The Heart of the Matter (1994)

Filmmaker Gini Reticker examines how AIDS affects women, focusing on the plight of Janice Jirau, an HIV-positive black woman who reveals how she was infected and her reaction to her diagnosis. The film charts Jirau's journey from victim to outspoken political activist, and the cameras watch as she confronts conservative groups who stereotype AIDS as a disease that primarily afflicts gays. Reticker also speaks with a disparate selection of other women, from single lesbians to straight housewives.