COVID-19.You can find Travis on Twitter @tjlull.Mathew RodriguezMathew Rodriguez is a journalist, essayist and cultural critic. He is the senior editor at The Atlantic and was previously an editor at TheBody, an HIV/AIDS news website. His April 2020 article "COVID-19 and HIV Are Not the Same. But They’re Similar in Many Ways That Matter." was quoted in this episode. You can find him on Twitter @mathewrodriguez and on his website https://www.mathew-rodriguez.com/.

Dudley Wilson came out as gay in 1979 and had a few years of what he calls a "gay adolescence" before the emergence of HIV/AIDS changed his life. This week on Pandemic Sexuality, Dudley reflects on finding hope and joy in the midst of two plagues.

Steven PetrowIn October 2020, journalist Steven Petrow wrote an Op-Ed for the New York Times, "Dating Means Fear. Again." about how dating during COVID-19 was bringing back memories of living through the HIV/AIDS epidemic. In this episode, we dig deeper into Steven's experiences of that time and how he is using the lessons of his youth to guide him during the pandemic today.You can find the Op-Ed here and read more about Steven's work on his website:https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/18/opinion/covid-dating-hiv.htmlhttps://stevenpetrow.com/Ken JonesLearn more about Steven's friend Ken Jones and the series When We Rise at:https://aumag.org/2020/02/13/ken-jones-cover-story/https://abc.com/shows/when-we-riseLeo HerreraAlso featured in this episode, reflections from artist Leo Herrera on the ways intimacy adapted during the AIDS epidemic and the ways in which we will be changed by COVID-19.Leo's work can be found on Instagram and on his website:https://www.instagram.com/herreraimages/http://www.homochic.com/