Newspaper Page Text
Page 3
AID Atlanta
Cont'd. from Page 1
the observers, who angrily denounce any such
attempts.
Board members did not discuss the charges
that AD Atlanta was out of touch with the
community, but Batson did deny any
responsibility for the breakdown in
communication with Grady and VNA, whom
he charged would not return his phone calls.
Although Silverman identified "internal
communication and management of the agency"
as the reason for a generally acknowledged low
staff morale, Batson and Smith contradicted his
letter and blamed work overload for the high
turnover ratio. Letters of resignation from long
time staff members and members of the Board
of Directors leaked to Southern Voice were
explicit, however, in accusing Batson of being
an autocratic administrator who uses gossip and
innuendo to separate and control the staff. It is
unclear how much of the ill feeling between
Batson and his staff members can be traced to
the ouster of his charismatic predecessor, Ken
South
One of the most damaging charges in
Silverman's letter was that AID Atlanta had
failed in any way to make inroads into minority
communities that will be suffering the brunt of
the next wave of AIDS cases. Said Silverman,
"It was recommended that a minority task force
be developed and recommendations be made to
involve the minority communities at all (his
emphasis) levels within the project and that
outreach into the minority community be
established. We have not seen any
documentation that this has occurred at this
time."
Board members acknowledged during the
meeting that this was a serious problem for the
agency, but Batson stated in a pre-meeting
interview that "the site review was of
insufficient duration-they just don't know what
they're talking about (on that point)."
Other items of concern to Dr. Silverman
were the lack of specificity in the Phase n
application regarding PWA housing and long
term care needs. Inside sources at AID Atlanta
have stated that the current administration plans
to divest itself of all housing properties within
the near future. Silverman also requested that
AID Atlanta provide written monthly reports
that outline the agencies progress and goal
achievement.
Saying "We will need to see evidence of
active participation of affected communities and
subcontractors," Silverman returned the
application for it to be recompiled. The site visit
team will return to AID Atlanta August 2 for a
meeting with the full Board of Directors, which
Silverman insisted must sign off on the new
application, along with the subcontractors. In
response to the alarm the letter caused in the
affected communities, Batson said, "There is no
crisis here. We're too busy trying to work with
our caseload of 611 people."
-Chris Duncan and Leigh VanderEIs
[HEADACHE'S
■ Also called sick headaches, a typical
I migraine attack begins with a dull throbbing
I ache in one area ot the head and progresses
I to a piercing pain These torturous attacks
I may be preceded by a change in the field ol
I vision — a flickering betore the eyes, flash-
1 es of light or a partial blocking of the
I vision They are sometimes accompanied by
I nausea or vomiting They are seldom
I relieved by aspirin Their duration is from 2
to 48 hours.
INSURANCE
CASES ACCEPTED
HEALTH INSURANCE - (MAJOR MEDICAL)
LIABILITY - (AUTOMOBILE ACCIDENTS)
WORKMEN'S COMPENSATION - (ON JOBI
Ann
S'
'.RICAN
’INAL CARL
CHIROPRACTIC REHABILITATION
6021 SANDY SPRINGS CIRCLE • SUITE 210
ATLANTA (SANDY SPRINGS), CA 30328
TELEPHONE (404) 252-4711
Dr. Patricia K. Herman
Full Sptne and Extremities
'88 Lesbfan/Gay Caucus Disappoints,
But Georgia's Melinda Daniels Shows "Guts"
Although Dukakis and Jackson delegates of
the lesbian and gay caucus to the Democratic
Convention could not reach consensus over
endorsement of the Dukakis/Bentsen alliance,
most delegates returned to their home states
with a committment to work for the Democratic
ticket. Unfortunately, the caucus was
disorganized, factionalized and no leader
emerged who could bring the battling camps
together.
Divisiveness between Jackson and Dukakis
delegates primarily stemmed from Jackson
supporters holding out for a "sign" of support
from Dukakis which never came. Jackson
delegates maintained that they would have a
hard time convincing gays in their states to back
Dukakis if he was perceived as taking the gay
vote for granted. Dukakis delegates on the other
hand reasoned that if Dukakis publicly
associated himself with gays, he would lose the
conservative Democratic vote which is critical
for victory in the fall.
"We would like some reason to vote for
Dukakis, rather than a reason just to vote
against Bush," explained Pat Cusick, a Jackson
supporter from Dukakis' home state of
Massachusetts. Cusick was veiy aware of
Dukakis' foster care policy which places gay
people at the bottom of the list for consideration
as foster parents. This position has placed
Dukakis in an unfavorable light with many
lesbian and gay activists even though his
general stance on civil rights is seen positively.
Throughout the week each meeting of the
lesbian/gay caucus was marked with tense and
sometimes bitter exchanges between Jackson
and Dukakis delegates. Pro-Dukakis delegates
and supporters tried at each session to convince
Jackson delegates to join with them in order to
present a unified face to the party in support of
Dukakis. The Jackson delegates refusal to
budge on the issue, citing Dukakis' refusal to
give any recognition to a 6-point resolution
passed by the caucus which addressed lesbian
and gay concerns. In that plank was a request
that Dukakis "explicitly" mention lesbians and
gays in his acceptance speech.
Melinda Daniels, openly lesbian delegate
from Georgia and originally a Gore delegate,
voted for Jacksoa " I struggled with the
decision before the convention," she said.
Jackson is clearly the best friend that lesbians
and gays have, and if I voted with my heart and
my conscience, I would vote for Jesse. I feared,
however, that if he won the nomination that he
would not win in the fall, and the most
important thing is to get a Democrat in office
again."
By the time of the convention, Daniels was
sure that Dukakis would receive the nomination
and she cast her vote for Jackson because," I
knew it would not hurt Dukakis' nominatioa I
was able to vote with my conscience after all,
Dick Rhodes and Melinda Daniels on the floor of the Democratic National Convention,
and feel good about it"
Daniels feels that if Dukakis had shown any
sign of recognition for the lesbian and gay plank
that Jackson delegates may have agreed to cast
their votes for Dukakis. "But there was no way
they were going to do that unconditionally," she
stated.
"The caucus meetings were not exactly
friendly," Daniels stated. "They were strictly
business."
Daniels ran into other "unfriendly" forces
during the convention. In an effort to get the
caucus' 6-point resolution before the Georgia
delegation, Daniels asked for agenda time from
Governor Harris, who chaired the Georgia
delegatioa She was told by aides that nobody
was going to be given time, and was advised to
go to the vice-chairs of the Gore, Dukakis and
Jackson delegations with her resolution. Daniels
did just that, working her way across the
convention floor, gamering substantial support
from Jackson delegates. Encouraged by her
success, Daniels continued to ask for agenda
time before the Georgia delegation. Although
she was unable to present the lesbian/gay
resolution to the entire delegation, Daniels was
given the opportunity to present the resolution to
the Gore delegatioa When she finished, Ga.
Speaker of the House Tom Murphy
emphatically responded with "My vote's no!",
and stormed out of the room with with a trail of
followers at his heels.".
"The reaction from Tom Murphy didn't
surprise me," Daniels said "What is important
here is that there were people within the
delegation who were sympathetic."
Dick Rhodes, also an openly gay Georgia
delegate, agrees with Daniels. He stated that
several delegates, including a woman from
south Georgia, came up to him on the floor of
the convention and said she wanted him to
know that there are some in the delegation in
support of lesbian/gay civil rights.
When Daniels met with the lesbian/gay
caucus on the final day of the convention, she
said she felt" disheartened when I had to report
that our state had rejected the resolution."
"Everyone else was standing up and saying they
were very proud to report that their states had
passed it unanimously." However, Daniels was
given a standing ovation for her groundbreaking
act and her perseverance in the face of
intimidation. Fred Burner, a Florida delegate,
suggested that Daniels be given a "guts award"
for her efforts.Florida's delegation was the only
other state who rejected the resolutioa
"This (the convention) was a major learning
experience for me," Daniel said." I went in as a
novice and now I know how important it is to
work in the party, and for people to know who
you are.Most people in the Georgia delegation
just saw Dick and I as the queers from the 4th
district"
Rhodes echoed Daniels' experience.
"Basically, they (the Ga. delegation) just
ignored us until the last day when they needed
our vote."
Daniels is determined to continue her
involvement in Georgia Democratic party
politics, pushing for lesbian/gay concerns
whenever she can." Tm going to work in the
party and earn respect," she said "Then, I hope
they will give me the benefit of the doubt"
Daniels certainly earned the respect of the
lesbian/gay caucus, as well as the respect of
fellow gay and lesbian Georgians for having the
"guts" to present our concerns to Speaker Tom
Murphy.
-Terry Francis with Christina Cash
Sharon U Sanders
psychotherapy
1549 Clairmont Rd
Suite 108
Decatur GA 30033
(404) 373-0278
Jesse R. Peel, M.D.
General Psychiatry/ Psychotherapy
120 Ralph McGill Blvd., Suite 820
Atlanta, Ga. 30308
(404) 885-1662
. „ T nrr n v A er n
O Jr' *'JL"O
Desktop Publishing, Inc.'-'
TYPESETTING / DESIGN / PRINTING
Business Cards • Stationery
Resumes • Fivers • Newsletters
We know your type-377*8899
1385 Oxford Rd. - Emory Village
C.J. CLARK
DEPENDABLE REMODELING
Quality Work Reasonably Priced
Call For Free Estimate
875-6314