December 28, 2007

The Passing of a Veteran HIV-Positive Journalist

Former POZ contributor Thomas Morgan, a highly regarded, openly HIV-positive writer and editor who worked for many years at the New York Times and became president of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), died December 24 at the age of 56.

An NABJ statement released that day listed the cause as a heart attack, which a Black AIDS Institute statement said was AIDS-related. Morgan, who was openly gay, had lived with HIV for 20 years. Having retired from the New York Times in 1994, primarily to focus on his health, he had become a tireless AIDS advocate, inspiring and supporting many other gay and HIV-positive journalists. Morgan showed them that writing and editing could be a tool for self-empowerment and social change. He sat on many prominent boards, including that of the pioneering New York City-based AIDS service Organization Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC).

“He was … becoming a great influence on people living with HIV/AIDS,” said former NABJ President Sidmel Estes-Sumpter. “He won the battle for so many years. He was still living a wonderful life and proving that people can live with the disease and have an active life.”

Donations in Morgan’s honor can be sent to the Gay Men's Health Crisis (gmhc.org) and the New York Times’s Thomas Morgan III Scholarship Fund (nytimes.com).

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