Newspaper Page Text
Voeller, Jones Speak at
AOA Convention
Councilman Pierce Calls For End of
“Sexual Orientation” Protection in Atlanta
ATLANTA * Bruce Voeller.
National Gay Task Force
Executive Director and Rev.
Clinton Jones. Episcopalian
minister active in Homosexual
Counseling spoke before the
American Ortho psychiatric
Association here March 5th.
Jones and Voeller par
ticipated in a panel workshop an
Homosexual Panel Reaction and
it’s Sociological Implications.
The panel discussed the recent
American Psychiatric
Association’s substitution of the
diagnostic term “sexual
oricntationdisturbance'* for
homosexuality. A change which,
according to the OPA in no way
reduced panic reaction ex
perienced by many who become
rcd-ncckcd at the very mention
of the topic.
Panel Moderator. John
Bauer opened the panel with the
program hyposthesis that "In
spite of minor changes in school
textbooks regarding gender
identity, and some attempt by
organizations such as Women's
Liberation and Gay Liberation to
alter institutional attitudes
among the public, homo-
afffcctional ties continue to be
prcccivcd as intensly
Brace Voeller, NGTF
Executive Director.
threatening to most. should
methods of further intervention
be undertaken?
The homosexual Panic
workshop was only of of many
workshop panels sponsored by
the aop at their 53rd annual
meeting. Other workshops were
held concrning Gender Iden
tity. AItematc Life Styles and
Gianging Attitudes
LA. Mayor Commends
SPREE
LA - For the first time in
history a city official has issu ed a
"Commendation" to a gay
organization. Los Angeles mayor
Tom Bradley sent his top aid.
present the official document at
an awards banquet at Studio
One, a large gay discotheque in
West Hollywood.
The Society of Pat Rocco
Enlightened Enthusiasts
(SPREE) was the gay
organization commended for
nation" and for "providing
much-nccded, unique services to
the community of Los Agneles.”
SPREE was also cited for having
" Distinguished itself in its
Nippon of and encouragement to
a considerable number of other
(gay) organizations" and further
"is noted for its sense of civic
pride and duty."
In making the official
commendation, mayor Bradley
set a precedent that will
Fopdar gav dm maker Pat Rnrcn arceota the historic
‘Commendation" document for SPREE from Los Angeles
Mayor Tom Bradley.
seven years of service to the Los
Angeles gay community. SPREE
sprang up in 1%9 as "fan club"
for poplar gay film maker Pat
Rocco. and hundreds of people
have gathered montlv to view his
films, as well as to-sec a full
scale live production put on the
members themselves.
The mayor commended
SPREE for having "the only
continuing gay repertory theatre
mnipany of its tv»e in the
hopefully be followed by other
city officials throughout the
country. Gay organizations can
now be encouraged to seek
official support and recognition
from those in government.
SPREE, whose regular
membership numbers more
than five hundred, has en
tertained thousands of people in
its seven years of existence, and.
through the encouragement of
its "namesake" Pat Rocco. lias
ATLANTA - Hugh Pierce, an
Atlanta City Councilman, has
introduced a amendment in
Atlanta City Council which
would strike "sexual orien
tation" from CRC's charter.
Councilman Pierce’s
unexpected admendment was
sent to committee after CRC
Executive Director Dwight
Jackson, requested time to study
the amendment.
Pierce’s amendment would
strike "age. sex. marital status,
sexual oreintaion. isabilitv.
political affiliation or non-private
source of income from the ere
charter. The effect of the
amendment would be to serious
curtail the commission's ability
to investigate and attempt to
solve community problems in
such areas.
CRC member Bill Smith w as
shocked by the sudden attempt
to stop CRC of powers in these
areas. He urged The Barb
readers to call their city council
|KTSon and urge them to vote
against this amendment.
CALL YOUR COUNCILMAN
876-6356
Or Write to Him/Her
c/o Atlanta City Hall
68 Mitchell St. Atlanta, GA
Ask Him/Her to Vote No
On the Pierce Amendment
NGTF Effects End to Job
Corp Discrimination
The National Gay Task
Force announced recently that
NGTF efforts have resulted in
ending a United States Job
Corps policy of discrimination
against lesbians and gay men. At
a meeting held in Washington on
February 20. NGTF Executive
Director Dr. Bruce Voeller and
Board member Dr. Franklin
Kameny were informed by John
T. Stetson. Director of the Job
Corps, that the anti-gay policy
would be terminated.
Dr. Kameny had met earlier
with staff members of the Job
Corps to clarify Task Force
objections to the manuel. Prior to
that meeting, letters protesting
the Job Corps policy had been
sent to the Job Corps and the
Secretary of Labor by Dr. Bruce
Voeller and members of
Congress. including
representatives Edward Koch.
Bella Abzug, Michael
Harrington and Senator Alan
Cranston.
The discriminatory Job
Corps policy and “Sexual
Deviation" manual were first
brought to NGTFs attention by
lesbian at a Job Corps facility in
Astoria, Oregon. They asked
NGTF’s assistance because the
Job Corps is one of the few
agencies not covered by the
recent U.S. Civil Service policy
order forbidding discrimination
based on sexual orientation in
federal employment.
Both Voeller and Kameny
reported that the meeting with
Mr. Stetson on February 20 was
"very productive and very
aordial.” According to them.
Mr. Stetson expressed concern
that the manual and related
Policy were still in effect in 1976
and agreed that both the manual
and policy were inappropriate.
Upon receipt of Dr. Voeller’s
letter. Stetson had drafted a
letter to the ten regional
directors of the Corps instructing
them to withdraw and disregard
the manual entirely.
During the meeting Mr.
Stetson accepted the proposal
that an antigay paragraph in the
Federal Register be amended to
indicate that sexual orientation
shall not be a basis for ad
ministering medical assistance
and is not to be construed as a
basis for serving in the Job
Corps.
Mr. Stetson also agreed to a
reeducation project for coun
selors and staff already in the
Corps, many of whom have had
Continued on Page 9
Dignity Atlanta boats Catholic clergy from fbiaagli ant the
South at the Georgian Terrace Hotel. Panel discussion
featured above was only one of many events In the week
long conference. (l*r| Daisy Dalton, Atlanta Tern ale im
personator now appearing at the Onyx Lounge, BUI Smith
Barb editor, Mary Ellen Clinton member of
Atlanta Lesbian Feminist Alliance ana former nun, Joe Guy,
Dignity Atlanta treasurer, Marina smith radical
lesbian feminist and Marty Cochran, past president of
Dignity Atlanta.
the news monthly
for southern gays
APRIL 1976
NATIONAL NOTES
formed within its membership
the Spree Drama Workshop, the
Spree Film Workshop, and
montly outings for members that
range from theatre parties to
weekend trips to the deserts and
mountains of Southern
California. It has also joined in
with other gay organizations and
causes doing benefits, donating
money from its treasury, and
giving much volunteer time and
energy. Sonce nudity is never a
hangup with the actors who
appear in the montly stage
productions, the variety of shows
that SPREE has presented,
along with the regular
screenings of Pat Rocco movies,
has frawn a large crowd of
monthly regulars.
Being the first recipients of
sudi a history-making com
mendation,. Pat Rocco and the
SPREE Board of Directors, in
thanking the mayor, promised to
“continued to maintain the high
standards that our organization
is noted for."
BOSTON - (GCN) A massive
city-wide boycott of Sack
Theatres. Boston’s largest movie
theater chain, has begun here
after the Sack diain book the
movie "Snuff." The film, which
depicts the murder and
dismemberment of a woman has
been under fire from gay and
women’s groups throughout the
country. The film has been the
target of demonstrations in New
York and tire Philadelphia
lesbian-feminist group,
Dykctactics, forced the film out
of center city Philadelphia to a
suburban locale.
HARTFORD - (GCN) With
virtually no debate, the Con
necticut House of Represen
tatives last Wednesday voted
down that state’s annual
gav anti-discrimination bill by a
vote ot 84 to 62. Ihe only
legislator to speak for or against
the measure was Rep. Winnifrcd
Tangcr (D-Hartford) a self-
described "middle-aged mother
of2." "1 have nothing personal
to gain," said Tanger as she
urged her fellow legislators "to
pass civil rights for an oppressed
portion of the population."
BOSTON - (GCN) Rep. Elaine
Noble (D) of Boston hopes to
become the first openly gay
delegate to the Democratic
National Convention in New
York has gone up in smoke with
the overwhelming defeat of
Indiana Senator Birch Bayh in
the Massechuesettes primary on
March 2nd.
NEW YORK - (GCN)
Congresswoman Elizabeth
Haltzman of Brooklyn’s 16th
district has agreed, at the urging
of the Gav Activists Alliance, to
amend her bill authorizing the
exclusion or deportation of
alients who engaged in the
persecution of others on account
ot race, religion or national
origin during the Nazi period.
CHICAGO - (CGL) Mattachine
Midwest has presented a check
to the Matlovich Foundation,
which included the proceeds of
the fund raising on the part of
Mattachine during
Matlovich’s visit to Chicago.
Guy Warner of Mattachine
Midwest presented the thirty-
five hundred dollar check to
Craig Palton, trustee for the
Matlovich Foundation.
CHICAGO - (CGL) Jack
Eichhorn, tne bogus
representative of the Matlovich
Foundation is said to be living
with friends near Fort Wayne,
Indiana. Various gay people and
organizations have reported to
Chicago Gay Life that Eichhorn
ripped them off while purporting
to be raising funds for the
Matlovcih Foundation.
SAN MATEO, CA - . (ADV)
David Goodstein. publisher of
The Advocate has announced a
planning conference "to create
the fund raising capability to
support an office in
Washington to frvbbv for Federal
civil rights tor gays." Goodstein
hopes the conference will
achieve enough agreement on
basic issues and obtain enough
financial pledges to make the
project real.
MILWAUKEE (ADV) The
Miriam Ben Shalon Foundation
for Minority Rights. Inc was set
up to raise funds to pursue Ben
Shalom’s legal challenges by
paying attomcv s fees, court
costs ana witness tees. Sargeant
Shalom graduated from the U.S.
Army drill instructors school
Dec. I, 1975 to become not only
the first female drill sargeant in
the 84th Division of the Army
Reserves but the first openly gay
person on record to ever
graduate from a U.S. military
school. Ben Shalom had been,
for a full year of her army ser
vice, president of Milwaukee's
Gay People’s Union.
Army
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