Newspaper Page Text
Congress to
hear anti
gay zealot
s*
I
m
Months ago,
religious right
activist Rev,
Lou Sheldon
called for con-
gressional
hearings on the
so-called "gay agenda." Now, he's
scheduled to get his day in Congress.
PAGE 6
PLEASE RECYCLE
TAKING PRIDE IN OUR CULTURE
Claudia
Brenner's
"Eight Bullets"
In her harrowing
new memoir,
Claudia Brenner
recounts the1988
hiking trip dur
ing which she
and her lover
were attacked by a crazed gunman.
Brenner survived; her lover did not.
PAGE 13
' SEPTEMBER 7/1995
Republican Presidential
hopeful Sen. Bob Dole
returned $1,000 to
Log Cabin Republicans,
a gay group, after openly
lesbian columnist
Deb Price reported
on the contribution
by DON JOHNSTON
and from wire services
Washington, D.C.—Gay
money is not welcome in Sen.-
Bob Dole's presidential cam
paign because he is opposed to
the gay "agenda," his cam
paign said. But Dole
did not return the
money until it was
reported to be the
first time in history
that a Republican
presidential
hopeful
had accepted money from a gay
organization.
The Dole 1 campaign an
nounced Aug. 25 it was giving
back a $1,000 contribution from
the Log Cabin Republicans be
cause Dole (R-Kan.) claims he
did not know it was a gay orga
nization.';
sjJiy'The hypocrisy is ludi
crous...; They definitely knew
about our check. They definitely
knew who we were," Deb Price,
thenation's first openly gay col
umnist, quoted Log Cabin Ex
ecutive "Director Rich Tafel as
saying.
. Price's recounting of her
Story bolsters Tafel's assertion.
"I called Bob Dole's campaign
and I explained to them that it
was the first time in history that
this had happened," Price said
after discovering the contribu
tion in Federal Election Com-
mission, financial disclosure re-
ports. "Then they said they
had to get back, to met"
Price's deadline
passed without com-:
ment from Dole, so
she wrote a col
umn lauding
him for accept
ing gay
money and
noting the
historical
Signifi
cance of
the event. Price said within two,:
hours of her filing tire story on
national news wires,, the Dole .
campaign called her requesting
comment. When Price returned
the call, she was faxed a written
statement from campaign
spokesperson Nelson Warfield
saying the money was being re
turned because, "Duf policy: is ,
to decline contributions from
political groups that have an
agenda that is in opposition to
Senator Dole's position on the
issues. We've gotten over.
200,000 checks, and this one
clearly slipped through the
cracks." ..
In subsequent interviews,
Warfield said Dole, an Army
veteran who served in World
.War II, opposes lifting the ban
* on allowing gays to serve in the
military. That rims counter tp
the Log Gabiq Republicans' po-
sition, and is one example of
why Dole is returning: their
money, Warfield said. . ; '
But Tafel claims he received
numerous invitations to attend
Dole fundraisers, including the
June 19 dinner where the tog
Cabin Republicans: gave
Dole the $1,000. Tafel said he g
spoke to Dole at the meeting
and recalled the senator say
ing to him, "Hi, Rich, I know
what you're wanting. You're
concerned about Ryan
>- Continued on Page 14
:
;
i
JANE COMFORT AND COMPANY uses modern dance, political theater and
comedy to skewer conventional sex roles and explore gender in
modern-day America. The company will perform "S/he" at Agnes Scott
College in Decatur, Sept. 7-9. PAGE 27
1
" ;
by DON JOHNSTON , .J
Atlanta —Gay and lesbian ac
tivists are expressing alarm over
H§n apparently growing alliance
between Sen Paul Coverdell (R-
Ga) and Sen Jesse Helms (R-
Attivists are upset over a growing
alliance between Sen. Paul ■
Coverdeli of Georgia and anti -gay
Sen iesre Heins of North Carolina
. . -
N C.) in the wake of a Coverdell-
sponsored re-election fundraiser
for Helms, held in Atlanta on
Aug 30 H "T '*V v H ’\"“I 1
A coalition of activists
quickly responded to the news
that gay rights foe Helms was
coming to Atlanta for a $l,000-a-
plate fundraising luncheon
More than 3Q protesters calling
' themselves Helms Out of Geor
gia (HOG) gathered outside the
Commerce Club in downtown
M
Atlanta, where the luncheon was
held The activists shouted slo
gans such as 'One-time Senator
Coverdell, sucks up to Jesse and
gqes tq hell'
The activists also called for a
bcycott of Georgia peanuts be
cause the Georgia Peanut Grow
ers Association co-sponsored the
lu nch with Coverdel I ** B _
Floyd Taylor, who organized
the demonstration along with
ACT UP/Atlanta and numerous
other groups, said Coverdell's
sponsorship of the luncheon is
indicative of his growing associa
tion with Helms "They have
been sleepingtogether a lot more
lately," Taylor said.
. Helms has long been one of
the nation's most vehemently
anti-gay members of Confess.
Most recently he suggested the
federal government decrease
funding for AIDS research, say-
1 >»■ Continued on Page 14