After her passing in 1997, Princess Diana earned the well-deserved title of the “People’s Princess.”

This moniker was a testament to her genuine warmth, empathy, and ability to deeply connect with people worldwide. She truly embodied this title through her active humanitarian efforts, like when she bravely interacted with AIDS patients.

Here’s how Princess Diana profoundly impacted global perceptions with one remarkable, gloveless handshake.

In 1987, fear, misunderstanding, and stigma surrounded the world as it grappled with the HIV and AIDS crisis. Myths about the virus being transmissible through casual contact were rampant. Hospitals often isolated patients, families faced societal shame, and even healthcare professionals were cautious. Amid such widespread anxiety, Princess Diana entered a small ward at London’s Middlesex Hospital and made a bold statement with a gloveless handshake.

The room was quiet, tense even. Cameras clicked, journalists watched, and a young man in a hospital bed, clearly weak, his eyes darting nervously toward the approaching princess. Most visitors kept their distance. But Diana didn’t. She smiled warmly, stepped forward, and gently reached out. No gloves. No hesitation. Her bare hand took his, and she held it. That simple act — a human touch — shattered a global illusion.

At the time, the belief that HIV and AIDS could be transmitted through casual contact was widespread. Public education hadn’t caught up to science. People with AIDS were treated like outcasts, feared as though they carried the plague. But here was the most photographed woman in the world, touching an AIDS patient with tenderness, empathy, and dignity. It wasn’t just a handshake. It was a declaration: These people are not untouchable. They are human.

The impact was immediate. The photo of the then-Princess of Wales holding the patient’s hand raced around the world. Newspapers ran it on their front pages. Evening news anchors used the moment to begin conversations about compassion, science, and human decency. For millions, Diana’s gesture challenged long-held beliefs and fears.

Diana understood something profound: that stigma kills as effectively as any virus. Her empathy wasn’t performative. It was transformative.

As the princess famously said once, “HIV does not make people dangerous to know. You can shake their hands and give them a hug — Heaven knows they need it.”

She wasn’t a scientist. She wasn’t a politician. But with that single act of kindness — one uncovered hand extended in compassion — she did what neither science nor politics could fully achieve at the time. She opened the hearts and minds of millions.

Looking back now, nearly four decades later, it’s easy to forget just how radical her actions were. Today, we understand HIV and AIDS far better. We know it can’t be spread by touch, and treatments allow many to live long, healthy lives. But none of that progress happened in a vacuum. It began with moments of courage. And Diana’s handshake — that quiet, single, gloveless act of rebellion against fear — is one of the most iconic.