Legendary British singer Sir Elton John and Olena Pinchuk, famous in her own right, talked on Nov. 9 about their joint charitable project to help Ukrainian girls and young women who are homeless or destitute.
“This project will help the most vulnerable group, the group with the highest risk of HIV and AIDS contamination,” said Pinchuk, head of the Anti-AIDS Foundation. She is also the daughter of ex-President Leonid Kuchma and wife of billionaire Viktor Pinchuk.
The press conference came the day after John’s sold-out concert at Palats Sportu in Kyiv. The singer’s friendship with the Pinchuks, as well as their shared charitable interests, has led to his occasional visits to Ukraine.
John was in the nation in 2009, when he unsuccessfully tried to adopt a boy named Lev after visiting an orphanage in Makiyivka with Pinchuk. Ukrainian authorities declared him ineligible to adopt because of his age and sexual orientation.
Pledging to visit the boy after the concert, John’s first mission was to unveil the charity in Kyiv.
Ukraine has Europe’s worst AIDS epidemic with 1.3 percent of Ukrainians above 15 infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, according to the United Nations. John’s call to fight the virus in Ukraine coincided with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s speech in Maryland, the U.S., in which she called on world governments to create an “AIDS-free generation” in the world by 2015.
The British singer launched his anti-AIDS foundation nearly 20 years ago. In April 2010, together with Pinchuk, he set up a center in Kyiv where women can get access to HIV testing, psychological and legal counseling, medical help and even assistance for education and employment.
Since its launch, more than 500 girls and young women have received help.
But there are tens of thousands more who need help. John met three or four of the mothers at the center.
“They told me their stories, and showed me their courage, and I met their children, and I was incredibly moved by what they had to say,” the singer said. He called it sad “when they are turned out of their families because of alcoholic or abusive parents.”
He said there is still a stigma against homeless people, drug addicts and those who are HIV positive and have AIDS.
“People are still ashamed to be tested, people are afraid to know they have HIV,” exclaimed the singer. “It’s disgraceful, people still have this ‘oh, he has HIV and AIDS,’ but it’s not like that anymore. Hello, we’ve moved on!”
Elton John performs during his Nov. 8 concert at Palats Sportu in Kyiv with his program “The Million Dollar Piano.” (UNIAN)
Getting women off the streets – by giving them access to medical care, shelter and support – gives them a chance for a new future. “These girls are not criminals, they are victims,” said John.
A worldwide 64-year-old gay icon, he said that homosexuals also face discrimination. “They are just born that way, according to Miss Gaga,” said John, referring to Lady Gaga’s famous song about being yourself. “It’s dangerous to be gay. It’s dangerous to be gay in Ukraine. People get beaten up.”
John lives happily with his male partner David Furnish. Together they are raising adopted son Zachary.
“I do matter, I do good things, I am a human being,” John said. “All humans are born equal, all humans are going to die equal.
And we are not treated equal during our lives. That is a disgrace, and I am afraid Ukraine is far behind the rest of the world. Wake up, Ukraine! Wake up to people rights, you are living in the 19th century! Get to the 21st century and start treating gay people as human beings!”
Kyiv Post staff writer Alyona Zhuk can be reached at [email protected].
