Newspaper Page Text
75e WHERE SOLD
June 20-July 3,1991 Vol.4,No.9
Taking Pride in Our Culture
This year marks the 20th anniversary of lesbian and gay pride in Atlanta.
In our center section we have a history of the 70’s and 80’s and all the
info you need to celebrate Pride ’91.
PLEASE RECYCLE
Jackson to Appoint Gay Staff Member
Some activists doubt mayor's commitment, question process
by KC Wildmoon
Following a press conference on June 13 proclaiming
"Lesbian and Gay Pride Human Rights Days" in Atlanta,
Mayor Maynard Jackson announced that the interviewing
process had begun to hire the city's first openly gay mem
ber of the mayor's administrative staff. He also used the
opportunity to explain his absence from the city during
Pride activities. Jackson will be attending the Georgia
Municipal Association meeting in Savannah.
The announcement about the staff position marks the
first time that an openly gay person will be hired into an
Atlanta mayor's administration. Several openly gay peo
ple have served on various city commissions.
Senior Advisor Maury Weil says he "feels positive that
the position is being created and filled. As we were work
ing [on the lesbian/gay issues of the mayor's platform] the
position surfaced as our number one priority. We felt that
without a knowledgeable advocate, none of our other
agenda items would have a chance.”
The mayor's Chief of Staff Donald Scott explained that
the person chosen for the staff position would be "given a
charter to develop a human relations program—not just
gay and lesbian issues, but also ethnic diversity, AIDS, the
homeless." Scott said that part of that person's duties
would be to coordinate and develop relations with other
agencies.
The mayor's senior advisors for lesbian and gay issues
said that they hoped for a number of qualified applicants.
"The more in the mix," said Jay Neely, "the wider choice
the mayor will have." Chief of Staff Scott said last Friday
that he had five applicants, some coming from the senior
advisors and some directly to him. The names of those
candidates were not released.
Scott said he hoped to have the interview process com
pleted by the end of the month. "I'd like this person to get
started by the end of July," said Scott, The mayor will
make the decision on who gets the position after he sees
recommendations from Scott.
Some members of the lesbian and gay community are
skeptical about the new position and the process for hiring
a person to fill it. "I'm concerned that this is going to be a
hand-picked position," said Rich Jones of LEGAL
(Legislate Equality for Gays And Lesbians). "And that’s
fine as long as the mayor realizes that the person he
chooses is not necessarily a spokesperson from the gay
community." Jones also said he is doubtful that the mayor
is committed to gay and lesbian issues. "If he had done
things like get domestic partnership legislation together, or
insist that all contracts let by the city include anti-discrimi
nation clauses, then putting this staff person in would be
credible," he said. "But as it is, I think it will be a waste
of taxpayers' dollars."
Lynn Cothren, Chair of Queer Nation, said "It looks
like an exclusionary process, the good old boy network.
I'm quite concerned that no ads have been placed in gay
and lesbian publications. Again, I'd like to point out that
the mayor has failed on another of the many points in his
platform." The mayor's platform for the gay and lesbian
community, issued during his 1989 campaign for mayor,
did include statements that the city of Atlanta would
advertise city positions in city-wide publications "includ
ing such Gay and Lesbian publications."
City officials pointed out Lhat this position is an
appointment, and that advertising for an openly gay candi
date would be illegal. Cothren scoffed at that suggestion,
saying "You just have to announce the position. You don't
have to say 'You have to be Queer.”'
Cothren, as co-chair of the Atlanta Lesbian and Gay
Pride Committee, and Samantha Claar, of the Pride
See page 5
Mexico City Journal:
A Profile of Colectivo Sol
by Mark Chestnut
With the upcoming conference of the International
Lesbian and Gay Association in Guadalajara, the eyes of
the international lesbian and gay community are focused
on Mexico. The conference, which is being held June 30
to July 6, will bring together groups from all over the
world for workshops, discussions, and to compare notes.
While talk will be global, many attending will undoubt
edly leant more about the local lives of lesbians and gays
within Mexico.
Several of the organizations represented at the confer
ence will be from the host country. One of these groups
is Colectivo Sol, based in nearby Mexico City. Colectivo
Sol is led by Juan Jacobo Hernandez, who has been
working with the group since its start in 1981, when the
group began working on its multi-fold mission of press
ing for gay rights, archiving Mexico's gay and lesbian
movement, and providing information about AIDS and
safer sex. Just a few months ago, Colectivo Sol moved
its headquarters from a cramped apartment to a two-story
space in a quiet residential neighborhood in Mexico's
capital city. Here, Hernandez took some time out to dis
cuss the state of gay and lesbian life in Mexico City.
"I remember when I was 18,1 used to wear my shoes
without socks, because I saw it in some American maga
zine," recalls Juan Jacobo Hernandez, who grew up in a
small town in northern Mexico. The response to his sar
torial statement was worse than he expected: "I was
stoned. I was literally stoned because I was not wearing
socks."
This wasn’t the only example of intolerance he experi
enced: When Hernandez was 21 years old, he was teach
ing in a strict private school in Mexico City. One day, he
wore a pink shirt to work. This caused such a scandal at
school that the principal ordered Hemandex to go home
and change his shirt to a more respectable color.
Sitting now in the brimming archives of Colectivo
Sol, Hernandez lives a life that is a far cry from the
oppression he felt as a gay man over 20 years ago.
"Things have changed," he notes. Still, there is much
work to be done.
AIDS in Mexico
The biggest problem facing Mexico’s gay community,
according to Hernandez, is AIDS. Cumulative figures
for AIDS cases in Mexico range from 5,679 to over
5,900, with 2,682 deaths reported, according to the Pan
American Health Organization's AIDS surveillance unit.
Hernandez showed me several of Colectivo Sol's scrap
books, filled with photographs of members and friends
who had died from AIDS-related complications. Last
year, a sizeable candlelight vigil was held in Mexico City
in memory of those who had died, and panels are being
prepared for an AIDS memorial quilt made of panels
from throughout Latin America. Several patches were
on display in the stairwell leading up to the second floor
offices of Colectivo Sol.
Hernandez criticized the government and the church
for not doing enough to fight the epidemic. The govern
ment operates a program known as CONASIDA, which
Mark Chesnut
Juan Jacobo Hernandez in the offices of Colectivo Sol.
See page 20