'People are still afraid of those three letters': Fighting the stigma of HIV

That's a quote from former rugby star Gareth Thomas, who is HIV positive. At the International AIDS Conference in Rio this year, he spoke out about the isolation and discrimination tied to the virus.

<img src='https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/3000x2000+0+0/resize/3000x2000!/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F1b%2Fa9%2F01f1fe5c44a9ace40208a6845fb1%2Faids-conference-06404.jpg' alt='Retired rugby star Gareth Thomas, who is HIV positive, came to Rio de Janeiro's famed Ipanema Beach to participate in a campaign called "Tackle HIV."'/><p>That's a quote from former rugby star Gareth Thomas, who is HIV positive. At the International AIDS Conference in Rio this year, he spoke out about the isolation and discrimination tied to the virus.</p><p>(Image credit: Ian Cheibub for NPR)</p><img src='https://media.npr.org/include/images/tracking/npr-rss-pixel.png?story=g-s1-142404' />