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March 1,1990 • Southern Voiced
NAACP and the Catholic Archdiocese of
Atlanta) have said they refuse to support it if
sexual orientation and HIV status are
removed. If the bill does clear the House,
calls to your State Senator asking for imme
diate support are in order.
More complicated and messier by far is
the status of HB 842 (release of AIDS confi
dential info in probate proceedings) and HB
1789 (repeal of counseling and the right to
refuse HIV testing) which has been amended
to it. Presently holding in the House
Judiciary Committee, rumor has it that Lt.
Gov. Miller is pushing hard to get the
amended bill out and voted on because it is
sponsored by the Medical Association of
Georgia who is contributing big bucks to his
campaign for Governor. Gil Robison of the
Georgia AIDS coalition says this one will
likely be argued down before the closing
gavel. Call both your Senator and
Representative and tell them that HB 842
without amendment is fine, but that any
attempts to erode confidentially and consent
(like HB 1789) are bad law.
House Bill 1609 (would let companies set
caps on AIDS related medical expenses in
insurance groups smaller than 50) which
passed the House with a fight is now in the
Senate Insurance Committee. Chairman Bud
Stumbaugh will likely try to keep it there. If
Clay of the 37th or Ragan of the 32nd is
your Senator, call them and urge them to kill
this bill. Otherwise let your senator know
that you oppose passage.
Finally SB 426 (would allow public safe
ty personal access to HIV info without a
court order) remains stuck in Senate Human
Resources. Pierre Howard of the 42nd is
Chairman. Call him, Langford of the 35th or
Walker of the 43rd and let them know you'd
be happy if they keep it there.
Kroger Apologizes
For Homophobia
by Izar Naveh
Kroger Supermarkets' liberal reputation
was jeopardized recently when Gary Cox
was called a "faggot" by two employees.
Cox, a 38-year-old Georgia state employ
ee and former gay liaison to Fulton County
Commission Chairman Michael Lomax, was
in the produce department on February 2nd
and waved his hand for assistance. In
response, Cox said, "they waved back in a
'limp-wristed' motion and called me a fag
got." Furious, Cox demanded an apology
from the management.
Evett Bennett
(L-R) Jean Levine, Pat Hannah,
Ken Dill, Gary Cox, Chris Chimera
Kroger managers were outraged by their
workers' behavior and attempted to rectify
the problem. Cox said he received a verbal
apology but felt it insufficient. "I was not the
only one abused...my entire community was
insulted," said Cox. "I have been spending
my gay dollars at this Kroger because I
thought Kroger was responsive to my com
munity." According to Cox, the employees
denied the accusations and added insult to
injury. "When I left the Kroger, the same
guys called me a lying SOB faggot'."
Unsatisfied with the store's response, Cox
contacted Kroger corporate offices in
Marietta. Cox demanded restitution to the
gay community as a formal apology.
Following several attempts to reach the
proper officials in the main offices of
Kroger, Cox was assured amends would be
made.
Kroger's public relations official, Spenser
Smith, sent a personal letter of apology to
Cox and a donation of $250 to Project Open
Hand, an organization delivering meals to
people with AIDS. Smith ordered the dona
tion even though Kroger is a major benefac
tor of the Atlanta Community Food Bank of
which Project Open Hand a member.
Cox received a written apology from the
two employees within two days of the cor
porate letters. "I didn't ask for that," said
Cox, "but the unexpected does happen."
Smith insists Kroger's policy of anti-discrim
ination could have been injured by the inci
dent and needed to be corrected. In the orig
inal letter received by Cox, management
said it pursued "full disciplinary actions"
against the employees. Although there was
no mention of termination, some of Kroger's
policies suggest that "full disciplinary
actions" contain provisions for firing.
Danish Gay Marriages
a Smashing Success
The grand success of Denmark's newly-
legal marriages for same-sex couples should
be a shot in the arm for coupling inclined
lesbians and gays elsewhere. Here at home,
an HRCF survey of lesbians found that two-
thirds of the respondents chose partnership
rights as the "Issue Prima" on their human
rights agenda, feeling that it's high time gay
and lesbian marriages were recognized by
the laws and the mainstream media.
Meanwhile, the go-ahead in Denmark has
proven quite popular. According to Danish
newspaper Berlingske Tidende, at least 400
couples were legally joined in the first twen
ty days after the law took effect October 1,
1989. A forthcoming "state of the unions"
survey is expected to show much greater
numbers. Coffee, Danish, and thou?
Census To Count
Unmarried Partners
Gay couples included.. .sort of
Unlike past national census counts, the
1990 census will offer the category "unmar
ried partner" to the relationship section of
the questionnaire.
Expanding the selection choice beyond
"roommate/partner" or "roomer/boarder,"
the new category is, according to some
sources, the bureau’s attempt to get an accu
rate count of the number of heterosexual
couples living together without "benefit of
marriage."
The bureau will also be able to determine
the number of same-sex couples living
together in committed relationships, but,
according to the Washington Blade, the
Census Bureau says the new counting cate
gory was designed primarily to track "part
ners of the opposite sex."
Continued bottom of page 4
It can be scary
being
chased
by
April 15th
Even your friends can r t help you
if y o u 1 re not p re p a re d.
Don't get dragged down by the
urgency of getting all those bits and
pieces of information together.
Let HLM Services help you make sense of
your 1989 Tax Status.
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• Tax Preparation •
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Call 659-0315 for MON-FRI
An Appointment Hours: 8:30am-5:30pm
BE CREATIVE AT THE
Business Expo
mmm Southern ———
rourrm Tuesday VOICE
^ m Cooperatively sponsored in support of
the Gay and Lesbian Community
Saturday, April 7, 1990
Colony Square Hotel Grand Ballroom
We offer these suggestions towards the creative
endorsement of your business at our Expo:
• Retailers
Set up a mini boutique and sell your cards, clothing
or hand-made wares
• Professionals
Set up your computers and visually list your services,
fees and capabilities
• Chiropractors/Massage Therapists
Give people a little hands-on attention.
Call Our 24 Hour
Hot Line 662-6877
to receive your application and
detail of information.
Booths $75. 00
1990 Business Expo, 8825 Roswell Rd. Suite 246, Atlanta, GA 30350