Newspaper Page Text
Ifarfatwafear r ll J *<<r r
V
'
SOUTHERN VOICE • DECEMBER 29/1994
Eiil¥OR|AJL
STAFF
Publisher: Leigh VanderEls
General Manager: Gary Kaupman
Editor: Christina Cash
Assistant Editor: Devon Clayton
Staff Writer: KC Wildmoon
Art Director: Joan T. Sherwood
Asst. Art Director: Robert Boeger
Advertising: Dixon Taylor,
Linda Vaughn
Classified Advertising:
Shane Nugent
Circulation: Shane Nugent
Front Office: Badili Jones
Office Cat: Molly Ivins
Typists: Jeri Alger, Andy Ditzier, Markdu
Pont, Jack Jones, Shelly Robbins
Columnists: Maria Helena Dolan, Virginia
Erhardt, Alan Frutkin, Lee Hughey,
Michael Kape, Shane Meder, Bruce
Mirken, Gene Gabriel Moore, Peter
Newton, Nicholette Scofield
Contributors: Brian Cochran, Al Cotton,
Mubarak Dahir, Victoria Brownworth,
Richard Eidredge, Pamela Evans, James
Fitch, Debbie Fraker, Brent Hartinger,
Wayne Hoffman, Richy Howard, Leonard
Earl Johnson, Lee Lynch, William J.
Mann, Dell Richards, Shelly Roberts,
Bob Roehr, Adam Sank, Karen Shoffner,
Nadine Smith, Lester Strong, Daniel
Vaillancourt, Steve Warren
Photographers: E. Bennett, Cathy
Carmichaei, KES, Patsy Lynch, Denise
Myers, Judi Parks, RINK
Illustrators: Alison Bechdel, Jennifer
Camper, Joe Hoover, Andrea Natalie,
Eric Omer, Melissa K, Sweeney
The views of Southern Voice are expressed
only in editorials or in
editor's notes. Other opinions expressed are
those of the writers and do not necessarily
represent the opinion of
Southern Voice or the publisher.
Southern Voice is a newspaper
publication of
Ryan Publications, Inc.
P.O. Box 18215, Atlanta, GA 30316
1189 Virginia Ave„ NE, Atlanta, GA 30306
(404)876-1819
FAX (404) 876-2709
HTTfiTTTrTTTl
voice
To submit a letter:
Letters should be typed
and less than 400 words
long. We reserve the right
to edit for content and
length. We will withhold
names upon request, but
you must include your
name and phone number
for verification. Please mail
to Southern Voice,
P.O. Box 18215,
Atlanta, Georgia 30316.
Here junior, here junior
by CHRIS CASH
It's standard practice among
gay men and lesbians to refer to
their pets as their "children." I
hear it almost daily. Drop in on
any Sunday brunch or Saturday
night dinner party and when dis
cussion turns to things domestic,
you will hear the "parents" wax
fondly and forever about the lat
est poop on their cats, dogs or
whatever.
Straight folks are guilty of the
same but the level of devotion
doesn't compare to that of gay
folks. Of course, that's because
most straight people have chil
dren so they know better than to
equate the two. However, I have
heard childless heterosexuals go
on and on about the precious
things Pooky did with his catnip
so they are not completely inno
cent.
It's more than a
stretch to assume that
pets and children are
one and the same.
If you are a parent,
as some of my closest
friends are, this
comparison is
particularly irritating.
I have found that this phe
nomenon cuts across gender lines
as well, something rather rare in
our community. Men and women
both turn mawkishly maternal
when it comes to their "babies." I
suppose this is understandable.
Pets are dependent and quite cute,
so there are some similarities be
tween young human beings and
small animals. And both are
prone to chew things up from
time to time. But it's more than a
stretch to assume that pets and
children are one and the same. If
you are a parent, as some of my
closest friends are, this compari
son is particularly irritating.
I am a co-parent myself. He's
15 and doesn't live with us full
time, so I have been denied a lot
of the pleasures and the pains of
raising him from babyhood. I do
know, however, that parenting of
people requires a helluva lot more
than an occasional trip to the vet
for shots and abscess lancing and
trips to the pet store to shop for
goodies. I am a godparent too, a
responsibility I do not take lightly,
and just that one night a week
visit is enough for me to forever
refrain from comparing the rais
ing of children to the caretaking
of pet animals.
Gay men and lesbians who
are parents, you might note at
your next brunch or dinner party,
do not refer to their pets as chil
dren. They know too well the dif
ferences. I have three dogs myself
and never have I had to haul dia
pers, a change of clothes, a bottle
of milk, a bottle of juice, three
toys, a teething ring, teething
medicine, a car seat and a stroller
to go for a walk in the park. No,
all Fido requires is her leash and,
if I'm in the mood, her favorite
frisbee. My two cats, although
moody in their own way, have
never had to be rocked all night
to soothe their upset tummies.
And I doubt I will ever have to
discuss sex, drugs and death with
any of them. They don't talk back
either which many people find
calming but I find tremendously
boring. A good conversation with
an angst-ridden teenager makes
my day but I know I'm an excep
tion there.
It's sad but true that in our
community children are most of
ten referred to as "rug rats" and
"curtain climbers." While there
always seems to be room for
Fluffy at the table, a child is seen
as merely a nuisance. Gay and les
bian parents are very aware of this
and pick their friends accordingly
— mostly other parents. Children
are yet another thing that divide
us along with all the other differ
ences that are too long to list here.
Someone told me recently that
she prefers the company of ani
mals to humans. "Animals are so
much higher evolved," she ex
plained, very pleased with this
profound insight. Hello, I said. On
what level are they more evolved
—emotionally, intellectually,
spiritually? My question angered
her, and she mumbled something
about how far I had to go on the
evolutionary scale as she stomped
off. As I think about it, maybe she
had a point.
Gay money,
straight money
All of us here at E.D.'s Gour
met Records felt we should write
to you regarding the December
22nd issue's article on the new gay
and lesbian music section at
Tower Records. We are thrilled
that a mainstream music store is
progressive enough to include a
gay and lesbian section and we
respect them for doing so, but let's
face it —it is 1994 and only re
cently has it become politically
correct enough for these large cor
porate retail stores to extend our
community this "favor."
But right here in Midtown we
have had two gay-owned and op
erated music stores, E.D.s and Let
The Music Play, that have been
serving our community for well
over five years. And thanks to the
primarily gay and lesbian sup
port, we are still going strong.
It's about time that corporate
America is beginning to respect
our community as a force in the
economy, but let's not delude our
selves into believing that if the
political climate changes for the
worse these large companies will
stand behind us with continued
support. That's where stores like
ours come in — we are actively
involved in community activities
and issues not because it is the
"94" thing to do, but because we
are part of it ourselves.
We all have a choice about
where to spend our hard-earned
^ money, but doesn't it make sense
to keep it in our community?
Sincerely,
Eric Lopez, owner
E.D.'s Gourmet Records
Stop whining
While sipping my morning
coffee I was reading the latest
copy of Southern Voice. Of par
ticular interest was the editorial
and a letter about the Republican
landslide.
I have a simple message for
the editors and readers — stop
crying and stop whining about the
election. The Democrats lost and
the Republicans won. Deal with
it!
Instead of bitching about the
Republicans, why don't you find
a way to start working with them?
Most are right wing jerks but there
are a few reasonable Republicans,
we should be looking to work
with.
The bottom line is that we
must deal with the political facts
as they are not as we wish them
to be.
America is a two-party coun
try, when are gays going to be a
two-party constituency?
L.F. Fremont
Atlanta
SWITCHED AT BIRTH
7
to.KSvicene'/
SbRRy kid, But thB
"HEIDI*PICTURES BEEN
CANNED. 7WEV SAY THERE
ARB Too MANY i-ES0/AN
OVERTONES BETWEEN W
AND THE K7D /N 7HE
SHIRUY TEAIPLE IN THE 9o's