| Nkosi Johnson | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 4, 1989 |
| Died | June 1, 2001 (aged 12) |
| Nationality | South Africa |
| Known for | AIDS awareness |
Nkosi Johnson (born Xolani Nkosi on February 4, 1989 – June 1, 2001) was a South African child with HIV/AIDS, who made a powerful impact on public perceptions of the pandemic and its effects before his death at the age of 12. He was ranked fifth amongst SABC3's Great South Africans.[1] At the time of his death, he was the longest-surviving HIV-positive born child.[2]
Nkosi was born to Nonthlanthla Daphne Nkosi in a township east of Johannesburg in 1989. He never knew his father. Nkosi was HIV-positive from birth, and was legally adopted by Gail Johnson, a Johannesburg Public Relations practitioner, when his own mother, debilitated by the disease, was no longer able to care for him.[3]
The young Nkosi Johnson first came to public attention in 1997, when a primary school in the Johannesburg suburb of Melville refused to accept him as a pupil because of his HIV-positive status. The incident caused a furor at the highest political level—South Africa's Constitution forbids discrimination on the grounds of medical status—and the school later reversed its decision.
Nkosi's birth mother died of HIV/AIDS in the same year that he started school. His own condition steadily worsened over the years, although, with the help of medication and treatment, he was able to lead a fairly active life at school and at home.
Nkosi was the keynote speaker at the 13th International AIDS Conference, where he encouraged people with HIV/AIDS to be open about the disease and to seek equal treatment. Nkosi finished his speech with the words[4]:
"Care for us and accept us — we are all human beings. We are normal. We have hands. We have feet. We can walk, we can talk, we have needs just like everyone else — don't be afraid of us — we are all the same!"
Nelson Mandela referred to Nkosi as an "icon of the struggle for life."[5]
Together with his foster mother, Nkosi founded a refuge for HIV positive mothers and their children, Nkosi's Haven, in Johannesburg.[2] In November 2005, Gail represented Nkosi when he posthumously received the International Children's Peace Prize from the hands of Mikhail Gorbachev.[6] Nkosi's Haven received a prize of US $100,000 from the KidsRights Foundation.