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“I will not give anyone the right to frighten me and affect my life in the future.”
Drag queen Conchita Wurst came out as HIV-positive in an Instagram post over the weekend, refusing to be intimidated after an ex-boyfriend threatened to go public with the information.
"I have been HIV-positive for many years. This is actually irrelevant to the public, but an ex-boyfriend is threatening to go public with this private information, and I will not give anyone the right to frighten me and affect my life in the future," she wrote.
Wurst rose to global recognition as the winner of the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest with her song "Rise Like a Phoenix," and she seems to be in a similar mindset regarding the forced revelation of her status.
Related | WATCH: Conchita Wurst's Eurovision Ballad
"Coming out on one's own is better than being outed by someone else. I hope to fight against the stigmatization of people who have become infected by HIV, either through their own behavior or through no fault of their own," she added, explaining that she had been undergoing treatment for years and that her viral levels were undetectable. "To my fans: the information about my HIV status may be new to you - my status is not! I'm well and stronger, more motivated and liberated than ever. Thank you for your support!"
Ian Green, the Terrence Higgins Trust, a UK-based HIV/AIDS organization, released a follow-up statement to Wurst's. "The decision to talk openly about your HIV status should be a personal one and not taken away or ever, ever used as a threat. Threatening to reveal someone's HIV status, under any circumstances, is entirely wrong. What other health condition can be used against someone? And we know this isn't something which only happens to those in the public eye," he said. "We applaud Conchita for handling this with such dignity and including in her post that people living with HIV who are on effective treatment, like her, can't pass on the virus... Conchita has done so much good since winning Eurovision four years ago, and has shown her strength of character once again in her handling of this situation."
