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NEWS IN BRIEF
GERALD JONES
Bones Sues Business Atlanta
Over AIDS-phobic Slur
Positively Female
San D/ego-Columnist Wendy Caster in the
San Diego Gay Times has invented a new
word to describe healthy female sex without
an underlying morality judgment The word,
erosa, is derived from the Greek eros, also the
name of the god of love. She defines the word
to mean a "woman who enjoys sex, used
positively." When used as an adjective,
erosic, it means "simultaneously positively
sexual and positively female."
Claiming that it was time for the English
language to embrace positive female
sexuality, Caster came up with erosa after a
thorough search of dictionaries and
thesauruses became fruitless. The only
positive words on female sexuality she could
find had to do with a woman's intact virginity.
"When I came out as a homosexual, I
embraced the terms 'lesbian' and 'gay woman'
to describe who I am, yet I have no word to
describe myself as a woman who enjoys sex
and refuses to be judged according to
outdated sexist morality," she said.
Based on the ingrained sexism and
homophobia in the English language, it may
take a while for Caster's erosa to catch on. In
the mean time, her "radical vocabulary" might
best be promoted by constant use.
Mole Walks
Around The World
Richmond, Va-Canadian Bill Mole stopped
over in Richmond one month after he began
his "Global Walk for AIDS Research" in New
York City. Mole hopes to raise 10 million
dollars for the AIDS Research Team at the
World Health Organization during his three
year walk around the world. Mole, who quit
his government accounting job five years ago
to pursue fundraising efforts, plans to cut west
at Charlotte, N.C. and finish up the U.S. leg of
his tour in San Francisco by Halloween.
From San Francisco he plans to go to New
Zealand.
Mole's fundraising efforts have gained
world-wide attention in the past Among his
exploits are a trans-Canada walk completed in
1984 which raised money for a woman
paralyzed by a robber’s bullet, and a world-
record 157 hour stint in a bathtub full of stale
baked beans that helped raise funds to feed
the world's hungry. Checks for Mole's
campaign should be made payable to the
World Health Organization, c/o Global Walk,
7548 Buenavista Terrace, Derwood, MD
20855.
Editorial Sabotages
AIDS Ad Campaign
Portland, OR-AIDS and lesbian/gay
activists were infuriated by a homophobic
editorial in the local newspaper, The
Oregonian, which led the Tri-Met transit
company to pull bus advertising which
encouraged gay men to work together as a
community to fight off the AIDS pandemic.
The editorial, signed by Oregonian associate
editor David Reinhard, claimed that the ads
were more "gay promotion" than AIDS
preventative education.
"It (the advertisement) should appear
nowhere in public, save some gay
publications," said Reinhard. "The poster is
tasteless and offensive."
Although his editorial stopped short of
AIDS-bashing, Reinhard proclaimed that
homosexuality was a lifestyle that society
could never give its approval. Calling the
poster a "valentine to homosexuality,"
Reinhard characterized it as a "waste of the
state's limited AIDS education dollar."
Local activists who have picketed the
Oregonian's offices in the past for
homophobic articles and editorials, claim
Reinhard's piece was proof of an attempt to
discredit the lesbian/gay community on the
part of the newspaper. Cascade AIDS Project
later rejected an offer from Tri-Met to provide
free bus tickets to participants in an AIDS
walkathon sponsored by the agency.
S.F. Pride Excludes
"Fringe" Groups
San Francisco-The San Francisco Parade
Committee polarized the debate over the
political content of Pride events when they
rejected the applications from two groups to
march in San Francisco's Lesbian/Gay Pride
Parade last month. The North American
Man/Boy Love Association (NAMBLA) and
Uhuru House, a black nationalist
organization, were rejected at first on the basis
that the Parade Committee could not
guarantee their safety if they participated.
After a last-minute emergency board of
directors meeting was called at the insistence
of NAMBLA, the board voted 6 - 4 to allow
NAMBLA to march. The Parade Committee
had originally listed three reasons for
NAMBLA's rejection, the groups alleged
support of child molester/murderer John
Wayne Gacy, the groups advocacy of "child
molestation" and NAMBLA's safety during
Atlanta-Ubchy House Restaurant
Corporation, owners of Bones restaurant in
Buckhead, has filed suit against Business
Atlanta over an AIDS-phobic statement
attributed to the management in the June
cover story entitled "The New Scarlett
Letter." The suit came about in part because
of the magazine's refusal to either identify the
source or refract the statement
The article quoted a representative of
Bones Steak House management as saying
"We are a masculine, clubby restaurant and
we don't have those kind of people apply for
jobs here.”
According to Nancy Oswald, Director of
Marketing for Liberty House, an intensive in
house investigation has been conducted, and
Bones management is positive that the
statement did not come from within the
company. Said Oswald, "I was the one the
author contacted, and I declined to comment."
Oswald also asserted that the company's
co-owners are more than just unconcerned
capitalists. She stated that they had had past
the event. A number of prominent lesbians
and gay men supported NAMBLA's appeal,
including writer Gayle Rubin, Harry Hay of
the Radical Faeries and Steve Morin, aide to
Representative Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
Uhuru House's appeal was rejected,
however, because the Committee complained
that the group was extremely hard to deal with
when problems occurred during past events,
employees with AIDS, whom the owners had
insisted continue to work in the restaurant as
long as possible. "I have never worked for
two more caring people in my life," said
Oswald.
In a letter written to the Metropolitan
Council of Gay and Lesbian Organizations
(MACGLO), Liberty House President
Richard T. Lewis responded to the
organization’s complaints, and defended his
corporation against the alleged mis-quote.
Said Lewis, "My partner and I have
contributed many hours of our time as well as
tens of thousands of dollars to help our
friends who have been inflicted with AIDS...
I think you would be proud of our
organization if you knew all the efforts that
have ben made."
In response to the letter and lawsuit,
MACGLO has called off plans to picket or
boycott the restaurant. According to
Executive Secretary Jeffrey Laymon Lewis
may speak at an upcoming meeting to assure
the community of his sincerity.
and they reportedly would not issue a
declaration of solidarity with the lesbian and
gay liberation. Uhuru House is a working
class black organization with no official ties to
the lesbian/gay community. They have
operated concession booths which raised
approximately $2,000 in the past for their
group.
BILL GOLDEN
(404) 875-5400 • 377-9205
965 VIRGINIA AVENUE. NE
ATLANTA. GEORGIA 30306
MEMBER OF
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