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SOUTHERN-VOICE JULY15/1993
Comes in twelve
dent-resistant colors.
We have a blue that shrugs off shopping carts. A silver that doesn't
even blink at the neighbor kid's foul balls. And ten other bright colors
that flex with every Saturn's dent-resistant polymer bodyside panels,
giving you a beautiful, long-lasting, resale-value-protecting finish.
© 1993 Saturn Corporation
Saturn of Chamblee
A Hix Green Company
5764 Peachtree Industrial Boulevard 451-8188
A Different Kind o^Company. A Different Kind of Car.
Six gay/lesbian activists arrested
Atlanta—Six gay/lesbian activists were ar
rested by Atlanta police in front of a downtown
gay bar last Saturday night while asking passers-
by to sign letters calling on the city to approve
domestic partnership benefits legislation.
The six—S. Faybelle Ma-Hee, Uri Vaknin,
Anthony Ricciardi, Joe DeRose, Clay Calhoun
and Rob Harlow—were charged under two dif
ferent provisions of the city’s disorderly con
duct ordinance. First, they were accused of
blocking a public sidewalk, and second, with
interfering with a police officer.
As Southern Voice went to press, a hearing
had been scheduled Monday afternoon for the
six, who were being represented by attorney
Michael Hauptmann of the American Civil Lib
erties Union. Ma-Hee told Southern Voice that
if the charges were dropped, they planned to
file a lawsuit against the city for being unlaw
fully arrested.
According to accounts from several of those
arrested, the incident began about 10:30 p.m„
as the six, who make up an African-American
outreach committee on the domestic partner
ship issue, were standing in front of the Pear
Garden bar, at 111 Luckie St., asking passers-
by to sign letters to city officials in support of
domestic partnership. The Pear Garden is a bar
with a largely African-American clientele.
A motorcycle officer, identified by those
arrested as J.W. Pike, pulled up to Ma-Hee,
asking her to move off the sidewalk. Ma-Hee
says she repeatedly asked the officer for an
explanation of why she could not stand on a
public sidewalk. She says Pike would not give
her an explanation.
As her conversation with Pike continued,
Ricciardi came up to the officer and asked him
for his badge number. It was at this point,
according to accounts from several of those
arrested, that the officer and Ricciardi stood
chest to chest, exchanging words.
The six activists then turned to leave, and,
they say, had their back to the officer and were
leaving the scene when Pike approached them,
said he had changed his mind and initiated an
arrest of Ricciardi by forcing him to the ground.
As Vaknin blew a whistle and asked people
in the area to witness w'hat was going on, Pike
called for reinforcement. A paddy wagon and
at least five police cars pulled up, and Ricciardi
and the other five people were taken into cus
tody.
They were kept in jail until 7 a.m. Sunday
morning.
The six arrested have been involved with
the coalition of gay and lesbian groups that
have come together in the wake of Mayor
Maynard Jackson’s veto of the partnership ben
efits ordinance. The coalition decided at a re
cent meeting to make a special effort to reach
the African-American lesbian and gay commu
nity, which led to the formation of the People
of Color Outreach Committee, of which the six
arrested were members.
RICHARD SHUMATE
Macon murder
Continued from page 3
the men had left, until Ryan walked up to the
bar and a man with a red bandana, who pros
ecutors claimed was Felton, pointed a gun at
her. After threatening her twice, Felton and a
companion, identified as Hightower, left. Pa
trons called the police, who took statements
and then left.
About 90 minutes later, the two returned,
and one of the men fired seven shots into the
crowd.
During the trial, Felton’s defense attorneys
tried to shift blame for the shooting to
Hightower. Jackson, who was down the block
when the murder occurred, said Felton and
Hightower ran from the Pegasus yelling, “I did
it,” and that Hightower later gave him back the
gun, which he subsequently threw into the
Ocmulgee River. However, Jackson said
Hightower later told him that Felton did the
shooting.
Lesbians and gays in Macon, angered that
Hightower was only sentenced to probation
and that police didn’t do enough to prevent the
shooting, were asked to show up at the trial as a
show of support for Davidson, who was visit
ing Macon from out of town when she was
killed.
Since the shooting, the Pegasus Lounge, a
longtime fixture in Macon, has closed.
JOSEPH POWELL
Queen Nation
Continued from page 3
1992 by a six-member jury.
In the wake of those acquittals, the remain
ing DeKalb County cases were dropped by the
county’s solicitor. Howard, in his letter, cited
the DeKalb jury trial results as one reason for
his decision not to pursue the cases against the
Union City protestors.
With the criminal charges out of the way,
Cothren said the the Cracker Barrel Coalition,
a group of organizations set up to fight the
chain’s discrimination, will meet soon to talk
about their next steps.
KC WILD.MO ON
ytoT "tots
315-6249
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