A Hero, Resurrected

An eight year old boy arrived home after school on November 7, 1991. He walked into his room and turned on the television. Like always, his television was tuned to ESPN, as his affinity for sports had him waking up early to start his day watching SportsCenter prior to getting ready. As the tubes warmed up and sound came before picture, he heard “Because of the HIV virus I have attained, I will have to retire from the Lakers.” The video caught up to the audio, and there stood Magic Johnson. As the adolescent’s jaw dropped and his book bag slammed to the floor, he was glued to the television. Not fully comprehending the situation, his blue eyes became engulfed by the redness that surrounded them. His favorite basketball player, his favorite athlete, his HERO will not be playing for the team he loves anymore. As the press conference continues, he began to grasp what is at stake here. The first question by reporters asked Magic about his mortality and the youngster realized this is bigger than just basketball, this is life.



For years that wide eyed youngster had watched his favorite player dominate the hard wood floors and entertain masses with a charisma that could not be duplicated. His father taught him to love Magic, and as he followed suit, he grew his own adoration towards the gregarious superstar. Basketball became an obsession to the youth, and Magic Johnson was the first person he remembered watching on television.

He loved watching highlights of the no-look passes, and reading the records that he held: Five NBA championships, Three MVPs. Many considered him the greatest basketball player ever to play the game at the time of the HIV announcement. All of a sudden those memories took a back seat to the unexpected dose of reality that was forced upon both Magic and the young man. The world thought Magic would die; the world thought Magic was already dead.

Over the next several days and weeks, the eight-year-old immersed himself in researching about HIV and AIDS. A mature topic for an eight year old, but that’s his style. He went to the school library; talked to adults, and read everything he could, trying to find a glimmer of hope. Nothing consoled him because in 1991, HIV was a death sentence. Then a few weeks later, after the initial shock had worn off, he saw a replay of the press conference. He heard Magic say the words “This is not like my life is over, because it’s not, I’ma live on.” Although everything outside of Magic’s words told him otherwise, he believed him, after all, this was his hero. The child writes Magic showing his support with his new battle. His teacher read his letter aloud to his third grade class and it instilled him with pride and hope. “Magic’s gonna make it” is what he thought in his head.

Fast forward twenty years. That boy is now a man, THIS man. And Magic?

Upon re-watching the press conference, I am shocked with how accurate Magic’s predications of the future actually were. Maybe because for him, they weren’t prophesies, they were plans. He said he would become an advocate to teach people about the HIV virus and encourage research to find treatments. He did so by becoming the “face of the disease” and raising awareness. He also gave poorer communities better access to treatment through his Magic Johnson Foundation.

“The Magic Johnson Foundation’s HIV/AIDS awareness, prevention, testing, and treatment programs are designed to help stop the spread of the disease, and improve the quality of life for the individuals and families who are affected.” Along with The AIDS Healthcare Foundation they support six HIV treatment centers providing medications and testing to thousands. The Magic Johnson Foundation has also branched out to other parts of the community as well. They have 18 Community Empowerment Centers throughout the country that “provide ethnically diverse urban communities access to resources and programming that educate, empower and strengthen individuals though the innovative use of technology.”

His charity work is only matched by his bank account at this point. Magic Johnson Enterprises is his for-profit company. When others were scared to put businesses in the inner city, Magic balked and did the unthinkable. He put up Burger Kings, Magic Johnson (Movie) Theatres, Starbucks and TGIFs all over the country in inner cities, creating countless jobs and opportunities for the forgotten souls. Later he invested in OneUnited, a community development financial institution, which exclusively helps local businesses and homeowners build up urban communities. Recently,

Magic chaired and invested in the Detroit Venture Partners, whose mission is to invest in Michigan (his home state) start-up companies and move them downtown. The goal is to revitalize the city of Detroit which has been hit especially hard by the country’s recent economic woes. Magic has upped his value to over $700 million while simultaneously making sound business decisions that have a positive social impact.

At the age of eight, I admired the game that he possessed. At the age of twenty-eight, I admire the man that he is. Although the memories of him leading the fast break and sinking the game winning hook shot to beat the Celtics will always be cherished in my mind, I am more proud of his accomplishments after basketball. There are not many people that can say they have made the world a better place, Magic Johnson can make that statement. Along with medication, a healthy lifestyle, a positive attitude and perseverance Johnson has thrived for two decades after he was given a “death sentence.” He is an inspiration to everyone who has been knocked down by a disease or even life in general. On November 7, 1991 Magic said “I plan on goin’ on, living for a long time.” Today he said “Here we are, twenty years later, we’re gonna celebrate life today, it’s been amazing.” Eight-year-old me believed him in ‘91 and the twenty-eight year-old me agrees with him today.

Kanye West: “You can live through anything if Magic made it.”

Sources:
Forbes.com
FoxSports.com
MagicJohnson.com
Reuters.com
Wikipedia.org
YouTube