GRIFFITH JOYNER CELEBRATES HER 200-M
WORLD RECORD AT THE 1988 OLYMPICS1987 | THE PEOPLE’S PRINCESS
DIANA, PRINCESS
OF WALES
BY TINA BROWN
iT’s easy To forgeT Today whaT pariahs people wiTh
AIDS were in the year 1987. Ignorance, superstition and an
aura of sexual seediness swirled around those afflicted, their
cause of death noted in obituary columns with a vague lack
of specifics that protected their relatives from opprobrium.
The 26-year-old Princess of Wales lived with the specter
of AIDS every day. In the loneliness of her failing marriage
to Prince Charles, gay men were the bedrock of her private
world: fashion designers, ballet dancers, art dealers and nu-
merous members of the palace staff. They sympathized with
her, escorted her, lightened her load. It pained her to watch
them sicken and die.
In April 1987, Middlesex Hospital invited her to open the
first ward in the U.K. dedicated to the treatment of HIV/AIDS.
Accepting the invitation was the kind of socially progressive
statement that private sec-
retaries usually steered their
principals to avoid. Diana
was intensely nervous, even
though she unhesitatingly
agreed to do it. She knew it
was the chance to dispel the
stigma surrounding the dis-
ease. With her instinctive
understanding of the power
of gesture, she resolved not
only to open the new ward
but to shake the hands of 12
male patients without gloves.
Such was the fear of igno-
miny that only one patient, a
32-year-old named Ivan Cohen, agreed to be photographed with
Diana, and only on condition that the picture be taken from
behind. She extended her hand. The cameras rolled. A broken
taboo ricocheted round the world: Diana, exuding compassion
and confidence, clasping the terminally ill AIDS patient’s hand
in hers. For the next decade, she continued her visits to hospi-
tals and bedsides. A nurse present at Diana’s historic original
visit told the BBC, “If a royal was allowed to go in and shake a
patient’s hands, somebody at the bus stop or the supermarket
could do the same. That really educated people.”
That iconic moment also had a profound impact on Diana.
It clarified what her royal status meant—a new kind of global
power. Whatever its frustrations, being the Princess of Wales
gave her the ability to change lives and to expand tolerance.
She saw what could happen when humanitarian concern is
connected with the global media. Celebrities have tried to em-
ulate her ever since.
Brown is the author of The Diana Chronicles
1988
Florence Griffith Joyner
World’s fastest woman
Known by a single name—Flo-Jo—
Florence Griffith Joyner remains the
fastest woman in history. At the 1988
U.S. Olympic trials in Indianapolis,
Griffith Joyner ran the 100 m in
10.49 sec., a world record that still
stands. “Cannot be,” an announcer
said after the race. “No one can run
that fast.” At the Seoul Olympics that
September, Griffith Joyner won gold in
the 100 m, 200 m and 4 x 100 relay, and
set a 200-m world record of 21.34 sec.
that’s yet to be broken.
Her fashion also drew attention: she
wore one-legged racing suits and long,
brightly painted fingernails, flouting the
idea that feminine fashion and sports
don’t mix. “Conventional is not for me,”
she once said.
In the track world, where the use of
performance- enhancing drugs is preva-
lent, Griffith Joyner’s records will for-
ever be viewed by some with suspicion.
One track runner publicly declared that
he sold Griffith Joyner human growth
hormone. She vehemently denied it.
But Flo-Jo died—young, at 38,
after an epileptic seizure in 1998 —an
unforgettable icon. “We were dazzled
by her speed,” President Bill Clinton
said, “humbled by her talent and
captivated by her style.” ÑSean Gregory1980s76 Time March 16–23, 2020 DIANA: JOHN REDMAN—AP; GRIFFITH JOYNER: PA IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES