The “Queen of Pop,” Madonna, has been an AIDS advocate for many years, as someone who has lost loved ones to the disease and lived through the AIDS epidemic that took the lives of many more people. She has done fundraising and different forms of activism, as well as commemorating International AIDS Day on her social media. She has also made her stance on Donald Trump’s politics clear, criticizing him after his reelection in 2024 as well as when he issued numerous executive orders this January. That criticism has not let up after Trump and his administration decided not to commemorate World AIDS Day.

 

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According to NME, Madonna has spoken out against Trump’s decision to cancel the World AIDS Day commemoration. In an Instagram post, reacting to Trump’s decision, Madonna stated, ” It’s one thing to order federal agents to refrain from commemorating this day, but to ask the general public to pretend it never happened is ridiculous, it’s absurd, it’s unthinkable.” Given her experience with the disease through seeing others suffer through it, she then claimed, “I bet [Trump’s] never watched his best friend die of AIDS, held their hand, and watched the blood drain from their face as they took their last breath at the age of 23,” showing people the brutal reality of what the disease does to those who have contracted it.

Overall, she made it clear that she will be continuing her advocation work and encouraged others to continue honoring World AIDS Day. AIDS is a deadly disease that while people have found ways to live with it, thanks to modern medicine, there is still no cure.