International

Thembi, a Year Later: Life with HIV

Published April 3, 2007 at 12:19 PM PDT

This story was published more than 17 years ago.

Thembi Ngubane is one of the 5 million South Africans living with HIV.

Last April, All Things Considered broadcast Ngubane's radio diary, in which she chronicled her story: telling her family about her HIV status, her relationship with her boyfriend, having a child, confronting the stigma associated with AIDS in South Africa.

In March, Ngubane's documentary, which was produced by Joe Richman at Radio Diaries, was broadcast for the first time in South Africa — in English and Zulu, as well as in her native Xhosa language.

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Following a speaking tour in the United States, Ngubane, now 22, took her story to South Africa, where she currently is. There, she is speaking to local groups and the government about HIV and AIDS.

Ngubane talks to Melissa Block about her health, what her life has been like since her radio diary was first aired, and what her plans are for the future.