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NEWS IN BRIEF
NGLTF Lobbyist Peri Jude Radecic
Photo by Tom DiMaria
House Passes Hate
Crimes Statistic Act
Washington,£>.C—Jubilant lesbian and gay activists
heralded the overwhelming passage of the Hate Crimes
Statistic Act (H.R. 3193/S. 2000) by the House of
Representatives by a vote of384-30 as the first move
toward enacting comprehensive gay/lesbian civil rights
legislation. Though amended to specifically state that
H.R. 3193 was not an endorsement of homosexuality,
lobbyist Peri Jude Radecic of the National Gay and
Lesbian Task Face (NGLTF) called the vote
"extremely symbolic and very important"
The bill was prompted by a U.S. Justice Department
study which found that gay men and lesbians are at
most risk fa hate-motivated crimes. Representative
Patrick Swindall (R-GA) threatened to lead
conservative representatives away horn tire bill unless
the phrase "homosexual or heterosexual" was inserted
in place of the term "sexual orientation."
At the same time, Swindall's forces inserted a
disclaimer which stated, "Nothing in this Act creates a
right fa an individual to bring action complaining of
discrimination based on homosexuality." The
amendment passed the House 383-29.
Radecic railed the amendment a "symbolic" victory
fa Swindall, and asserted that the gay and lesbian
community had lost nothing and had established a
decisive backdrop for Senate consideration of the bill.
"HR. 3193 is na a civil rights bill anyway. It wasn't
intended to give protection from crimes, only to
mandate a statistical base fa future- legislation."
The bill will now be considered by the Senate,
where its main co-sponsors are Senators Alan Cranston
(D-CA) and John F. Kerry (D-MA). Neither Georgia
Senata Sam Nunn na Wyche Fowler had signed on
as a co-sponsor at press time.
New Insult Approved in
Britain...” Poofster”
London^AM the wad "poof to the insult list
Calling gays "poofs" and "poofsters" may be
derogatory and insulting, but the expressions are so
common in England, that editors now have a right to
use them. That ruling came from Britain's Press
Council, in response to a complaint by a gay group, the
Wimbledon Area Gay Society. The London-based
gay rights group made its fomal complaint following
press coverage of the Church of England's decision
not to ban gays from the clergy.
The headlines in local papers read "Runcie Backs
Ban on Poofs." (Archbishop Robert Runcie is the
clerical head of the Church of England.)
Although the British Parliament has recently passed
legislation damaging to gay rights, homosexuality is
legal in Britain.
AMTRAK Allows Reduced
Family Fares for Lesbians
and Gays
Los Angeles- Same-sex couples and gay/lesbian
families are eligible fa reduced fares on AMTRAK
under the Family Plan accading to John Jacobsen,
Directa of Canmunity Affairs. Apparently na all
ticket agents understand the corporate policy.
On May 10, Walter Wheeler, President of Couples,
Inc. was not permitted to buy a Family Plan Ticket for
himself and Carey Junkin, his partner fa ova five
years. The round trip ticket from Los Angeles to Santa
Barbara normally costs $34 fa adults. Under the
Family Plan, the Head of the Household pays full fare
and the other adult family member pays half fare,
children between 2 and 11 pay 1/4 fare.
"This is just another example of the day to day
discrimination that costs our families more money fa
the same service," said Wheeler. He added, "I believe
we must stand up for our rights, even over small issues.
Otherwise we will not receive equal treatment and may
even lose the rights we already have. We were just not
willing to accept the opinion of the ticket clerk in this
issue."
In a telephone conversation with Mr. John Jacobsen,
Directa of Community Affairs fa the National
Railroad Passenger Corporation (AMTRAK), the
official policy was clarified AMTRAK issues Family
Plan tickets without regard to the sex of the family
members. The policy, changed in 1985, is meant to be
non-judgmental and no inquiry is to be made of the ..
family's legal status, with no proof being required
Anyone can obtain a Family Plan ticket by presenting
themselves as the Head of the Household and the
others as members of their family. The couple must be
willing to say they are "married" because the official
policy requires that the half-fare adult be a spouse. It
does na define "spouse". A Head of Household and
children under 12 can qualify in any case. The policy
is being rewritten to eliminate family requirements fa
reduced rates. Couples, Inc. will be following this
policy as it is developed
Oliver Childs, a ticketing supervisor in the national
ticket center held to his position that Family Plan
tickets are for legally married couples only. On
Wheeler's continued insistence, he called Ms.
Charmaine Freeman, Director of Fares and Tariffs in
Washington. She told Mr. Childs to issue the reduced
fare ticket Mr. Childs immediately stated it was a one
time instruction because of the trouble caused and he
would na issue such tickets in the future. In another
telephone call to Mr. Jacobsen, Wheeler was assured
that ticket agents and supervisors that refuse to issue
Family Plan tickets to same-sex couples and
gay/lesbian families will "be properly educated".
"While it is true that we only saved $ 17 on this
ticket, it is only one example of the extra money we
constantly pay because individuals teU us that our
families are not recognized" said Wheeler. "I hope our
success in this minor case will encourage others to
automatically challenge service providers that offer
reduced fares or fees fa families to extend those
benefits to our families.
For more information, contact: John Jacobsen,
Directa of Public Affairs (202) 383-3867 a
Charmaine Freeman, Directa of Tickets and Tariffs
(800)426-6397.
Walter Wheeler, President of Couples, Inc., died
unexpectedly of a heart attack on May 16,1988. See
page 3.
Gay/Lesbian Comrades
” Come Out”
Budapest, Hungary -Less than a month after the
government of Hungary recognized the Eastern
Block's first gay group, the president of the
organization is speaking openly about being gay. After
fighting for three years to get government permission
to form the Association for Hungarian Homosexuals,
Lajos Romsauer, a 52-year-dd psychiatrist, is speaking
publicly about his lifestyle and that of his gay friends.
Romsauer says there are more than a million
homosexuals in his country but, he notes sadly, about
two-thirds of them are married and have children. The
pressure of a closeted existence causes emotional
problems, accading to the psychiatrist -himself the
divorced father of a 17-year-dd girl.
Hungary, widely considered as one of the most
liberal of the communist-block countries, officially
approved the creation of the group also known as
Hom-Eros, out of concern for the spread of AIDS.
Romsauer believes the association would never have
received approval without the AIDS tragedy. The
group’s charter states as its first goal the fight against
the disease, but it has also been given permission to
campaign against discriminatioa
Among Hom-Eros' projects are the production of a
play about gays, screening of "non-ponographic" gay
movies, the publication of a newsletter fa members,
and various social activities including dances and
excursions. Until the group was formed less than a
month ago, Romsauer's house was the scene of
informal gatherings of dozens of gays in Budapest
Interest in joining Hom-Eros is growing fast 120
people attended the founding ceremony, and already
200 more have expressed a desire to participate.
Outside the capital a new branch is already forming in
the city of Gya.
Craig Corbett to Speak
at Gay and Lesbian
Conference
Craig Corbett who attained national fame when he
was awarded custody of Brian Batey, the sot of his
late lover Frank Batey, will be a guest speaker at the
9the Annual World Conference fa the Gay and
Lesbian Parents Coalition International (GLPCI) to
be held June 3-5 at the Radison Airport Hotel in
Columbus, Ohio.
Over 400 parents from the United States, Canada,
Mexico and Australia are expected to attend the three
day conference of wakshops and panel discussions
focusing on the issues of gay and lesbian parenting.
Also speaking at the conference will be Rhonda
Rivera, noted author, speaker and gay rights advocate
and Reverend Zalmon Sherwood, an Episcopal priest
who authored Kairos, Confessions of a Gay Priest.
For more information concerning the World
Conference please contact Ric Halderman (614) 291
3234.
Requests about GLPCI can be made to: P.O. Box
50360, Washington, D.C. 20004.
- jr
»4I
Representative Pat Swindall (R-GA)
Photo by Kathie deNobriga
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Lesbians and Gays ”Chat
with Pat”
Tucker, Ga -Representative Pat Swindall (R-GA)
was confronted for the second time by an angry group
of gay men and lesbians led by Jean Hoffman fa his
homophobe statements and positions during a "Chat
with Pat," on May 14th; Swindall, whose district
encompasses most of eastern and southeastern
metropolitan Atlanta, spent two-thinds of his allotted
time dealing with catastrophic health insurance
legislation, which closely affects people with AIDS
(PWAs), and gay/lesbian dvil rights.
In a series of questions, Hoffman ensnared Swindall
with his own logic, and forced the two-teim .
representative to admit that it was his "constitutional
duty to protect the rights of gay and lesbian dtizens."
When he realized what he had said, Swindall told the
increasingly hostile crowd that he also thought
"Individuals ought to have the right, as employers, fa
example, to discriminate against homosexuals in their
hiring practices. And 1 don’t think it is the federal
government's responsibility to say to an employer that
you may na discriminate against someone who is
homosexual.''
Defending his positions on the national insurance
plan, Swindall vowed, "I would oppose any provision
that would bring AIDS patients (sic) under any
catastrophic health plans...." He brushed off repeated
attempts to learn his {dans to provide financial
assistance to PWAs, and instead targeted education and
the search for a cure to AIDS as of primary
importance.
Rather than education aimed at infoming the pubic
on how na to contract AIDS, Swindall stressed
"educating ourselves in terms of who has ADDS.... One
of the problems that right now we have is a
schizophrenia in this country in terms of whether we
really want to know about AIDS to the point that we're
willing to mandate testing."
The most conservative estimates place 10,000 gay
a lesbian Republican voters in
the 4th Congressional District
When asked why a gay man or
lesbian should vote for him,
Swindall acknowledged his
negative attitude and
homophobe statements, and
said, "If the only issue is my
attitude about homosexuality, I
can think of no reason fora
homosexual to vote fa me.... If
the issue is—Ts Pat Swindall
going to change his opinion
about whether homosexuality is a
natural act?'—the answer is no."
Swindall is expected to
announce a campaign fa re
election in the very near future.
-Chris Duncan
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