Newspaper Page Text
Southern Voice/February 14, 1991
3
NEWS
No Change in Military's Ban on Gays and Lesbians
The Pentagon denies reports that it instituted a policy requiring all gay and lesbian members of
the armed forces to complete their duty to war, but would by forced out of the military as soon as
the fighting in the Persian Gulf ended. This announcement comes after stories in the New York
Times, Washington Post and other newspapers reported a lesbian soldier, Donna Lynn Jackson,
was told she would remain in the Army Reserves as long as the war with Iraq continued, and
would face mandatory discharge when it stopped. U.S. Department of Defense spokesman, Lt.
Commander Ken Satterfield told the Washington Blade that all gays and lesbians will continue
to be discharged from armed forces, even when there's a war going on. DC activist Martin
Hiraga, however, claims that at least 14 openly gay/lesbian reservists have been sent to the
Persian Gulf.
Watkins Wins Again: Army Sgt. 1st Class Perry Watkins, who was discharged for being gay
will receive about $135,000 in back pay and full retirement benefits, according to an Associated
Press story. Watkins of Tacoma, Wash., said he plans to keep working to get the Pentagon ban
on homosexuals overturned. "Any able-bodied person who gives to their country deserves to be
judged on the quality of their performance," he said. While advocates see the settlement as a vic
tory, they warn that Watkins' case is different from many others because the Army had repeated
ly allowed Watkins to reenlist despite the fact that he was openly gay.
Risky Sex in a Dangerous War: Another soldier has been dishonorably discharged from the
Army for neglecting to tell his sex partners that he was infected with HIV. Mark Rogers pleaded
guilty to three counts of disobeying orders before a military court, and was sentenced to 10 years
in jail, but will serve four under a pretrial agreement. The prosecutor Capt. Joel Wilson said,
"There's a military case of law that the military has the right to go into a fairly personal part of
the person's life because there's the responsibility to make sure people in the military are healthy
and able to carry out their mission."
Operation Protester Storm: A brand-new special unit of the San Francisco Police
Department—the Civil Disturbance Section—has targeted that city's chapter of ACT UP for
investigation, according to the San Francisco Sentinel. The SFPD said that the purpose of the
investigation is to develop criminal charges against those taking part in "violent" demonstrations
at the outbreak of war, on January 15. ACT UP spokesperson, Rob Low responded by saying:
"What happened.. .is a legitimate expression of what people are feeling. What the police want to
do now is use that as an excuse to harass us." Gay and lesbian participation continued in anti-war
protests in San Francisco (pictured), Boston, Seattle and D.C. where armed guards were posted
outside government buildings never before protected during protests. The National Gay and
Lesbian Task Force has issued a position paper stating the organization's opposition to the war
saying that the conflict "directly and detrimentally affects the lives of gays and lesbians and the
aspirations for equality for the gay and lesbian community."
St. Paul a Self-hating Homo?: Controversial Episcopal Bishop John S. Sprong of Newark
has said that St. Paul shows the signs of being a self-loathing and repressed gay male, and that
this helps explain the apostle's anguished cries ("Wretched man that I am!"), and his hostility
toward women ("wives submit to your husbands"). Sprong feels that by viewing St. Paul as a
gay man he hopes to make homosexuals more comfortable in the Episcopal Church and attract
people who left the church feeling that it was a moribund institution wedded to ancient ways of
thinking. Local playwright Jim Grimsley, whose "Lizard of Tarsus" chronicled much of Paul's
affect on the Church commented, "We don’t want him! You're not gonna put him off on us.
Paul's a heterosexual problem and so he shall remain."
Life Becomes Easier for Town's Lesbians and Gays: The North Carolina town of
Carrboro has revised its personnel ordinance to protect town employees and job applicants from
discrimination based on sexual orientation. "I think for people applying to the town for jobs or
who work for the town who are gay or lesbian, it could make life easier to have the policy stating
that they will not be discriminated against," Carrboro Board member Jacquelyn Gist told the
Chapel Hill Herald. The ordinance brings the town in step with neighboring cities Chapel Hill,
Raleigh and Durham. Activists say they have no knowledge of plans for towns around Atlanta to
adopt similar measures.
Health Care Workers Under Pressure to Reveal HIV Status: The American Medical
Association and the American Dental Association have recommended that HIV-positive health
care workers inform their patients of their status, or stop practicing. A CDC statistical report on
AIDS said that the risk of getting infected with the HIV virus is small compared with risks of
other mishaps in health-care settings. Nevertheless, the agency is considering guidelines to
restrict the practice of health care workers who are HIV+. The draft study was developed for a
meeting to be held here on Feb. 21.
SWMCF Returns to Ga. Site: The Southern Women's Music and Comedy Festival has won
its battle with the administrators of Camp Coleman and the 8th edition of the event will return to
Georgia, May 23-27. Organizer Robin Tyler credits Patricia Ireland and Rosemary Dempsey of
the National Organization for Women with helping sway negotiations in favor of the festival.
Tyler says that the difficulty that lesbian/gay groups are having renting land and chartering boats
for cruises is a disturbing trend that must be countered.
Bias Crime Report: Three incidents have been reported to the bias line since the last issue.
Two were incidents of harassment in Midtown and Little 5 Points, one was a report of police
brutality. Remember to report all bias-related incidents to 286-BIAS.
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