HIV/AIDS activist Hydeia Broadbent, known for her inspirational talks as a young child, dies at 39

A prominent HIV/AIDS activist known for her inspirational talks in the 1990s as a young child to reduce the stigma surrounding the virus she was born with has died. Hydeia Broadbent was 39. Her father said in a Facebook post that she had died unexpectedly Tuesday “after living with Aids since birth,” but didn't provide more details. A 7-year-old Broadbent became a national symbol of HIV when she joined Magic Johnson on a 1992 Nickelodeon channel TV special, where the basketball legend talked about his own HIV diagnosis. Broadbent made the talk show circuit as a child, met the president and first lady, spoke at the 1996 Republican National Convention and was featured on a segment on ABC’s “20/20.”