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In&Out
News
IN our community & OUT in the nation
by Dennise Ryder
Fund-raising Festivities
Spring
is the season for boutiful benefits, with parties, walks,
and dinners being thrown by AIDS Walk Houston, AssistHers,
the Human Right Campaign, the Montrose Counseling Center,
and the NAMES project
AIDS
WALK HOUSTON
The
Eleventh Annual AIDS Walk Houston is Sunday, March 12,
and will benefit 12 local HIV/AIDS service organizations.
What more pleasant way could you help out than with
the 10K stroll through downtown Houston, starting and
ending at the George R. Brown Convention Center?
Anyone
is invited to join the pledge-driven fund-raiser, and
there is no registration fee, although you need to pre-register
by picking up a form at area retailers or calling 713/524-AIDS.
Get together a group of friends and co-workers. As the
AIDS Foundation Houston reminds us, “One in 90
Houstonians is HIV positive. It is important to not
view hope as victory. Incredible progress has been made
in the fight against HIV/AIDS, but a cure has not been
found. Many individuals continue to contract HIV right
here in our city at an alarming rate.”
Montrose
Counseling Center: 12th Annual St. Patrick’s Day
Fund-raiser, “Bringing in the Green”
The
Montrose Counseling Center will hold its 12th annual
Bringing in the Green on St. Patrick’s Day, Friday,
March 17, 5:30–8 p.m. Moving into its 22nd year,
the nonprofit center has served more than 10,000 individuals,
offering a safe, affirming place to receive counseling,
attend support groups, obtain HIV/AIDS case management
and outpatient chemical dependency treatment, all at
very low or no cost to their clients. The proceeds from
the Bringing in the Green will go directly toward client
services.
“This
annual event helps us to raise the much-needed funds
for services not covered by government grants,”
explained Sean Carter, development and marketing manager
for the center. “This is a wonderful way for people
within the community to assist the endeavors of this
agency and have a great time doing it!”This
year’s event will be held at the home of Jerry
Reeves and Jeff Brown, 703 E. 7th Street (one block
west of Studemont). Admission is $25, and complimentary
valet parking will be provided. For more information
on Bringing in the Green or any of the Montrose Counseling
Center’s programs, call 713/529-0037.
Human
Rights Campaign:
Millennium Gala, “Our Legacy, Our Future”
The
Human Rights Campaign’s annual gala dinner will
feature Maya Angelou, consummate inspiring writer and
speaker. Entertainment is provided by comedian Georgia
Ragsdale (see interview on this website). John Walzel
will be honored with the Community Leadership Award
and Debra Danburg with the Political Equality Award.
The event co-chairs are Cole Martelli and Dalia Stokes,
and honorary co-chairs are Sherry and Gerald Merfish
and EMILY’s List.
With
more than 300,000 members, both gay and nongay, the
HRC is the foremost lesbian/gay lobbying and political
organizing group. They’ll be working hard to educate
and get out the gay vote this election year. They’ll
also be working getting passed the Hate Crimes Prevention
Act, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, the Domestic
Partnership Benefits and Obligations Act of 1999, plus
other legislation pertaining to the GLBT community.
The
black-tie gala will be Saturday, March 18, at the Westin
Galleria Hotel, 5060 W. Alabama. Individual tickets
are $175 and $300, and can be purchased by calling 1-800-494-TICS.
Table sale is arranged through Mike Holliman, 713/522-1115.
Names
Project
Clos
du Bois winery and restaurants across the United States
are joining for the second annual Nights of Celebration
and Remembrance to benefit the NAMES Project Foundation
and the AIDS Memorial Quilt. The “Nights”
are held throughout February, March, and April, where
top restaurants in major cities, along with Clos du
Bois winery, will donate a portion of their sales to
the NAMES Project Foundation. This year’s focus
will be on increasing consumer awareness and extending
the project to three months. The Nights of Celebration
and Remembrance aims to donate a minimum of $20,000
to the NAMES Foundation. Last year’s program raised
$27,000. Participating restaurants in Houston are (as
of press time) Adrian’s Restaurant & Cantina,
Sonoma, Boulevard Bistrot, Michelangelo’s, and
the River Cafe. For more information about the program,
visit nights-of-remembrance.com.
AssistHers
Progressive Dinner
Every
year AssistHers holds a progressive dinner as a fund-raiser.
The 2000 dinner on Saturday, March 25 is the biggest
planned ever, with three busloads of people and 10 different
host homes. Each bus goes to three different homes for
appetizers, soup and salad, and entree, then finally
everybody on the buses (usually around 180 people) meet
up at Frank Stagg's “Church House” in the
Heights for dessert and revelry. The event is popular
and always sells out fast. People love it because it
brings both the men’s and women’s communities
together in a fun way—people mingle, mix, get to
know each other on the buses, and have a really great
time enjoying themselves while supporting the community.
AssistHers
care team project is composed of volunteers who provide
in-home care to lesbian women with disabling or chronic
illnesses. The event benefits two organizations: the
local AssistHers and the national An Uncommon Legacy
Foundation. Last year’s progressive dinner raised
$10,000. Ticket prices are $50 and $100. To purchase
a ticket, contact AssistHers at 713/522-6713.
Time
to Make Plans
The time has come to quit putting
off the decision and just decide to go to the Millennium
March on Washington, April 30.
The
fourth national march for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and
transgender civil rights, the Millennium March is hoped
to be one of the largest and most powerful civil rights
demonstrations in recent history. "The purpose
of the Millennium March on Washington for Equality is
to energize and galvanize the GLBT and supportive communities
to work for equality at all levels," say the MMOW
organizers, who are co-chaired by Texan Dianne Hardy-Garcia,
"strengthen the overall movement for equal rights,
and empower and inspire voters for the 2000 elections."
The
march will step off at 10 a.m., and a rally will begin
at noon and continue until 6 p.m. In addition, the weekend
will feature a two-day street festival, several GLBT
conferences, and hundreds of affiliated events, including
the Millennium March’s national dinner.
One
of the major goals of the Millennium March on Washington
for Equality is to increase gay, lesbian, bisexual,
and transgender voter turnout in the year 2000. Our
community has the power to make an unprecedented impact
on the 2000 elections.
United
Airlines is the official airline for the march and is
offering fare specials. To book flights, call 1-800-521-4041
and refer to Code 596EB to get the best fare. You can
get all the info you need to register and to get hotel
accommodations by either contacting the Millennium March
offices at: 1000 16th St., NW, Ste. 300, Washington,
D.C. 20036, 202/467-8100, or visiting the march website,
at www.mmow.org.
We
at OutSmart are planning on going, and we hope to see
you there.
California
Anti-Marriage Campaign Gets Nasty
The battle over a proposed California ballot measure
that would bar the state from recognizing same-sex marriages,
even if legally performed elsewhere, shifted from the
political background to a nasty, gloves-off fight as
the March 7 primary election entered its final weeks.
While denying it was gay-bashing, the state Republican
Party endorsed Proposition 22, the so-called Knight
Initiative, named after its main sponsor, state Sen.
Pete Knight (R-Palmdale).
But
at a Sunday, Feb. 6, prayer breakfast at the party’s
convention, same-sex marriage was compared to the evils
of Nazi Germany, "sacrificing babies," an
"infection," and the "filth and pornography
of another kingdom." Opponents of the ballot measure
said the extremist language used at the prayer breakfast,
attended by GOP leaders as well as Knight, indicated
the true gay-bashing agenda of the initiative and had
"succeeded in taking the Republican Party into
the gutter."
A
small group of moderate state Republican officials,
including University of California trustee Ward Connerly
and U.S. Rep. Tom Campbell, announced their opposition
to Prop. 22. But supporters of the anti-marriage initiative
countered with an unlikely organization known as "Gays
for 22," a small group of homosexuals in the state
who back the Knight measure. Opponents dismissed the
group as the "fringe of the fringe."
The
campaign also entered a "dirty tricks" phase
with a few Internet websites on both sides of the issue
that are anything but what they seem.
One
site, www.NoOnKnight.com, looks like it opposes the
antigay measure, but in fact it is operated by a backer
of the measure and urges people to send checks to Protection
of Marriage, the group that is promoting Prop. 22. The
site also had, until local newspapers began investigating
it, a link to the North American Man-Boy Love Association,
a group that advocates sex between men and underage
boys.
Another
site, www.YesOnKnight.com, however, is actually being
run by a member of the Lesbian Avengers and a fierce
opponent of the measure. Her site takes a less subtle
approach to getting her anti-Prop. 22 message across
and simply redirects anyone accessing that web address
to the official "No On Knight" pages.
This
Bush Fellow Is Really Getting to Us
While George W. Bush was campaigning in South Carolina,
he was asked by Charlston Christian radio station WMHK
if he would appoint someone who is openly gay.
Replied Bush, "An openly known homosexual is somebody
who probably wouldn’t share my philosophy."
Bush
kicked off his South Carolina campaign visit with a
speech at the Bob Jones University in Greenville, which,
according to a news release from the Democratic National
Party, has policies currently in place banning gay alumni
from campus, prohibiting interracial dating and marriage,
and demonizing non-Protestant religions. I presume we
can conclude that Bush has found at Bob
Jones people who share his philosophy.
Canadian
"Common Law" Partners Bill Introduced
The Canadian government has joined with provinces and
the nation’s supreme court by extending social
and economic benefits to same-sex couples. The way was
opened last year for the controversial legislation when
the Supreme Court of Canada struck down Ontario’s
definition of "spouse" as excluding gay partners.
Canadian Justice Minister Anne McLellan submitted the
controversial legislation that would give gay and lesbian
couples who have lived together more than a year the
same benefits and obligations which come with common-law
marital status.
Neo-Nazi Gang Murders Gay Man in Brazil
A gang of 30 Brazilian neo-Nazis reportedly beat a gay
man to death after a drinking party celebrating the
extremist far-right Freedom Party’s accession to
power in Austria.
Reports
say the neo-Nazi skinheads, armed with chains and brass
knuckles, followed Edson Neris da Silva, 35, and his
boyfriend as they left a local bar and then attacked
them in the street. The brutal attack lasted for 20
minutes, and no one tried to intervene or apparently
even call the police. Authorities later arrested 16
young men and two young girls they have charged in the
killing. Da Silva was pronounced dead at the scene of
the attack.
Jurg
Haider, head of the far-right Freedom Party, in early
February was included in Austria’s new coalition
government, sending shock waves throughout Europe. Haider
had earlier defended Adolf Hitler’s actions in
Nazi Germany.
Courage and Hope in the Heartland
Despite threats, a 7-to-3 majority of aldermen (government
officials similar to city councilmen) in Davenport,
Iowa, passed a law that would give civil rights protections
to homosexuals and bisexuals.
Gore Will Pursue DP Benefits
Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore told a group
of reporters in New York that, if elected president,
he will set up a presidential commission to study how
best to insure that gay couples are not denied any benefits
that married heterosexual couples receive.
"I
do not support changing the institution of marriage
from the way it has been traditionally understood as
between a man and a woman," said Gore, "but
I do support extending the legal and economic benefits
that accrue to married couples to domestic partners,
and I would appoint a working group or commission to
give detailed recommendations on exactly how these partners
should be recognized."
This
is the first time a presidential candidate has pledged
to initiate efforts to establish a nationwide domestic
partnership policy from the White House.
Leather
Institutionalized
The world’s first leather archives and museum opened
in Chicago on February 17. Located in Chicago’s
Far North Side, the 12,500-square-foot facility includes
a museum and gallery, an archives, museum store, and
164-seat theater, which will feature leather workshops,
films, theater, music and other productions starting
in June. The Leather Archives & Museum was created
by internationally known leatherman Chuck Renslow, a
Chicago businessman who founded the International Mr.
Leather competition, and who ran one of Chicago’s
first leather bars, the Gold Coast, in 1958. For more
info, call 773/761-9200.
Man With AIDS Aims for Alaska’s
Iditarod Dog Race
Chuck King, a 39-year-old former surgeon who has AIDS,
placed first in a dog sled race that is the first of
two qualifying races for the noted Iditarod Sled Dog
Race on March 4.
Ray Redington, King’s dog trainer and veteran Iditarod
racer himself, said, "For an amateur to just finish
the race is a great achievement. For a rookie with a
life-threatening illness to place first is truly amazing."
King
still faces another qualifying race of 200 miles before
he becomes an official entrant in the 1,152-mile Iditarod
race from Anchorage to Nome.
Reform
Rabbis to Tackle Same-Sex Unions
Reform Jewish rabbis will decide at their annual convention
March 26-29 in Greensboro, N.C., whether to approve
same-sex unions or not. Reform rabbis are already free
to officiate at same-sex unions between two Jews if
they want, but the March meeting of the Reform Conference
would go further and officially endorse blessing such
unions. As in many other debates about same-sex unions,
however, the proposal carefully avoids calling such
unions "weddings" or "marriages."
Rabbis
Paul Menitoff and Charles Kroloff, two top officials
in the Reform Conference, signed a declaration urging
U.S. religions to accept same-sex couples as valid relationships.
And four years ago the conference endorsed civil marriage
for gays and lesbians.
But civil marriage isn’t the same thing as rabbis
officiating at such unions and there is a good deal
of opposition among even the liberal Reform Conference
to rabbinic blessing for such unions.
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