Newspaper Page Text
SOUTHERN
Moraitakis
campaigns for
gay and
lesbian vote
Page 6
VoL 1, No. 11
Taking Pride in Our Culture
July 21,1988
Klan
Not Allowed to March
Riot police protect Neo-Nazi skinheads from an angry crowd at the site of
the Democratic National Convention.
Atlanta- Beginning with a raucous
counter demonstration at the Georgia State
Capitol, a coalition led by the All People's
Congress, including the AIDS Coalition to
Unleash Power (ACT-UP), Justice for
Janitors and assorted self-proclaimed
anarchists, stopped a planned march and rally
by the Ku Klux Klan and other white
supremacist groups on Sunday aftemnon.
As riot police were attempting to separate
the two groups, Public Safety Commissioner
George Napper issued a terse statment
revoking the Klan's permits to march to the
Free Speech site near the Democratic
Convention site and to hold their scheduled
rally there along with other white supremacist
groups. Napper said he was determined to see
that there was no "bloodshed on the streets of
Atlanta."
The exultant crowd of counter
demonstrators then headed for the Free
Speech site across from the Convention hall,
where they took over the area. Upon learning
that Richard Barrett, a Klan leader, was in
their midst, the angry crowd turned on him in
unison calling him a "yellow-bellied red
neck." Although Barrett was shoved,grabbed
at and spat upon, officers made no attempt to
attest any of the crowd.Barrctt escaped the
area when police officers dragged him across
barricades to safety.
Suddenly,nine members of the neo-Nazi
skinheads circled the rally sight, heading
away from the convention halls. The angry
crowd intercepted and attacked the seven
men and two women. The media and
skinheads alike were pummeled by the mob
in their attempt to snatch American flags
away from the nine neo-Nazis. Shouting
threats and obscenities, the crowd closed in
and began spitting into the skinheads' faces
while those on the outside edge of the mob
Cont'd. Page 3
;.Qam
Gay Activist and AIDS Lobbyist Gil
— _■ . - .. .. ....
Ga. House District 404iimself. A strong
talk with a convincing speaker. Page 13.
men to complete the study. This second
group of test subj
D.C.
things to see while you are there, but it also
LEGAL Rally Draws 1,000 To Convention Site
Atlanta-Dcspilc threats of confrontation
by white supremacists, the rally sponsored by
Atlanta-basal Legislate Equality for Gays
and Lesbians (LEGAL) in the Free Speech
Area of the Democratic Convention site took
place Sunday afternoon without incident
Approximately 1,000 people, over half of
which were from the Atlanta area, braved a
broiling Georgia sun to demonstrate their
solidarity and commitment to gay and lesbian
issues. Mindful of threats from the
supremacists-whose rhetoric includes
virulent homophobic cliches-LEGAL joined
the Center for Democratic Renewal, a
watchdog group that tracks and documents
the white supremacist movement, in
obtaining an injunction against the racists last
Friday. The injunction, designed to reduce
the threat of harm by the supremacists to
others, prohibited the supremacists from
carrying weapons or replicas of weapons and
carefully proscribed their movements and
actions during their protest
On Friday, police spokesperson Sandra
Blount dismissed the threat of disruption
saying, "We don’t anticipate any trouble."
Police officials could not be reached for
comment Monday morning.
With the threat of the supremacists
eliminated, the LEGAL Rally lived up
grandly to expectations. Speakers ranging
from local activists to nationally recognized
politicians received warm response from the
crowd as they affirmed gay and lesbian pride
and discussed their political agenda.
"We have a very simple message," Gwen
Craig, Co-chair of the Lesbian/Gay Caucus
delegates in 1984 and emcee of the event,
told the cheering throng. "Stop AIDS. Stop
violence. Stop discrimination. This is
America."
Throughout the rally, buttons, stickers and
leaflets were distributed through the crowd.
By the end, nearly everyone present was
wearing at least one "Silence = Death" sticker.
In addition, lesbian/gay pride and Stop AIDS
T-shirts were sold and banners floated
brightly above the heads of the faithful.
Fulton County Commission Chair Michael
Lomax received a rousing welcome. He
stressed the role the Democratic Party can
play in bringing gay and lesbian issues to the
political arena. Predicting victory for the
Democrats in November, Lomax said the
party will re-focus the attention of the nation
on human issues.
"All of us hope this week in Atlanta is the
beginning of change in America," he said.
"For the last eight years, human beings and
the rights of human beings have been
ignored."
The one sour note of the day came when
members of the crowd booed Connie Curry,
commissioner of Atlanta's Department of
Community Affairs, who was sent as an
emissary from Mayor Andrew Young's
office. Young was greeting Michael Dukakis
at the airport and was unable to address the
gathering, according to aides.
Felicity quickly returned, however, when
Pete Duttweiler, an aide to Councilmember
Mary Davis, reminded everyone that Atlanta
is one of only a few cities in the country in
which it is illegal for the city to discriminate
in employment matters on the basis of sexual
orientation. Despite an effort to repeal the
ordinance, it remains on the books, largely
due to the united effort mounted by the gay
and lesbian community against the repeal
effort.
Houston activist Ray Hill sounded a
cautionary note for politicians who might take
gay and lesbian votes for granted.
"I predict," he said, "that in November,
there will be many Democratic levers pulled
by the people here today. But we are not
through teaching Democrats to be sensitive to
gay and lesbian issues."
Senator Alan Cranston of California, a
former presidential candidate and author of a
bill to crack down on hate motivated crimes,
promised more push for funding of AIDS
research and more help for those who have
been infected. He promised to press for faster
approval of drugs that show promise in
treatment and for access to those drugs for as
many PWAs as possible.
"Political action," he told the crowd, "will
lead to more funding. More funding will lead
to more medical action. And more medical
Cont'd. Page 10
Attending Sunday's rally were (1-r)
Palmer, Steve and Lamar Huff,
acting as unofficial flag bearers.
Photo by Pamela J. Cole