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NEWS IN BRIEF
Vaid Chosen As
NGLTF Director
Washington - The National Gay and
Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) board of
directors voted June 18 to hire Urvashi Vaid
to replace Jeff Levi as the group's executive
director. Levi informed the board in March
that he would resign this summer to work
full-time on AIDS issues.
Vaid, an attorney and longtime lesbian
activist has served as NGLTFs public
information director since September, 1986.
She was praised by board members as an
energetic and very talented staff member
according to the Washington Blade, a gay
newsweekly.
Vaid is known as a fiery speaker and an
avid organizer of street demonstrations.
Those qualities contrast sharply with Levi's
behind-the-scenes, low-key approach to
politics. NGLTF board members say Vaid
CLIFF O'NEILL
NGLTF Executive Director Urvashi Vaid
has demonstrated skill in fundraising and
lobbying and she has mastered the role of
political tactician. She is also praised for
her ability to bring together diverse groups
within the gay community.
Vaid will be called upon to use all of her
skills as she takes the helm of the
organization at a time when it has been
forced to curb the pace of its growth
because it has failed to meet its fundraising
goals. However, NGLTF is also highly
prized by Congressional staffers and
officials with federal agencies as a very
effective player in D.C. politics.
NGLTF is the nation's second oldest
national gay rights group. It has more than
17,000 members and an operating budget of
$957,000. The group's objectives include
lobbying Congress and the executive branch
on gay and AIDS-related issues, promoting
public education about gays and providing
logistical support for local and statewide
lesbian and gay organizations.
Vaid, in a telephone interview with the
Washington Blade, said she will maintain
and strengthen the programs begun by Levi.
She will also take on more fundraising and
membership development tasks.
Vaid was bom in India and came to the
United States with her parents when she was
eight years old. She graduated from Vassar
College in 1979, and from the Northeastern
University School of Law in 1983. She is a
member of the Massachusetts State Bar.
Killer of 16 Gay
Men Convicted
Santa Ana, Calif-Randy Kraft, 44, was
found guilty of killing 16 gay men after 12
days of deliberation by a Superior Court
jury here according to The Weekly News.
Kraft has been in custody since 1983
when he was found with the body of a dead
Marine in his car. He is believed to be
involved in the deaths of 40 other men and
is considered by some to be the worst serial
killer in U.S. history. All of the men
murdered by Kraft were gay men or hitch
hikers between the ages of 18 and 25.
Kraft's victims were drugged, tortured,
mutilated, sodomized and strangled.
Kraft has denied killing anyone and did
not testify at his trial.
School May Be
Named For Milk
San Francisco, Calif-The Board of
Supervisors here has passed a resolution
recommending that a city school be named
after assassinated gay supervisor Harvey
Milk. According to the San Francisco
Sentinel, a gay newspaper, proponents of
the idea must now lobby to get one of the
existing schools to change its name.
Tom Ammiano, San Francisco activist
and comedian, and one of the original
proponents of the idea spoke at a PTA
meeting of Douglas Elementary School
which activists are hoping will make the
name switch. Douglas is located in the gay
Castro district and Milk worked to keep the
school open during the 1970s when
enrollment was down.
There was support for the change in
name from the parents, however, those
opposed were the most vocal.
Koch Names Street
After Stonewall
New York City, N.Y.-Mayor Ed Koch
has signed into law a bill that renames a
portion of Christopher Street, in the center
of Greenwich Village, "Stonewall Place".
The new name comes, of course, from the
Stonewall Inn, the bar raided by police in
1969 which sparked the Stonewall Riots
and the modem lesbian and gay civil rights
movement.
The bill was proposed by Heritage of
Pride, organizers of New York’s lesbian and
gay pride march, rally and dance.
Stonewall Place is that portion of
Christopher Street between Seventh Avenue
and Waverly Place.
Bachelor No. 1, Please
Palo Alto, Calif.-The Dating Game,
featuring gay and lesbian contestants, was
aired by the student-run television channel
at Stanford University. The special segment
was aired twice during Gay and Lesbian
Awareness Week, May 6-13.
Bobbi Bernstein, a senior from Virginia
and daughter of Washington Blade
columnist, Robert Bernstein, proposed the
idea to the student producer at X-TV.
Bernstein and others involved with getting
the program on the air said they felt it
would help break down negative stereotypes
about gays, according to the New York
Times. Bernstein said most of the response
from the gay community was positive.
However, one lesbian student in the
audience was opposed to the program.
"This reduces us back to our sexual
orientation," she said.
Bernstein stated that some other people
voiced similar concerns, but believed that
positive aspects of the show outweighed the
negative ones.
"It's kind of a corny, stupid show to begin
with," said Sharon Wachs, producer of the
show. "I was worried it wouldn't come off
with enough dignity."
Wachs stated, however, she was glad the
station had aired the show after it received
such a positive response.
Denmark Legalizes
Gay Marriages
Copenhagen, Denmark-Gay and lesbian
marriages are now legal in Denmark. The
Danish parliament passed the law by a 71
47 margin in late May. The law is expected
to take effect October 1 with the signature of
Queen Margaret II.
According to the Philadelphia Gay
News, the law received widespread support
from members of the Danish parliament
with the exception of the five members of
the Christian Folk Party. All five members
voted against the legislation and plan to call
for a public referendum.
Although gay men and lesbians are
considered "legal" couples under the law,
they are not granted the right to adopt
children or marry in churches. Gay and
lesbian activists are working to have both
restrictions changed.
Call SOS-GAYS
New York City-The National Gay and
Lesbian Crisisline, America's only toll-free
gay information and counseling service, has
adopted a new, easier-to-remember,
nationwide calling number (800) SOS-
GAYS or (800) 7674297.
Simultaneously, the Crisisline increased
its incoming call capacity by 25% with the
addition of a telephone line, made possible
through the gifts of private donors.
The Crisisline, which has been in
operation for more than six years, is a
program of the New York-based Fund for
Human Dignity, the national, non-profit
organization that provides and promotes
better information about gay and lesbian
lives.
Approximately one-third of the 30,000
calls fielded in 1988 were from persons,
especially teenagers, who needed to discuss
their sexual orientation, but were unaware of
any other source of information and support.
A computer database of more than 6,000
entries, developed especially for the
Crisisline, provides local referrals to the
caller for social support, information about
AIDS, healthcare, legal, psychological and
other services.
For further information regarding the
National Gay and Lesbian Crisisline, con
tact Julien Maurice, Coordinator, The Fund
for Human Dignity, 666 Broadway, New
York City, NY 10012. (k212) 529-1600.
For direct assistance, dial (800) SOS-
GAYS.
And Now For The News,
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2/Southern Voice • July 6,1989