[2] Black worked with Muirhouse GP, Dr Roy Robertson, who was one of the first to make the link between the ban on needles and the spread of the human immunodeficiency virus.
At that time Edinburgh officials were confiscating drug paraphernalia, which meant people were sharing infected needles, leading to increased cases of HIV/AIDs.
At an open discussion at Robertson's medical practice in 1987, Black took on a homophobic councilman proposing exiling gay people and preventing immigration to stop the spread of the virus.
[4] Furious at the politician's ignorance, Black confirmed her views that there multiple issues at play, including poverty, joblessness and a six-year wait for public housing.
'There's loads of other problems intertwined,' she said, describing gray-haired residents who have never had work and have been on the dole all their lives.