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THE BARB
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My notebook is filled with
names and telephone num
bers of people arrested under
Atlanta’s idling and loitering
law over the past few weeks.
Many have called to relate
horror stories about the
Police Department to me.
I swore that I would never
go back into Atlanta
Municipal Court to watch inep
and unethical judges listen to
perjured testimony and
follow it up robbing gay
citizens of Atlanta of their
hard-earned money under the
guise of justice.
i did go back. There was
that same sense of anger and
injustice as I watched the
“judges” go through their
juridical con game. Two
things were different on this
particular Monday in court.
Gay people were present in
large numbers. Not as
defendents but as speeators
watching the working of this
kangaroo court. Their
presence rattled the court
and its bunko-game par
ticipants. A cheer went up
when the first defendant was
found not guilty. The vice-
squad officers blanched. The
judge looked quizzically at
these people who dared show
their face in his fantasy world
of justice.
As the procedings ended
another difference evidenced
itself. The comments of those
people concerning the non
gay defendants and what had
happened to them. Then it
stuck in my mind. I’ve sat in
that court so many times
watching drunks, prostitutes,
rapists, murderers,
shoplifters and gay people
marched through this
travesty of justice..
As we went about mar
shaling what forces we could
to fight this newest anti-gay'
law that concern haunted me.
Gay people constantly cannot
afford to dilute their em
bryonic strength by fighting
for other folks causes until
out own civil rights are won.
In this particular case our
compliants concerning the
bunko racket called the
Municipal Court of Atlanta is
shared by others. From
knowledgeable lawyers to
struggling southside civic and
Identification
By Gibson W. Higgins
Are we brothers and
sisters? What bond ties us
together other than the
obivous one? Why do I, or can
I, or should I, identify with
you, and you with me? What
(to we have in common other
than what we share with the
masses everywhere?
Suppose we were to divide
people into arbitrary
categories, in an either or
situation. For example,
consider us as either women
or men. If I am one and you
the other, does that totally
separate us? Based on
overwhelming majority
evidence, no. By the same
token, does being a male
automatically put me in
allegiance with all other
males? Only superficially, I
can deal with any person I
meet* male or female,
provided that we both are
receptive. I can buy mer
chandise, obtain information,
share a greeting, whatever is
appropriate to a given
situation. Whether I will ally
myself with any particular
male person (given that
commonality between us)
will be determined by the
nature and worth of the
person, not his sheer
maleness. My relationship
with any female would be on
the same basis.
Personal value is not
determined physically, but by
those internal characteristics
that we label as virtue,
morality, intelligence, sen
sitivity, honesty, knowledge,
etc., etc. The unique creature
that we call a human being is
a peculiar combination of
each of these characteristics.
We should be perfect, then,
but for other traits such as
selfishness, vanity, greed,
indifferencej.i:What each of
us is includes these, and
more. We are what we are.
We may become something
different by accepting what
we are (good' and bad)„
deciding what we wish to
become, and taking it from
there. A human being has
marvelous potential for
becoming; both better and
worse.
. Some believe that ac
cepting one’s present self is
the catalyst for personal
improvement. N Sounds easy,
doesn’t it? It isn’t.
Recognizing beauty is sim
pler than recognizing
ugliness, especially within
ourselves. We tend to recall
our own generosity,
magnanimity, kindness, etc.,
while we quickly forget that
we can also be stingy, short,
selfish, yes even bitchy at
times. If I portray myself to
others falsely, most will see
through me quickly, and I will
be the only one deluded by my
mask. It is unpleasant for
most of us to see withing
ourselves those charac-
The Barb is published monthly by
Wesjir Enterprises. Application to maii
at Second-class postage rates is
pending at Atlanta, Georgia. Sub
scriptions are $4.00 for one year (12
issues). Letters and manuscripts are
welcomed. Please enclose stamped,
self-addressed envelope for return of
manuscripts, photos, etc. Opinions
expressed by our columnists do
necessarily reflect the opinion of the
Barb management.
Editor Bill Smith
Associate Editor .. Richard Evans Lee
Telephone (404) 874-3232
Ad vertisi ng Representatives:
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Billy Jones
POB 7922
Atlanta, Ga. 30309
(404) 872-6068
Ft. Lauderdale:
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National Advertising Agent:
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Post Office Box 7922
Atlanta, Georgia 30309
(404)874-3232
Gibson Higgins
Kathy
• Phyllis Killer
\Sarah Coventree
Bob Salo-
Peter Thomas
Steven VUarren
political organizations.
No court with three judges
and three part-time judges
judiciously dispose of the
50,000 plus cases that our
Atlanta Municipal Court
muddles through each year.
Gay communities across
the South are on the move
from Charlotte to Miami.
People and events are
moving gay citizens to speak
out. Each time with increased
vigor, unity and numbers- In
Continued on page 13
teristics which are not
“nice,” so we evade them, we
ignore them, we deny them,
but in so doing we deny
ourselves. We are what we
are.
What does all of this have to
do with homosexuality? I
suspect that many of us place
physicalness far out of
proportion to personal worth.
The responsibility rests on
everyone’s shoulders Society
has condemned and
discounted us so long and
often that we do not believe
ourselves priviliged to full
personal value. Consider our
refuges, where we say that
we can be ourselves. I argue
that nothing could be further
from the truth. We permit
ourselves one or two modes of
expression there, and
carefully avoid a whole
spectrum of love,
warmth, onennesjy&rinestv,
to name a few. Competition
for attention is the dominatnt
theme, based mostly on
appearance. What feelings
are aroused within you by the
following expressions we all
have heard: “I would like to
get to know you better.” “I’m
too tired to dance with you.”
“Why don’t you call me next
week.” “I can’t give you my
number because my roomate
is straight.” “Boy, I’d sure
like to meet him.” “Why
don’t you leave me alone for a
while.” “I have to get up and
go home to my lover.” “OK, I
guess I will go home with you
anyway.”
I am not just a body -1 am
a living, breathing, loving,
Continued on page 14