 What's going on you guys? Rafter Rozzi here, and I'm here to talk about the fact that I'm so comfortable now with talking about HIV and AIDS that for me a lot of times when I'm talking to friends or family or people that I meet I now start joking about it because I think that comedy has the ability to diminish the fears that we have the stigmas the uncomfortableness And it can make something that seems big and scary into something that is something to laugh at I think Harry Potter there's an episode where they have to face their fears and it comes out of a wardrobe and then they Literally turn it into something funny I think that's exactly my point and that's exactly what I intend to do when I Turn the subject matter of HIV and AIDS into a joke and I think Honestly, a lot of people can stand to Approach the topic of HIV and AIDS with a little bit more humor Especially now when it's so manageable and people are able to live normal regular lives I think it's it's okay to take it to that next step and begin to normalize the topic for everyone one of the first times that it became apparent to me the power of of Comedy in my own personal life when dealing with something that was otherwise very like off-putting It was my first year at UCLA. I was on campus I'm on my way back from the theater department and I'm heading down the main walk Bruin walk towards the dorms and At a certain juncture. I see this fairly big Mass of people gathering in a circle around some people in the middle And I didn't really know what was going on but as I was getting closer That's when I began to realize that the guys in the middle of the circle were those infamous anti-gay anti-homosexual Christian guys who literally travel around and that's what they do is is stand there and protest with their signs and They got their like Megaphone and they're just talking about it was the sin and blah blah blah So I'm standing there in the circle amongst the people and I'm listening kind of like listening to what they're saying and then eventually I Look around and I'm like How come nobody is saying anything back? How come everyone everyone is just standing there silently listening and I'm like Does everyone are they okay with this like I'm thinking do they agree? I didn't really know what to think all I knew was that this was a bunch of BS and I wasn't gonna just stand there and do nothing, but I also was like And kind of in shock and I was like let me let me fully like Hear what they're saying and understand what they're saying before I jump to a conclusion and just because that's just very much my Personality I need to like really Hear and listen and then like kind of see all sides of it and go okay Am I misinterpreting or is what I think is happening actually happening? So I I happened to see one of my fellow classmates on the other side of the circle so I sort of walked around to the other side and I said hey Alita Alita was her name is her name and I said can you can you hold on to my stuff for me? Because I kind of want to go check this out and see what's going on and she's like yeah Yeah, sure, so she helped me back back and all my stuff and so I walked back to the circle and I start to Step into the circle. So now I'm like no longer in the crowd I'm literally inside the circle and I would say there was a good like I want to say maybe 40 50 people Circling these guys and they're just going on and on droning about like blah blah blah gay guys are pigs and Abomination and so I'm inside now and obviously people can see that I'm now inside the circle and I'm approaching these guys So this guy is on a literal soapbox and he's standing there spewing his hate and I'm standing literally a foot away looking up at him arms crossed Listening to what he's saying and then I'm looking at the other guy, and I'm like Okay, I am hearing this correctly So at some point I'm like, okay Well, I'm not gonna get mad and I'm not gonna start yelling back because I know that when you do that it just creates a fight and nobody listens and both parties Can potentially look bad. So how do I alleviate the tension here? And how do I like so just instinctually I started to be like no Being gay is not a sin. I was I'm yelling this now and I'm like no you guys it is not a sin It's just about love blah blah blah like calm down You know what I mean? It's kind of like trying to like diminish the the the level of their argument to be like now you guys are being silly fools and Randomly out of nowhere Someone hands me a rainbow flag and I'm like yes. Thank you So I grabbed the rainbow flag and now I start like prancing around With this flag way to get around and I look and like some people are starting to smile Right some people are like this could get awkward some people are starting to smile and then again out of nowhere someone has a boom a literal boom box and They begin to start playing Britney Spears for me And they just hold it up at the edge of the circle and start playing Britney Spears So I have this rainbow flag and I'm like all right. Let's step it up another notch. I take off my shirt Get rid of my shirt probably throw it to Alita I've got the rainbow flag Britney Spears is playing and I'm like dancing around And that's this is of course like setting off these two guys even more and then like one of them is just more even more Ferociously like attacking and he starts attacking me. He's like you're a dirty pig. You're an abomination You're going to hell. You're a sinner sinner No, the Bible is against homosexuality and blah blah blah And so, you know, I had my fun for like a few minutes dancing around but I'm like, okay This is tired. This isn't getting anywhere so now what's the next like thing that I can do and I would notice that I Was like it was entertaining to the people watching and I kind of as a theater as a lover of theater and performance I Was like kind of also getting off in the fact that I was entertaining people and that they were enjoying this and some people were beginning to laugh and Also, I thought this is a good thing because their laughter is negating the hate of their argument, right? So at that point I was listening specifically to what they were saying so One of the guys had an electrical cord So, you know how electrical cords have them the male end and the female end and he goes So You know God intended for the male end to go into the female end and he showed like like the cord connecting like you're just such a Fucking genius, bro. Like what a great fucking analogy there and then he's like it doesn't work with homosexuality You can't put the male end in the male end. It doesn't work. That's not how God intended it and I was like, bro Like you missed the boat You obviously don't get it guys don't have sex by putting their penis to the other penis That's not how we do it and I grabbed the cord and I go the male end goes in the butthole. That's how it works See that works And I started laughing People started laughing and people were cheering and I noticed there was a group of cops They were also watching to see if it was gonna escalate and turn into something You know like where they would have to intervene and I looked over at them and they were smiling too and laughing Because I mean come on like that that rationale is just so wrong And I was able to turn his argument against him and make him realize. No, that's not how it goes Okay, so then at this point I look up at him and I swear he looks at me and he cracks a smile Because it was funny and he knew it was funny and at that moment inside. I was like this guy's not a bad dude Like he's been through what some shit He's ignorant and he doesn't know what the fuck he's doing and for some reason he is on this mission to just like Hate on a whole group of people but inside like humor connected both of us in that moment And I thought that was so powerful mmm And I was like wow like Even this person who like literally hates who I am in That moment was able to lock eyes with me and smile and like and have amusement and we connected in that moment And I was like alright like Cool, I'm gonna keep doing it. So the other guy was like He was the one that was like you're dirty. You're going to hell You're gonna like spend the rest of your life with Satan and all this crap so I I In that moment was like yes. Yes. Yeah, like talk dirty to me Yeah, I like it. So like as he's like saying these things that are like super hateful to me. I was like Getting off on it. Oh my god, so then like I Was like I was like yeah, like talk down to me Look it and so then I like get on the floor and I start like doing push-ups and I remember I'm shirtless So I'm doing push-ups and he's talking dirty me like yeah. Yeah. Yes. Oh like as if he's like a drill sergeant or something and I'm like his little recruit getting off on his like Getting off on his like dirty talk and so like that like of course instantly Took away all his power because now the thing that was supposed to bring me down is actually like getting getting me going so I Think I I did I was doing that stuff and then there came there was a threshold. There was a point when other people started to chime in and like I created this this This level of comfort where other people were like these guys Don't have the power these guys are not the authority even though they're acting like it We are on the same level as them Therefore if we want to say something we can and so there were these other students who just started speaking out It was super cool and I Lost the note, but there was this girl and I think it was her like freshman year and After after I saw all that like happening. I was like, okay, my job is done Like these guys are all taking over that's fucking awesome. Like I can go about my day now So I step outside of the circle and this girl comes up to me and she goes here I want you to have this and it was this little note that she had scribbled onto a piece of paper and folded up And I opened it up and she said Never in my life have I been more proud of another human being And I lost the stupid note. I wish I I wish I hadn't lost it, but That was so amazing that whole experience was so powerful obviously I'm I'm still affected by it when I like really like get into it and remember it and I'll never forget it and I'll never forget how powerful Comedy how powerful humor was so so that's that's I took from that experience with the with me the rest of my life and Try to apply that when I can and where I can so now that HIV has become such a Significant part of my life. I Apply the same mentality It's easy to say Too soon Or you can't joke about that. That's not funny but the reality is when you decide to Use humor and most of the time it can be it can be tasteful, too it doesn't have to be just like raunch or offensive or anything like that you are diminishing the power of whatever Negative energy negative force it is that you're talking about granted sometimes I am offensive, but I Just think it's funny So and I also like to shock people with how comfortable I am because eventually they have to go What do I do with this uncomfortableness? Do I accept it? Do I accept that it's it can I can be comfortable with this or do I? Resist and get mad and blow up and leave the situation most people are like I'm not gonna do that. That's dumb and they're like, okay I accept that this is something that can be joked about so like For example at work a lot of times I am Not nice I Can be I can be a brat I can be a grump and I can be I can get in some really bad moods just because I work so hard I bartend Half the time and I bust my ass and so a lot of times I'm a super tense and I can just be like So sometimes people are like, you know, you just got to be positive And I'm like I'm always positive. It's in my blood and That is like for people who know that I have HIV. They're like, oh my god, Rafe what stop But I'm like, no, it's true. I'm more than one level. So I'm not gonna stop And then I'll even joke about like so that's like something that's more class more a classy way to joke about it But then of course I can be offensive too and I'll I'll say things like I'll like be sparring with with some of my co-workers at work and they're like Throw an insult at me and I'll throw an insult at them and it's like that's just our relationship our dynamic And it's all in good fun. Like one of my friends might be like, oh, well, yeah Well, I hope you enjoy your drink because I spat and I'm like, oh great I hope you enjoyed yours because I put AIDS in it. Now you got AIDS So yeah, I can be like super out there, but again diminishing I'm diminishing This giant scary thing that is AIDS and HIV, you know, of course, you can't you cannot give AIDS to someone else It doesn't work like that. You can give HIV not a drink. That's not it's not even possible So for me to joke about it It's like it's not even a possibility that I'm putting AIDS in your drink and giving you AIDS from drinking it So I can joke about that the other thing is I've I've shared with my friends that Because of having HIV I have subsidized health care where I don't have to pay for premium So I'm like, hey, you know what like if you want some free health care I can hook it up with the HIV Stuff like that Yeah, it's just Being able to find the humor I think is so Important and you can imagine you probably had a reaction listening to those jokes You can imagine how people feel when I say it in the moment and they're not expecting a joke And they're certainly not expecting a joke about HIV or AIDS Anyway, so that's my story that is what Really was this poignant memory that I had that kind of informed how I approach these things now And especially with HIV AIDS. I hope you guys enjoyed this video I hope this maybe can like alter your perception of our conversation with HIV and AIDS It doesn't always have to be so serious It doesn't have to be doom and gloom like when you own it you have the power you can take it back You can minimize the negatives the stigma with comedy with humor and it can apply to like Any part of your life really so Anyway, anyway that you can put a smile on your face or someone else's face Regardless what it's about that's what life's about So I would love to hear your comments on it. What do you think? What do you think of that story? Are there situations where you've done the same and you've used comedy to your advantage? Does anybody else out there joke about HIV? Am I the only one? Let me know. I would love to hear about that Like this video if you like it, please subscribe if you haven't already I've got plenty more videos coming not just on HIV but fitness on about becoming a better human being and Everything that goes along with that. So stick around. I got great content coming for you. Peace guys Rape to Rossi here. Let's wait for the helicopter You guys see this light. It's blinking and it's driving the nuts playing playing playing In the walk. Oh my god. That's gonna I'm gonna lose it Sirens can it can I just vlog please can someone just let me vlog today? My neighbor is probably like what the is going on down there I Real these were pricey No reason for this. Why are you doing that? I don't understand I don't stand there and listen to what they were saying for a minute. Oh My good lord, I'm gonna kill somebody