anyone see the story on Nkosi Johnson a young inspiriational child who had aids, on newsnight with Arron Brown tonight? heres the transcript if you missed it, this child was special.
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0411/23/asb.01.htmlStill to come on the program, a powerful story about life and death through the unflinching eyes of an extraordinary child.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JIM WOOTEN, AUTHOR, "WE ARE ALL THE SAME": You do understand that you are ill, right?
NKOSI JOHNSON, AIDS VICTIM: Yes. And I think there's nothing to be scared about it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: We'll talk to the reporter who first told the world about the courage of Nkosi Johnson.
We'll take a break first. This is NEWSNIGHT.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BROWN: One of the most powerful stories I've ever seen was the story of a young south African boy named Nkosi Johnson. This child was one of tens of thousands with AIDS, an orphan who, in his short life, taught the rest of us a lot about the disease and a whole lot more about life and love and courage. His story was first reported by Jim Wooten, a friend and former colleague. Mr. Wooten took the experience and put it in a wonderful book called "We Are All the Same: A Boy's Courage and a Mother's Love." Half the proceeds of the book will go to Nkosi's foundation.
And it is always a joy to see Mr. Wooten.
WOOTEN: Thank you, Aaron. Nice to be here. Thanks for inviting me.
BROWN: Thank you.
You have -- I was driving in today thinking about this. You've probably written, I don't know, thousands of stories in your life, covered a lot of fascinating characters. What was it about this story that said to you, you know what, this is a book?
WOOTEN: Well, I never thought of it as a book. As a matter of fact, it had to be pointed out to me by a very good friend that it was a book.
I just always thought of him -- I found him to be a boy of such remarkable good cheer that I...
BROWN: Yes.
WOOTEN: He never departed from my mind and I think from my soul, even though he died and even though he was thousands of miles away before he did.
And so, as I told this story to friends about this rather unlikely friendship between this little guy and me, more and more of them suggested that perhaps there's a book. And so now there's a book.
BROWN: There's a book.
It's a story certainly of this child, but it's also the story, in many ways, of his adopted mother, who's quite an extraordinary character as well. And together they are more than either could ever possibly be.
WOOTEN: I think that's absolutely right.
It would be unfair to say that, had they not come together, that they would have been unimportant people. But in the larger flow of life in Africa, they would not have been as significant as they became in their chemistry together. They were dynamite together.
BROWN: What was it about him, do you think, that -- I mean, we all sat in the newsroom that day and watched that story, and we all were drawn into it. It's him. It is -- there's something in his soul that draws you to him, even as you know this is an unhappy ending coming.
WOOTEN: Yes. You know, I can't explain it really. And I don't explain it in the book. I try, but I don't think I do.
I will tell you that what really attracted me to this child was that I knew that he knew that he would never grow up to be a young man. He would never grow up to marry or to be a father himself. I knew that he knew he understood what kind of disease he had. And yet, despite all that, he became a boy of such remarkable good cheer, such joy and such joyousness about his life that to be around him was to feel better about one's own self.
BROWN: There's a point in his short life where he stands before the International AIDS Conference, and from which the title of the book ultimately comes, and talks about the disease and who he is.
WOOTEN: Yes. It was quite a scene. I guess -- this was in Durban in South Africa, maybe 20,000 people in a live audience and millions more watching on television. And he took on the president of south Africa, who had a very bizarre take on AIDS, you know, who said that anti-retroviral medicines were poison and that maybe the virus didn't exist. And he just took him on.
Unfortunately, the president of South Africa had left before Nkosi spoke. But it was an amazing evening, because here he was. He probably weighed about -- at that point, he probably weighed about 40 pounds. And he was 11 years old. And when he died, he weighed less than 20 pounds. So he was already very ill.
BROWN: You're a tough old coot. Did he change you?
WOOTEN: Yes, he did change me in ways that I thought I probably could not be changed, because, you know, having covered a lot of wars and a lot of ugly things in my life, I had seen what I thought were examples of real courage with men with weapons and men in uniform and etcetera. But he showed me that there are different kinds of courage, and he had a very special kind.
BROWN: I'm your friend, but I can be a tough critic. I will tell you, it's, not surprisingly, wonderfully written, elegant, and a terrific read. And congratulations.
WOOTEN: You're very kind. Thank you, Aaron.
BROWN: Good to see you, sir. Thank you.
Ahead on the program, Alexander the Great through the eyes of history and Beth Nissen. And we'll wrap it up, as we do, with morning papers.
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