Although gymnast Matthew Cusick is a self-proclaimed “performer at heart,” he can be a bit shy when you first meet him. Still, in early 2003 when Cirque du Soleil fired him just days before he was set to begin performing with the troupe in Las Vegas, he resolutely put his shyness aside. You see, he had been fired because he is HIV-positive and he decided almost immediately to fight for justice. His decisive stance—strongly confronting the situation—is not necessarily the norm in HIV discrimination cases, but his action may well have created new standards for such cases.

“When they terminated me,” Matthew tells me, “they said it was for two reasons: They said I could possibly infect other artists and staff and [even] the audience. And, if another artist found out I was HIV-positive and refused to work—which they could do—[Cirque du Soleil] would lose revenue because they might have to cancel a show or shows and possibly the act itself….”

If you’re not familiar with Cirque du Soleil, it will help you to know it is a Canadian company that is modeled after more traditional circuses, though it is highly stylized, artistic, and acrobatic. Performances incorporate haunting music, intricately choreographic routines, and artful costuming. Keep in mind that, even as a Canadian company, Cirque must comply with U.S. employment laws when it is doing business in this country.

In talking with Matthew, I found that, although he has told his tale to a number of reporters and community groups, recounting the events of the past year-plus causes him to shake his head. He remains a little bit disbelieving that it all really happened.

At issue was the fact that he been hired by Cirque and had trained with them for months, only to have his dream job of acrobatic performance taken away just short of his debut. Matthew reacted by engaging Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund, a non-profit legal advisory group, which filed a federal HIV discrimination complaint against the company on his behalf. The complaint was filed under the auspices of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

“I knew that what they did was wrong and that I was going to try and seek justice,” he says, noting that he was already somewhat familiar with Lambda. “I have been HIV-positive for eleven years and was familiar with the work they had done. I went on-line and searched and got their contact information.”

Attorneys would say the rest is, “precedent setting.”

In April, Lambda finalized an agreement to end Matthew’s discrimination complaint, which was filed last July before the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). In the largest EEOC settlement of its kind in our nation’s history, Cirque du Soleil paid a record $600,000 to Matthew to end the claim.

Cirque also will host annual anti-discrimination training sessions for all employees, and adopt a zero-tolerance policy toward discrimination based on HIV and other disabilities.

Though the breadth and magnitude of the settlement is truly groundbreaking, all of that seems academic as I talk with Matthew in Atlanta’s Piedmont Park, a short stroll down the street from his hotel. He was in town to address the Atlanta Executive Network and a gathering co-hosted by Lambda Legal’s Southeast office and a local AIDS service organization, AIDS Survival Project.

Matthew is reflective but not maudlin. “It was a dream job,” he says, “then they took it away—based on bad information and fear….”

When he auditioned, Cirque accepted him halfway through the audition, inviting him to “come up to Canada” for training. Matthew was cleared to compete—with no caveats or reservations—by the company’s doctor, who knew his HIV status.

The training regimen Matthew undertook with Cirque could only prove his healthfulness. He trained nine hours a day. The training lasts four months. Quite a commitment. Not that he wasn’t used to that.

When he was competing in gymnastics—from early childhood through high school—Matthew trained extensively. Through a coaching career that took him through the next ten-plus years, he maintained his stamina, shape, and health by working out, demonstrating gymnastic moves for his students, and lifting weights.

 “I’ve worked to stay healthy,” he emphasizes. “I don’t drink, don’t smoke, don’t do drugs. I work out, try to take care of myself. You have to, HIV or not.”

Matthew is working again, having joined AntiGravity, a New York City-based aerial performance company with a talent roster that includes national and international champion athletes (including Olympic athletes), urban dancers, and “underground” specialty artists.

On June 20, Matthew performed in Broadway Bares 14, an annual fundraising event for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS; it was his first performance since being dismissed by Cirque. He told me he was excited to do something with the Broadway Community, “because Actors Equity stood behind me through this and brought Chita Rivera and so many other celebrities to support me and this issue. It’s great to know I can give back to an organization that supported me so [unequivocally] through this ordeal.

“Cirque stated in the media that it made the decision out of ignorance,” Matthew says, “but in 2004 it is unrealistic that a company had no clue or no training with the issue of HIV. And if you’re working with the amount of athletes that they are and the environment of supposed risk that there is in their sport and in their shows, they would [surely] take that into consideration…and done their research. Maybe they had done it.”

Whether through ignorance or inadequate diligence, the results were clear. Hayley Gorenberg, the director of the Lambda Legal AIDS Project, and the attorney who represented Matthew, is direct in her assessment. “This case says to employers that in the twenty-first century they have to know the facts; they cannot operate on stereotypes. They have to know the facts and the science, and make good decisions.”

She says judgments larger than this settlement may exist, but that those have come from cases that have gone all the way through the court system, not from settlements like this one.

Cirque settled the case two months after the Los Angeles district office of the EEOC ruled in Matthew’s favor and encouraged the two sides to mediate toward a settlement. It probably helped that Lambda, HIV organizations, and gay organizations protested at the sites of many Cirque shows and otherwise utilized the power of public relations to underscore the circus’s decision to fire someone with HIV.

“I hope the case also is educational for employees,” Gorenberg says, “so they can understand their rights to maintain their jobs.” She praises her star client, saying, “it is significant that Matthew came to…be open about his [HIV-positive] status. Not everybody can or will do that. The fact that it is hard to claim your own rights [in regards to HIV discrimination] shows how damaging the stigma of HIV can be.”

Gorenberg emphasizes the point that circumstances such as Matthew’s firing and settlement often do not come to light because many employees do not know their rights, may be scared to pursue resolution, and, again, may be intimidated by having to reveal their HIV status.

Her words are a testament to Matthew’s strength. His powerful spirit matches his powerful physique.

But don’t make the mistake of thinking Matthew is bitter. In fact, he is good-natured. He projects the fact that the whole experience seems surreal, but he is taking care to cherish the positive byproducts.

“In the past two talks I have given [he’s speaking more and more frequently to community groups and other organizations], I have talked about an e-mail I received from a six-year-old girl,” Matthew says. “The subject of her e-mail was ‘My hero.’ Her teacher had gotten my e-mail address and they were all supposed to write to their hero. She said her mother had read about me and that she thinks I’m nice and a hero.

“[She] also said her brother is not always happy because he is sick and that she gave him a Boo Boo Buddy and it made him feel better and that she would like to give me one too and that since she can’t do that by e-mail she sent me a photo of a Boo Boo Buddy,” he says. A Boo Boo Buddy, in case you are wondering—I had to ask—is a cuddly stuffed animal.

“I am still in awe over…a little girl being affected by what I have done,” he says, showing eyes that are tearing up a bit. “It makes it all work out…it makes it all worthwhile.” He adds that he assumes the girl’s brother is HIV-positive. After a deep breath and quite a long pause, Matthew says, “What she did tells me that I am not affecting just me or the generation I am in, but generations after me.”

Indeed, his case brings caution to employers and empowerment to people who may be living with illness—and the fear of discrimination.

“I’ve actually had a lot of people come up to me and e-mail me and want to talk about their HIV status, or tell me about their discrimination,” Matthew tells me when we’re talking about his speaking engagements. “They say, ‘Thank you for fighting,’ and it let’s me know I have done the right thing because of their feedback.”

One reason this reluctant non-discrimination poster boy may be so well-adjusted is his family, who has been supportive through his dedication to gymnastics, his gymnastics coaching career, his work toward a performance career, and certainly through the post-Cirque ordeal.

“I am very fortunate,” he says. “My family has been 100 percent supportive of me and my decision to go forward with this—with the case. I could not ask for anything more from them. They have been really amazing. When I first came out about my HIV status, I told them, one, I was gay and, two, I was HIV-positive. They said, ‘We still love you, you’re still our son and brother. You haven’t changed to us.’ I told them a lot of people are disowned when they come out or reveal their HIV status, and my mom and dad especially questioned why parents would do that to their own children, their own flesh and blood.”

Matthew says they’ve become more aware of the issues. “I was just at the NAPWA [National Association of People With AIDS] awards where they honored me with their Braveheart Award, and my parents were there,” he says proudly. “They were extremely excited that such a large organization was honoring me with such an award and felt very proud of what I had done. That was an important moment for me.”

When all is said and done, and with the protests and settlement negotiations behind him, how does Matthew feel about people supporting Cirque? “I would ask people to think about where they are spending their money and the company they are supporting. That goes for all issues or all companies—not just Cirque du Soleil,” he says.

“Look at whether they are supporting the values important to you. Do they take the time and effort to be fair…to be consistent…to do what’s right?”

Businesses must look at the bottom line, of course, but there are humanistic ways they can do that, Matthew says.

“You see, I knew discrimination was out there, but I never had experienced it on a professional level. I didn’t think there was a limitation with what I could do,” Matthew says, “but I kind of knew there are people that have reservations about people with HIV and that employers sometimes hesitate to further employ or hire HIV-positive people for whatever job they are doing, ’cause they are afraid of someone being infected by just looking at them. That is still the misconception and ignorance around HIV. It’s still here in 2004.”

His point is well-taken: Most of us would have thought cases of HIV discrimination were no longer an issue. Obviously, such discrimination is still all too common. Still happening more than we might like to think.

Thanks to Matthew, though, that ignorance has been rolled back a little more. His determination and strength were put to the test, and we all won.

Special thanks to Dr. Barbara J. Rubin for making this interview possible.

B. Andrew Plant is an Atlanta-based freelance writer and is Editor at Large of A&U. He interviewed Broadway producer Jordan Roth for the June issue.

July 2004