Hydeia Broadbent HERstory: Womens History Month Spotlight

Monday, March 29, 2011

Hydeia Broadbent’s story began at birth when she was abandoned at the University Medical Center of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas where Patricia and Loren Broadbent would later adopt her as an infant. Although her HIV condition was congenital, she was not diagnosed as HIV-positive with advancement to AIDS until the age three. Doctors said she would not live past the of five. Hydeia is now 26 and adamantly committed to spreading the message of HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention, by: promoting abstinence, safe-sex practices (for people who choose to have sex), and the initiative “Knowing Your HIV/AIDS Status.”


At the age of six, Hydeia began her work as an HIV/AIDS activist and public speaker. By twelve, Hydeia had made appearances on national television programs like Oprah, 20/20, Good Morning America, Weekly with Ed Gordon, and “A Conversation with Magic Johnson” on Nickelodeon. To date, she has been featured in countless prominent publications including; the New York Times, Teen People, Essence, YM, Ebony , Health Quest, Sister to Sister, POZ, National Geographic, Real Health, Seventeen, and Heart & Soul and graced the cover of TV Guide. Hydeia has also taken part many of America’s talk radio programs including, The Michael Eric Dyson Show, Russ Parr Morning Show, and The Tom Joyner Morning Show.

Hydeia continues tirelessly to spread her message and promote awareness and over the next 10 years, has become a notable speaker and guest panelist at many of America’s most respected educational institutions including Duke University, Morehouse School of Medicine, UCLA, USC, and Howard University. In 2006 Hydeia was a featured speaker for the International AIDS Conference and in 2007 She spoke at the Essence Music Festival and in Dallas, Texas at the AIDS Rally at the Potters House lead by Bishop TD Jakes.

Hydeia is one of a few young activists to passionately speak out on an international level about being effected by the HIV/AIDS virus. As the first African-American young person to create a public platform on which to speak up and speak out about the epidimic, Hydeia is considered a pioneer. In 2008 Ebony Magazine named Hydeia one of the Most Influential 150 African Americans and she is a recipient of both an American Red Cross Spirit Award and Essence Award. In 2010 she received an award for Health Education and Awareness from WEEN (Women in Entertainment Empowerment Network) and was invited by BET Networks Chairman/CEO Debra Lee to participate as a panelist in the First Annual Leading Women’s Defined Summit in Washington, DC. Most recently, Hydeia was named by TheGrio.com and NBC News as one of today’s Top 100 African American History Makers.

Today, Hydeia is a distinguished international, public speaker and HIV/AIDS activist with a mission to educate people of all ages. She has an innate ability to bond with any audience and when addressing the public about the issues of HIV/AIDS, her primary goal is to provide a clear understanding of how to avoid at-risk behaviors through self-examination and informed decision-making. She succinctly states “…with all that we know about the virus, it is clear to me that contracting HIV/AIDS today is a choice and we can’t allow anyone the power to make that choice for us!”

For more information on Hydeia visit www.HydeiaBroadbent.com
Follow her on Twitter @HydeiaBroadbent

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