December 1994/January 1995

Cover: Native American activist Lisa Tiger. Inside: A look inside San Francisco’s Cannabis Buyers Club; a feature delving into the AIDS funeral pickets organized by the Reverend Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church; POZ editor-in-chief Richard Pérez-Feria interviews actress, activist and ally Judith Light about her role in the fight. Plus: A look at Hollywood’s biggest AIDS moguls.

February/March 1995

Cover: Thom Collins, an HIV-positive model and dancer, talks about AIDS on the gay party circuit. Inside: A look at how AIDS groups overcome fundraising challenges; a giving guide to AIDS service organizations; true horror stories from AIDS fundraising galas. Plus: Wilson Cruz of My So-Called Life on coming out in the era of AIDS.

April/May 1995

Cover: Larry Kramer (“the father of AIDS activism”) makes his first cover appearance with an interview by pundit Andrew Sullivan. Inside: An excerpt from Breaking the Surface, a new memoir by Olympic medalist Greg Louganis; do you know what’s in the water you’re drinking? Plus: ABC News anchor Peter Jennings discusses his HIV-related journalism.

June/July 1995

Cover: Lamar “Kidfire” Parks, an HIV-positive boxer and formerly the world’s No. 1 middleweight contender, talks about how the virus ended his career. Inside: HIV prevention activism moves to the forefront as safer sex is scrutinized. Plus: Biotechnology companies pioneer new high-stakes HIV research; HIV-positive photographer John Dugdale on losing his sight to cytomegalovirus, or CMV.

August/September 1995

Cover: Actress-lawyer-activist Ilka Tanya Payán is a fighter with no fear. Inside: Spotlighting the needs of HIV-positive women that are not being addressed; why pregnancy is the one thing that makes policymakers interested in the lives of women with HIV. Plus: Keeping pets and their HIV-positive owners together.

October/November 1995

Cover: Public-interest lawyer Tom Stoddard fights AIDS discrimination loudly and his HIV quietly. Inside: The treatment known as IL-2 highlights the AIDS research turf war between virologists and immunologists; does Broadway really care about AIDS? Plus: Political organizer and activist Rae Lewis-Thornton educates the Black community about HIV.

December 1995/January 1996

Cover: Henry Nicols—Cooperstown’s most famous Eagle Scout—is all grown up with many places to go. Inside: A retrospective of the sublime, the ridiculous and the heroic events of the past year; Tinseltown’s script about AIDS is good, but the picture is not always pretty. Plus: The newest AIDS treatment is not a drug.