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SOUTHERN' VOICE JULY. 15/1993
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Dedicated to providing you with quality cars and service.
New & Used Cars • Full Service • Parts • Body Shop
1 V 2 MILES INSIDE I-285
5525 Peachtree Industrial Bl
We appreciate
your business.
'P'KWt, a tett&i fo &uwuf, ‘ytywcOz...
My salesperson, Julie Ellis, was
highly recommended to me by a
friend who also enjoyed her
dealings with Ms. Ellis.
Julie Ellis was professional,
courteous, and very respectful of
the presence of my female life
partner during the sale. Ms. Ellis
could relate to me more
comfortably than any other car
salesperson ever has. I appreciated
her availability at Curry Honda.
During my two days of
business at your dealership, I
was aware of two other same-
sex couples making purchases.
Thank you once again for your
dealership’s stance to be gay/
lesbian sensitive and for
providing quality gay personnel
such as Julie Ellis.
Sincerely,
Laine Peek
4&t</ice far automotive tteed&.
Ellis
2 7 0 0
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SUPPORTER OF FREEDOM AND
JUSTICE FOR ALL
P.O. BOX 54454 • ATLANTA, GA 30308
The Rainbow gathering in Alabama promotes peace and healing.
Rainbows gather with queer energy
Talledega National Forest, AL—As nearly
8,000 people came together in a rural Ala
bama forest over the July Fourth weekend to
promote world peace and healing, the Rain
bow Family’s annual celebration contained
some positive energy for another group that
embraces the rainbow as a symbol—queer en
ergy.
As about 1,500 people gathered under a
full moon in the Boogie Meadow, dancing to
the complex rhythms of 75 drummers circling
a fire, several women wearing Lesbian Aveng
ers T-shirts leaned in, whispered loudly and
with fake discretion, “God is a lesbian” and
darted to the next person.
A Rainbow brother known as Chicken from
Washington DC passed out handbills with
headlines: “Sexual Nonconformists of the
Rainbow Unite” and “Help us form the Queer
Tribe.” Chicken said the flyer’s purpose was
to “find other queer members of our Rainbow
Tribe to provide ourselves with a forum at
gatherings and give support to, any members
of our group who may feel alone.”
The Rainbow Family is made up of what
conventional society would describe as the
“counterculture,” what remains of the peace
and love generation of the 1960s. Each year
for the past 22 years, members have come
together to live communally in a celebration
that lasts about two months. These gatherings
frequendy spark protest in surrounding com
munities and media coverage that focuses more
on the sexual liberation of the Boogie Meadow
than on the message of peace and harmony.
Anyone with a belly button is considered
to be a member of the Rainbow and is wel
come to come to a gathering. No one who
attends goes without food, shelter or healing.
Individuals are asked to bring only their own
tent, bedroll, cup and spoon and to contribute
what bulk food they can to drop off at the
kitchens. The only use for money is contribut
ing to the “Magic Hat,” out of which the rest
of the needs of the family are met.
The gathering is organized around several
camps which provide various services of use
to the whole Rainbow family. For example,
Kid Village is a child-friendly space with
people who are willing to help out parents.
Some camps are queer-safe space, including
Fairie Land, a long time fixture at the gather
ings, and Sisters’ Sanctuary.
HIGH ESCO
Records Show Florida Committee Targeted Gay Teachers: More
than 100 teachers and administrators in Florida lost their jobs during the 1950s and 1960s
because of accusations of homosexuality and Communism, according to the recently-unsealed
secret files of the Florida Legislative Investigation Committee. The committee, chaired by the
late state Sen. Charley Johns, operated from 1956 to 1965, and its records reveal that it actively
sought to root out gays in the state’s school system. During interrogations, witnesses were
constantly reminded that perjury could cost them a 20-year prison sentence, which in 1962
prompted a torrent of names of from a sixth-grade teacher in Pompano Beach, even though she
admitted she wasn’t sure what a gay person was. “Well, 1 have watched men that seem to have
feminine tendencies. You know, the way they walk,” she said. The records were to have been
scaled until 2038 but were opened by a new public-records constitutional amendment. The
committee also apparently believed Ku Klux Klansmcn when they testified that the KKK was a
“charitable” educational organization. Lead investigator R.J. Strickland wrote after interview
ing several Klansmcn that the Klan could be considered a “fact-finding” group intending to
“expose certain elements which could be contrary to the form of democratic government we
have today.”
Gay Collegians March Proud in Alabama: University studenus from the University of
Alabama-Birmingham and the Methodist-affiliated Birmingham-Southern College were tirnong
the more than 300 people participating in Birmingham’s recent gay and lesbian pride parade,
illustrating the point that lesbian and gay students arc making gains on Alabama campuses.
“We’re the largest student group outside the Greek community,” said Eric Hunt, director of
BSC’s Lcsbian-Gay-Biscxual Awareness League. Kenneth Moore, secretary of the group, said
that the organization had no problem getting faculty support, but that another student group, the
Radical Disciples of Christ, actively opposes gays and lesbians. Gay groups have regularly met
opposition on Alabama campuses, most notably at the University of Alabama’s Tuscaloosa
campus and Auburn University, where opposition to gay groups led to passage of a state law
aimed at barring such organizations from receiving state funds.
"Harvey Milk Show" To Premiere In Charlotte: innovative Theatre will present Dan
Pruitt and Patrick Hutchison’s “The Harvey Milk Show” July 23-August 14 at the Duke Power
Theater in Charlotte. The acclaimed musical, which premiered in Atlanta at Actor’s Express in
1991 and was reprised in 1992 will be directed in Charlotte by Alan Poindexter, with musical
direction by John Brown. For information, call innovative Theatre at (704) 342-1889.