[2001] Tulsa Family News, July 2001; Volume 8, Issue 7
Title
[2001] Tulsa Family News, July 2001; Volume 8, Issue 7
Subject
Politics, education, and social conversation toward Tulsa’s Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual communities.
Description
Tulsa Family News was a monthly newspaper; No. 1 issued December 1993-January 1994. The final issue available was published in September 0f 2001 (Volume 8, Issue 9).
The newspaper brings up important, evolving topics of marriage, Pride, TOHR, HIV/AIDs, events, advice, and politics all at the local and national level.
This document is available in searchable PDF attached. It is also available to be seen at the Dennis R. Neill Equality Center with permission.
The newspaper brings up important, evolving topics of marriage, Pride, TOHR, HIV/AIDs, events, advice, and politics all at the local and national level.
This document is available in searchable PDF attached. It is also available to be seen at the Dennis R. Neill Equality Center with permission.
Creator
Tulsa Family News
Source
https://history.okeq.org/collections/show/24
Publisher
Tom Neal
Date
July 2001
Contributor
James Christjohns
Karin Gregory
Barry Hensley
J.P. Legrandbouche
Lamont Lindstrom
Esther Rothblum
Mary Schepers
Hughston Walkinshaw
Karin Gregory
Barry Hensley
J.P. Legrandbouche
Lamont Lindstrom
Esther Rothblum
Mary Schepers
Hughston Walkinshaw
Rights
Tom Neal/Tulsa Family News
Relation
Tulsa Family News, June 2001; Volume 8, Issue 7
Format
Image
PDF
Online text
Online text
Language
English
Type
newspaper
periodical
periodical
Identifier
https://history.okeq.org/items/show/614
Coverage
Tulsa(Oklahoma)---newspaper
Tulsa---Oklahoma
Oklahoma---Tulsa
United States Oklahoma Tulsa
United States of America (50 states)
Tulsa---Oklahoma
Oklahoma---Tulsa
United States Oklahoma Tulsa
United States of America (50 states)
Text
Tulsa PLWA Sues Jail For
Withholding Medicines
TULSA (TFN) - Early in June, the Stipe Law Firm
notified the Tulsa County Criminal Justice Authority,
that it was suing the authority on behalf of Daniel
McClure..McClure, aperson living with AIDS (PLWA)
was arrested onJune 12, 2000 andbookedinto the Tulsa
Jail. Per the notice of tort claim letter, and statements
made to TFN while being held at thejail, McClure was
denied access to his medicines as well as to timely
medical care despite repeated requests. Because anumber
of HIV treatments have strict regimens, failure to
take the drugs at the prescribed tim~" can result in
seriously greater illness.
The letter filed by the Sfipe Law Firm alleges that
"negligence of the Tulsa County Criminal Justice Authority"
has lead to a faster progressirn of McClute’ s
disease, "a.worsening of l~s medical condition and
emotional distress." The.claim is for in .excess of
Parade. +Festival 2001
TULSA ~FFN) - It was a part new event and part old
event. The 2001 Pride celebrations, organized by Tulsa
Okla,.omans for Human Rights (TOHR) had a new
paraae route, alarger festival in the old sit~ and some o
the_same old protesters. The parade featured even more :
church floats anda shorterlength going along Cherry St. "
from Utica to Veterans Park. But true to prior years, a "
handful offundamentalist Christians mostly peacefully ¯
protested along the route. The protesters included some
of .the anti-Gay Fred Phelps cult of Topeka, Kansas.
The night before the parade and festival, the Tulsa
Country Club’w.as the site of a gala fundraising dinner. "
And while the event may have been slightly "
underattended, it was rinsed more funds than any prior
sort of event. Community Hero awardee, Rick Martil
used a spirited auction style to solicit funds from attend: "
ees to match a $5,000 commitment from TOHR supporter
Mark Bouney. NOt only was the match made but "
due to the generosity of Williitms Cos. DiVersity Director
Eric Watson, Who attended with his wife, over "
$20,000 wasraised. The attendence of Mr. Watson on ¯
behalf of Williams was a first for any major Tulsa ."
corporation as was their $5,000 donation. "
TOHR will be ho!ding their monthly meeting onJuly "
10 at 7pro at the LGBT Center and solicits feedback on
the Pride events fl~e. TOHR members also attended ."
the Okla. City parade, carrying the 120’ rainbow flag.
IJJ DIRECTORY
~ EDITORIAL/PRI DE.15HOTOS
US & WORLD NEWS
HEALTH NEWS
ENTERTAINMENT + MORE P, 8
GAY STUDIES/RAGING LESBIAN P, 10/11
P, 2 "
P, 3
P, 4 "
P, 6
~Serving ~Lesbian’ ,.,=,.Gay’ ~~,Bisexual=T~~ans+gend~r~ed¯ Tulsans, O0r.. r__ammesFamili + Friends"
=mo ng¯ -D ’ve¯rs!ty :¯ _P’ ride Everywhere.. NYC,
Tulsa Pride Parade & Festival i San Francmco + Omahti
¯ SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A Lesbian motorcade, which included topless riders waving rainbow flags,
¯ faux nuns, clowns and brides, rode down the street,
: kicking off the city’s 31st Annual Pride Parade and
¯ Celebration.
¯ An estimated 1 million people cheered as the group
¯ of Dykes on Bikes roared their motorcycles on Sun¯
day late in June and led floats of. drag queens, city officials, community groups and marching bands to
." the Civic Center plaza, where the celebration, lasted
¯ all day.
For Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals and Transgenders
¯ attending, the parade helped to create an atmosphere
." of acceptance and celebration. It’s also an opportu-
¯ nity to educate people about, their community. The
¯
parade is California’s largest public event and has .
¯ become one of the’world’s best known Gay pride
¯ celebrations.
¯ "Thi s is a great opporthnity to raise the visibility of
the Gay community," said city Supervisor Mark
¯ Lent, who is’ openly Gay and served as one the
¯ p ade s five marshals. S,a~,, Francisco has ,always
been a leader in Gay rights but nationwide, I m still
¯ a second-class citizen," Lent said. The parade is an
¯ opportunity to help oti~ers understand that Gay issues
¯ are everyone’s issues, he said.
The celebration also has became aforum to address
,,: the impact of AIDS on the community.over the past
¯ two decades. "I’m a survivor of the disease," said
David Lyons, an Oaldandresident whohas not missed
¯ aparade since !98l: "Tiffs is a great chance to educate
.you~..g_African-Ameri,¢~, ,~,,Gay people. We can’ t think
’ itself.
The 2001 Diversity Festival willfeature booths & entertaiment.
¯
U.S, Census Sh.ows More Gay
Couples; More Figures to Come ¯ WASHINGTON (AP/TFN)- U.S. census figures released at the ¯
end of last month for five states continue to show a dramatic
increase in the.number of households that comprise same-se~
partners but most likely still undercount the actual number due to
co,n,~,finued anti~.Gay bias, the Hum.an Rights Campaign said.
~ nese newngures continue to show a national trend where
record number of people are willing to acknowledge living in a
household with "a same-sex partner," said David M. Smith.
HRC’s communications director and senior strategist. "While
the census data suggest incredible progress, we believe thi
census continues to undercount same-sex partners because many
people are still not comfortable disclosingi~ a federal survey that
they are in a same-sex relationship. And despite an educational
effort by HRC and other, groups, not all respondents were aware
of the census question. -
s___T~_.e ~ensns ~B,urean released da.ta today for Alabama, Mis-
¯ oun, ~xansas, r~ew York and Ohio. New York reported the
largest number of same-sex households with 46,490, a 238%
increase from the 1990 census. Ohio reported the next largest
tiumber with 18,937 same-sex.households, a 401% increase.
Missouri ranked third with 9,428, a 388% increase. Alabama
reported 8,109 same-sex honseholds, a 659% increase. And
Kansas reported 3,973~ a 514% increas~
’.q’he census data have important social implications because
Americans will become acutely aware that Gay and Lesbian
families are numerous and face discrin~natory barriers in terms
Ofpubh"c poh"cy," stu" d Smi’ th. "Asmore of these families become
visible in their communities, people will work to end the unfair
treatment andlegal discrimination they often face." "
Census figures released also show that the number of same-sex "
unmarried partners in rural areas have. increased slightly. The
most substantial change was in Missouri, where 7,095, (75%) "
same-sex unmarried households are in urban areas while 2,333 "
(25%) arein rural areas. This marks a significant change from the "
1990 census when only 11% (1,711) of same sex unmarried
households were in rural parts of the state see Census, p. 9
G " " bymanywhohavefoughtfor
ay rights. Everybody did the hard work," she said.
’~Now, there are so many non-Gay people who.come
and bring th(ir children: This to me means acceptance.
It gives me a sense of belonging.’"
This year’s event featured several new additions
and promised more diversity than ever, plus a more
family friendly environment, organizers said.
Cecilia Chung, Gay Pride Parade president, estimated
1 million people attended Sunday’s celebration.
.
But the drag queens in sequined dresses and feathers
along with the young, buff men wearing tight
shorts were a bit too much ~or some tourists who got
caught in the middle of the celebration "It’s enlightening,"
said Sally Christenson, 48. "I was naive. I
never thought people would expose themselves to
this extent. You don’t see this in Minnesota."
However in Minneapolis...
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -Anestimated 200,000 people
gathered in Loring Park inMinneapolis to celebrate
Gay pride. "It’s the one weekend of the year where
people can be themselves and not have tO worry," said
TBiw~i N~.n.al~, One ofthe organizers ofl~e 29th annual
in t~mes ~ay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Pride
Festival.
While likely a little less flamboyant than the event
in San Francisco, the turnout in Miuneapolis showed
that statem,,e.n,t above by Sally Christenson isn’t quite
accurate. It s a fun time," said Jolene K,o,stohryz,
who stud she attends the festival every.year. You get
to see a whole bunch of different kinds Of people."
And in Omaha,
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - The city’s 17th a.~uualGay
Prideparadedrew hundreds ofparticipants and watchers
as it snaked through 12 downtown blocks. The
theme for the parade was "Phoenix Rising," which
organizers said was a reference to the movement’s
renewed efforts after last year’ s passage of Initiative
416.
see Pride; p, 5
Tulsa Clubs & Restaurants
*~amboo Lounge, 7204 E. Pine
*Play-Mor, 424 S. Memorial
Polo Grill, 2038 Utica Square
*Renegades/Rainbow Room, 1649 S. Main
*St. Michael’s Alley Restaurant, 3324-L E. 31st
~Schatzi’ s, 2619 S. Memorial
*The Star, 1565 Sheridan
*TNT’ s, 2114 S. Memorial
*Tool Box II, 1338 E. 3rd
*Vortex, 2182 S. Sheridan
*The Yellow Brick Road Pub, 2630 E. 15th
832-1269
610~5323
838-9792
744-4280
585-3405
745-9998
280-1316
834:4234
660-0856
584-1308
835-2376
749-1563
Tulsa Businesses, Services, & Professionals
Assoc. inMed. & Mental Health, 2325 S. Harvard 743-1000
Barnes & Noble Booksellers, 8620 E. 71 250-5034
Barnes & Noble Booksellers, 5231 E. 41 665-4580
BodyPiercing by Nicole, 2722 E. 15 712-1122
*Borders Books. & Music, 2740 E. 21 712-9955
*Borders B.ooks & Music, 801~ S. Yale 494-2665
Brookside Jewelry, 4649 S. Peoria 743-5272
*CD Warehouse, 3807c S. Peoria 746-0313
*Cheap Thrills, 2640 E. 1 lth 295-5868
Cherry St. Psychotherapy, 1515 S. Lewis 581-0902, 743-4117
Commuuity Cleaning, Kerby Baker 622-0700
Tim Daniel, Attorney 352-9504, 800-742-9468
-*Deco to Disco, 3212 E. 15th 749-3620
Doghouse on Bro0kside, 3311 S. Peoria 744-5556
*Elite Books & Videos, 821 S. Sheridan 838-8503
Encompass Travel, 13161H N. Me~ofial 369-8555
Ross Edward Salon 584-0337, 712-9379
Events Unlimited~ 507 S, Main_ ~ 592-0460
Floral Design Studio, 3404 S. Peoria 744-9595
Four Star Import Automotive, 9906 E. 55th P1. 610-0880
Cathy Furlong, Ph.D., 1980 Utica Sq. Med. Ctr. 628-3709
G~y & Lesbian Affordable Daycare 808-8026
*Gloria Jean’s Gourmet Coffee, 1758 E. 21st 742-1460
Leanne M. Gross,-Insurance &financial planning 459-9349
Mark T. Hamby, Attorney 744-7440.
*Sandra J. Hill, MS, Psychotherapy, 2865-E. Skelly 745-1111
*International Tours 341-6866
Jacox Animal Clinic, 2732.E. 15th 712-2750
*Jared’ s Antiques, 1602 E. 15th 582-3018
David Kauskey, Country Club Barbering 747-0236
The Keepers, Housekeeping & Gardening 582-8460
*Ken’ s .:Flowers, 1635 E. 15 599-8070
Kelly Kirby, CPA, 4021 S. Harvard, #210 .747-5466
*Li,~ing ArtSpace, 308 Soffth Kenosha 585-1234
*Midtown Theater, 319 E. 3rd 584-3112
Mingo Valley Flowers, 9720c E. 31 663-5934
*Mohawk Music, 6157 E 51 Place 664~2951
Puppy Pause II, 1060 S. Mingo 838-7626
*The Pride Store 743-4297
Rainbowz on the River B+B, POB 696, 74101 747-5932,
;’Richard’s Carpet Cleaning 834-0617
Teri Schutt, Ellen & Co. 834-7921,748-0224
Paul Tay, Car Salesman 260-7829
*Tulsa Comedy Club, 6906 S. Lewis 481-0558
Venus Salon, 1247 S. Harvard 835-5563
Fred Welch, LCSW, Counseling 743-1733
*Wherehouse Music, 5150 S. Sheridan 665-2222
*Whittier News Stand, 1 N... Lewis 592-0767
www.gaytulsa.org - website for Tulsa Gays &Lesbians
Tulsa Agencies, Churches, Schools & Universities
AIDS Walk Tulsa, POB 4337, 74101 579-9593
All Souls Unitarian Church, 2952 S. Peoria 743-2363
Black & White, Inc: POB 14001, Tulsa 74159 587-7314
Bless The Lord at All Times Christian Center, 2207 E. 6 583-7815
B/L/G/T Alliance, Univ. of Tulsa United Min. Ctr. 583-9780
Chaml~r of Commerce Bldg., 616 S. Boston 585-1201
*Chapman Student Ctr., University of Tulsa, 5th P1. & Florence
Church of the Restoration UU, 1314 N.Greenwood 587-1.314
*Community of Hope Church, 2545 S. Yale 747-6300
*Community Unitarian-Universalist Congregation 749-0595
Council Oak Men’s Chorale 748-3888
*Delaware Playh_ouse, 1511 S. Delaware 712-1511
918.583.1248, fax: 583.4615
POB 4140, Tulsa, OK 74159, e-mail: TulsaNew.s.@earthlink.net
Publisher + Editor: Tom Neal
Writers + contributors: James Christjohn, Karin Gregory, Barry
Hensley, J.-P. Legrandbouche, Lamont Lindst¢om,Esther
Rothblum, Mary Schepers, Hughston Walkinshaw
Member of The Associated Press
Issued around the 1 st of each month, the entire contents of.this
publication are protected by US copyright-2001 by Tulsa
Family News and may notbe reproduced either in whole or in
part without written permission from the publisher. Publication
of a name or photo does not indicate a person’ S sexual
orientation. Correspondence is assumed to be for publication
unless otherwise noted, must be signed & becomes the sole
property of Tulsa Family News. Each reader is entitled to 4
copies of each edition at distribution points.
Additional copies are avail-able by calling 583~1248:
¯¯ *Democratic Headquarters, 3930 E. 31 742-2457
Dignity/Integrity of Tulsa- Lesbian & Gay Catholics &
¯ Episcopalians; POB 701475, 74170-1475 355-3140
: *Fellowship Congreg. Church, 2900 S. Harvard 747:7777
¯ *FreeSpiritWomen’ s Center, call for location&info: 587-4669 ¯
Friend For A Friend, POB 52344, 74152 747-6827
¯ Friends in Unity Social Org., POB 8542, 74101 582-0438
¯ *Tulsa C.A.R:E.S, 3507 E. Admiral 834-4194
¯ HOPE, HIV Outreach, Prevention, Education 834-8378 ¯
*HouseoftheHoly SpiritMinstries,1517 S. Memorial 224-4754
¯ *MCC United~ 1623. N. Maplewood 838-1715
¯ NAMES Project, 3507 E. Admiral P1. 748-3111
: NOW, Nat’l Org forWomen, POB 14068, 74159 365-5658 ¯ OK Spokes Club (bicycling), POB 9165, 74157
¯ *OSU-TUlsa
¯ PFLA-G; POB: 52800, 74152 749-4901
¯ *Planned Parenthood, 1007 S..Peoria 587-7674 Prime-Timers, P.O. Box 52118, 74152
¯ R.A:I.N., Regional AIDS Interfaith Network 749-4195
¯ *Red Rock Mental Center, 1724 E. 8 584-2325 ¯
St. Aidan’ S Episcopal Church, 4045 N. Cincinnati 425-7882
: St.Dunstan’s Episcopal, 5635 E. 71St 492-7140
: *St. Jerome’s Parish Church, 205 W. King 582-3088
¯ Soulforce-OK,Rt.4,#3534,Stigler74462 587-3248,452-2761 ¯
*Tulsa Area United Way, 1430 S. Boulder 583-7171
¯ *TNAAPP (Native American men), Indian Health Care 582-7225
¯ Tulsa County Health Department, 4616 E. 15 595-4105 ¯
¯ Confidential HIV Testing - by appt. on Thursdays only
Tulsa Okla. for Human Rights,.Gay Comm. Center 743-4297
" TUL-PAC, PositiveAdvoeacy Coalition, POB2687,TUlsa 74101
¯ T.U.L.S.A. Tulsa Uniform/Leather Seekers Assoc. 298-0827
: .-*Tulsa City Hall, Ground Floor Vestibule
¯
*Tulsa Community College Campuses
¯ *Tulsa Gay Commtmity Center, 2Ist & Memorial 743-4297
¯ Unity Church of Christianity,3355 S. Jamestown 749-8833
¯ BARTLESVILLE
Barflesville Public Library, 600 S. Johnstone 918-337-5353
TAHLEQUAH ~
¯ Stonewall League, call for information: 918-456-7900
¯ Tahlequah Unitarian-Universalist Church .918-456-7900
Green Country AIDS Coalition, POB 1570 918-453-9360
¯ EUREKA SPRINGS, ARKANSAS
¯ Autumn Breeze Restaurant, Hwy. 23 501-253-7734
." Jim & Brent’.s,Bistro, 173 S. Main 501-253-7457
.. DeVito’s Restaurant, 5 Center St. 501-253-6807
¯ Emerald Rainbow, 45 &l/2 Spring St. 501-253-5445
¯
MCC of the Living Spring o 501-253-9337
¯ Geek to Go!, PC Specialist, POB 429 501-253-2776
¯ Old Jallhouse Lodging, 15 Montgomery 501-253-5332
Positive Idea Marketing Plans 501-624-6646
¯ White Light, 1 Center St. 501-253-4074
¯
JOPLIN, MISSOURI
¯ Spirit of Christ MCC, 2639 E. 32, Ste. U134 417-623-4696
: ~ is where youcan find TFN. Not all are Gay-owned but all are Gay-friendly.
Council Oaks Men’s Chorale
As a Gay Dad, I recently experienced a
wonderful first. During the TOHR coordi:
~ J~ation of Tulsa Gay Pride week celebration,
: my younger son, his cousin and a high
¯ school peer of theirs attended their first ever
¯ " gay related function. Since divorcing and
¯ coming out five years .ago, this is the first
time one of my children has attended a gay
: function. Of the varied venues offered dur-
: ing the 2001 Tulsa Gay Pride week, we
chose to attend the Council Oak Men’s
¯ Chorale mini concert heldMonday evening.
at the central library.
¯ This was the first time my son and his
¯ friends had been exposed to the Gay com-
" muuity in such "large numbers", for high
¯
school "kids" accustomed to the top 10 rock/
¯ pop/rap tunes, the concert repertoire was a
¯ - bit austere, however, I am pleased to say
¯ these urban kids, left the concert with a new ¯
refreshing positive attitude and respect to-
" ward the Gay .community at large. As a
¯ compliment, FII tell you that the most re-
. peated comment was... "these guys are
¯
gay?" Fortunately, as we all began to openly
¯ talk during the eveni~ig many typical worn
¯, out"stereotypes andmyths"were dispelled.
Thank you Council Oak guys for your
¯ hard work and continued efforts to be a
¯ positive force and professional face on be-
-¯ half of .our community. You’ ve helped in
part to make a great difference in the con-
: tinuing relationship with my son. I am honored
to consider Council Oak Chorale as
¯ being part of "my extended family". ¯
- Milton-Nunley, Tulsa
¯ Oklahoma City Removes
: Gay Banners Despite Permit
¯ The Gay Pride banners which ~Tere hung
¯ on light poles at the north end of Classen
¯ Boulevard in Oklahoma City cost the spon\
¯ soring organizations $11,000. Their design.
¯ was approved in advance by the City of
¯ Oklahoma City. The legal permit to hang
¯ them extended through July 7. For the City
¯ to remove the banners ten days before the
." permit expired is a blatant <~xample of dis-
: crimination against the gay and lesbian or-
,¯ ganizations which followed procedures and
incurred great expense to have the banners
¯ professionally produced and placed on the
." poles.
¯ "No News is Good News" - Oklahoma
: City’ s Gay Rights March and Pride Parade
¯ on Sunday afternoon, June 24, included a
¯ festival beforehand in Memorial Park, with
¯ booths, tables, livemusic, and refreshments ¯
- and a huge street party afterwards. Some
¯ 7,000 to 10,000 participants and supporters
." took part in. the events, which were well
¯ organized; peaceful, and celebrative. That
" the events were poorly reported by the local
." news media - or not covered at all - repre-
¯ . sents more disc.rimination against homo-
. ¯ sexuals.
: Gays and Lesbians struggle to find their
¯ place in a society where, religious leaders,
¯ editorial writers, parents, and teachersjudge
i" them, condemn them, and vilify them for
¯ who they are. Gay teenagers commit suicide
." in far higher percentages than do hetero-
¯ sexual, teenagers.
: see Letters, p. 11
by Tom Neal
Oklahoma Today, the official magazine of the State of
Oklahoma, just released their July/August issue which
features Tulsa. But is it a rather peculiar Tulsa.
Just as once the majoritywhite culture refused to
acknowledge racial minorities, creating a whites only
image, Oklahomt~ Today(OT)has shownTulsaas "straights
only."
Now we should give them a very little credit. They did
get a few black folks in the issue and actually even ones
who are wall regarded in the black community in,~tead of
Tulsa’ s white leadership’ s favorite "acceptable" blacks.
Butjournalists, at least when they really do theirjob, are
supposed to reflect reality. And the reality is that there are
Lesbian and Gay people in Tulsa: we exist. ~
Oklahoma’s oldest Lesbian and Gay organihations are
here: the oldest, the Metropolitan Community Church
United, renamed but still extant, and Tulsa Oklahomans
for Human Rights (TOHR), which runs the Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual and Transgendered Community Center, And this
publication has been around nearly eightyears. It would
have taken very little to mention the community center, or
to identify, just as was done for Tulsa blacks, one or
another community leader, or mention a community publication-
as was done of, obviously, The World, but also,
The Oklahoma Eagle and that waste of newsprint, the
prejudiced and anti-Gay Urban Tulsa.
’What’ s baffling about Oklahoma’Today’s failure (~t its
heart, simply to tell the truth about our city) isthat after a
conversation ] had with its editor Louisa McCune about
four years ago, OT ran a mention of the first or second
Pride March (before the first parade). McCune knows that
we exist.
But perhaps the problem doesn’t lie there. Oklahoma
Today publisher Joan Henderson’s response to my coneems
was that when OT featured Oklahoma City some
issues back, they proudly ignored OKC’ s LGBT community
also.
Later in the conversation, she variously suggested that
they could not write about us because they give OT to 4th
graders and theycan’ t write "about sex," thattheir readers
are all about 62 years old and they don’ t even want to read
about blacks or Indians, and that they’re a state magazine
.and if we have a problem with what Oklahoma Today’s
doing, wecanjust talk to her Republican boss, Gov. Fr~tk
K.eating, Lt. Gov~ Mary Fallin, and Tourism and Recreataon
Executive Director Jane Jayroe.
Of course, I-wouldn’t waste my breath tr~ing to talk
with the ethically bd’uddled Keating et al, but I do think it
will be quite interesting to talk with members of the
legislature - see Today, p. 8
Official Refuses to
Perform Gay Marriages
LEEUWARDEN, Netherlands (AP) - A civil servant
who has refused to officiate Gay marriages could be
fired by the city, officials said last month. Nynke
Yxinga-Boomgaardt can only save herpart-time job if
she signs a contract agreeing to wed same-sex couples
at city hall, municipal authorities in Leeuwarden said.
Same-sex mamages were legalxzed in April, making
the Netherlands the first country to grant Gay
couples the same rights as heterosexual couples, including
~e right to adopt children. "In this job she has
the obligation to enforce the law, and under Dutch law
Gay couples have equal rights," said Jan van der Hoek,
a spokesman for the city, about 100 kilometers (60
miles) north of Amsterdam. If she refuses, the.spokesman
said, her contract will be .terminated in September.
Eringa-Boomgaardt refused to wed fwo Gay couples
over the past three months, saying she is principally
opposed to same-sex marriages. The couples are still
waiting to be married.
"This is about the battle betWeen equality and my
right to have conscientious objections," Eringa-
Boomgaardt told the Trouw daily newspaper..
Gay-Pride Flag
Burners Arrested
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - A man with a history of
desecrating the Gay-pride flag is one of two people
charged with burning the baiaher during a parade.
Police charged Charles Spingola, 45, and Thomas
Meyer, 47, both of Newark, with open buming, a firstdegree
misdemeanor punishable by as. much as six
months in jail. .
A state appeals court last week upheld Spingola’s
conviction on criminal damage charges for tearing
down:aGay-prideflag thatwas flying at the Statehouse
two:years -ago a~ a’similar parade. " .
Police said Spingolaand Meyer setfire to arainbow-"
colored flag they had been carrying as the last marchers
in the Columbus Pride Parade passed the Statehouse.
Police Sgt. Michael Piccininni said Spingola
had burned another Gay-pride flag about 21/2 hours
earlier outside Broad Street United Methodist Church,
where a Gay-oriented service took place before the
parade.
Piccininni said Spingola was given a waming, but
returned later during the parade with a new flag and a
small container 0f gasoline.
Andrea Critchet, head of parade security, said she
was splashed with gasoline after approaching Spingola
andMeyernear the Statehouseand telling themto keep
away from parade participants. ’°We were there to
protect him, to-keep the crowd away from him,"
Cfitchet said. "He said, ’You’ re all gonnaburn in hell,’
and he flipped it (the flag) up on me.". Cfitchet was
~checked by paramedics for burning in her’throat but
was not injured.
Teresa Spingola, 46, said her husband and her two
sons, 12 and 16, intended to burn the nylon flag, but
didn’ t expect the scuffle or arrests that followed. "It’ s
legal to bum the American flag. We thought it’ s OK to
bum the queer flag," she said. She said that last.year,
the family burned a Gay flag at the same intersection
without incident.
Presbyterian Pastor
Comes Out, Resigns
¯ chief policy-making body of the Presbyterian Church
¯ " (U.S:A.) voted to relmmmend lifting a ban on ordaining
homosexual clergy.
The measure must still be ratified over the next year
by .a majority Of the ~hurch’s 173 presbyteries, or
regional legislatures. That will be harder to achieve
and, besides,. Hawley cannot endure any=longer the
stress of living in two worlds.
’T ve had a lot of personal, emotional and health
struggles, and I just realized I could not live in the
closet anymore," said Hawley, 42, who led the Genesee
Valley Presbytery, which represents 73 congregations
in the Rochester region_ in western NewYork. "I knew
I had to get more open with my sexuality if I was going
to recover. There’ s been a lot of pain in terms of being
silent when I personally ~’elt I s.hould have been sw.aking."
Hawley did not plan to have his departure from the
church coincide with the emotional debate in Louisville,
Ky., where the General Assembly of thenafion’ s
. sixthlargest Protestant denomination voted 317-208m
favor of ordination of Gays attd Lesbians.
What his decision will do is allow him to speak more
forcefully on an issue that several mainline Protestant
denominations, notably the Episcopal Church and
United Methodist Church, have struggled with in recent
years. "I feel~badly in a way that I haven."t been
more outspoken but that’ s part of the problem with the
closet - it’s not safe to," he-said. "But now I can tall
people how destructive it was to try to live that life and
quietly serve."
Hawley, who grew up in Montrose, Pa., and studi_e,d.,.
atthe Jesuit-run University of Scranton~ said he didn t
realize he was Gay when he was ordained in 1983. He
¯ figured it out in 1995 after years of turmoil.
Although he was not in a relationship,Hawley said
: he constantly feared losing his job. He might have
¯ battled to keep it now, he said, but knew that conserva-
¯ fives in the presbytery would have pushed for his
removal. "That’ s the fight that I didnotpersonally want
¯
to take," said Hawley, who plans a new career in
teaching. ’-’The only way I can be honest and comfortable
about myself is to come out and to resign. It’ s a
. ¯ matter.of integrity."
¯ At last year’s General Assembly meeting, Hawley
said he was forced to listen quietly as conservatives
argued against inclusion Of Gays in the leadership of a
church that has a~ many as 3.6 million members. The
¯ remarks were not~"hateful so much as ignorant," he
¯ said. The push to remove the ban on Gay clergy from ¯
the church’ s constitution "would mean-the church has
made a really radical shift, and I’mnot sure that ithas,’~
he added.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) - In hi’s .t8th year as a ¯
Presbyterian minister, the Rev. Bill Hawley realized ¯
he could nolonger keep his sexual orientation a secret. -’.
¯By revealing that he’s Gay, Hawley also decided his :
only real choice was to quit the church. ¯
His resignation took effect June 15, the same day the ~ :
Bank Refuses Account
to Anti-Gay Group
: MONTREAL (AP) - A Canadian bank is refusing to
¯ open an account for a coalition of conservative and ¯
religious.groups that opposes MontreaV s bid to host
¯ the2006GayGames.Montrealis competingwiththree
¯ U.S. cities- Chicago, Atlanta and Los Angeles - to
host the Gay Games, which typically draw 24,000
:’ athletes and 200,000 spectators.
: -The No ’C-ommittee2006 was formed in April after
¯ -Montreal announced its. bid. The. committee’s mem-
: bers indudethe Christian Heritage Party and the Cam~
¯ paign Life Coalition for Quebec. The Rev. Daniel
Cormier, who heads the committee, said the group
¯ fears visiting athletes could spread the HIV virus that ¯
leads to AIDS.
A Royal Bank spokesman-confirmed the No Committee
2006 was denied a bank account for donations
for supporters. "We refuse to support or oppose di.scriminatory
activities of ~any kind," said bank spokes-
"man Raymond Chouinard.
Cormier called thebank’ s refusal discriminatory. He
said at a news conference Friday that his group would
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take the case to court or the Quebec Human Rights.
Commission.
East Ohio Methodists
Oppose Anti-Gay Stance
LAKESIDE, Ohio (AP) - A group of United Methodist
ministers and parishioners from the East Ohio "
Conference is preparing for another attack on th~ "
hurch s anti-Gay doctrine.
Thirty United Methodist ministers in the regional
groupjoined dozens of church members in signing the "
"East Ohio Declaration," whichopposes the doctrine’ s "
anti-Gay stance, andwill begin a series of discussions
in September aimed at the issue. The United:Methodist
church has more than 9 million members worldwide .
most are in the United States. ¯
During its national quadrennial meeting in Cleve- ¯
land last summer, about 1,000 church leaders voted 2- ¯
1. to uphold the church’ s stance on Gays. The doctrine .
states that homosexuality is incompatible with ~aris- ¯
tian teaching; thatno sexually-activehomosexual rain- ¯
isters should be ordained; and that same-sex mamages ¯
will. not be honored.
Bishop Jonathan D. Keaton - who oversees the ¯
192,000-member East Ohio Conference - planned a ¯
series of discussions in preparation for revisiting the "
issue when the United. Methodist Church meeots again "
in Pittsburgh in 2004.
Two representatives from each of the 12 East Ohio :
Methodist districts will attend a September 22 prelimi- ."
nary meeting. One representative will sent to support .
existing church doctrine, the other to argue for change. ¯
Those delegates plus 40 other church officials will air ¯
their views and be traine3l to organize similar meetings .
around the state.
: A magistrate had said the state did not have enough
: evidence to support the aggravated kidnapping charge.
¯ But the Supreme Court disagreed, saying though the
facts are in dispute, there is enough evidence to argue
them in court.
us," said Tom Aeschlimann, one of the event’ s orgamzers.
For the first time the parade had a grand
marshal, Scott Winkler, a native of Loomi s who is an
insurance agent in Omaha.
New York City Event Rivals SF One
NEW YORK (AP) - Three dozen Gay couples celebrated
their same-sex partnerships to kick off New
York City’ s 32nd annum Gay pride parade, a Celebration
of flamboyant costumes and floats. "We’d like to
be recognized as a couple," said Sheneen Ellis, wearing
awhite veil and mini-dress decorated with tiny red
rhinestones, as she stood with her partner, Alona
Hartnett, dressed in white ~lacks and jacket.
They were surrounded by their five children as two
ministers and a rabbi blessed them ifi a ceremony
Sunday at the entrance to Central Park just before the
Heritage of Pride parade.
"Two mothers are better than having only one,", read
a sign carried by one of the children, 10-year-old
Calhea Johnson. "I love mommy and mommy."
The parade included Lesbians on motorcycles, a
rainbow arch of balloons and a top-down convertible
carrying veterans of the 1969 Stonewall riots, in which
The initiative banning same-sex marriages passed
by 70% to 30% last November. "We’re going to be
here and we’ re going to stay around. You better accept
ThomasTavl0rofBrockville aretir....¯ . _ _ " pa.tronsofaGaybarinG-reenwichVillagefoughtback "
: " .r . , euNnmsterwno ¯ - -s " . .............. ag--m’n-s"tapou""ceram..... , , ,~:. ¯
¯ ~,~ u,~. oz~tto1, a Vzmt. ,-.v~u n we corot just sit flown years to a colorful pageant drawing hundreds of thou
and talk and agree that we are not of one mind about
this," that would represent progress for the church;
Taylor said.
Church leaders who signed the East Ohio Declaration
said they have no intenfi.on ofdefying the church’ s
rules on Gays, and doubt that it will cause schism. A
Methodist minister could be disciplined for perform- :
ing a marriage ceremony for a same-sex couple, but "
Taylor said he knows of no same-sex couples in the
East .Ohi,o Conference that are seeking a Methodist -"
mamage.
Men, Parents Accused of i
Abducting Lesbian "
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - The Utah Supre~m~ourt
decided to allow two Jordanian men to be tried~for
aggravated kidnapping in the alleged abduction and
beating of their sister in October 1999. The ’woman’s
mother and father also are charged in the alleged
attack.
Prosecutors saybrothers IehabHawatmehand Shaher
Hawatmeh, their father, Jami] Hawatmeh, and their :
mother, Wedad Hawatmeh, kidnapped and beat 23- ."
year-oldMuna Hawatmeh when they discovered she
was a Lesbian. The woman said she agreed to-return to ~
Jordan as away to stop the beatings. Thenext morning, "
.the family was driving her to the airport from their :
home in Sandy when her partner spotted them and ¯
called police. The family agreed to take the woman to "
the Sandy police station, and a doctor later found "
bruises on her arms and legs. ¯
Thefour are charged with simple kidnapping, which "
cames a sentence of up to 15 years. But Assistant "
Attorney General Fred Voros argued that the defen- "
dants’ alleged use of weapons and threats warrants the
aggravated kidnapping charge, which carries a life
sentence.
¯ sands of participants and spectators, and has been
replicated in’cities around the world. .
¯ Paris-, Berlin, Chicago and Atlanta
In Europe, Pads and Berlin celebrated Gay pride on
¯ Saturday .with rollicking parades. At the center of the
festivities were the cities’ mayors, both openly Gay.
In Chicago, organizers expected approximately
350,000 to attend what has become one of the largest
parades in the city.
hi Atlanta, thousands of people, including several
mayoral candidates, participated in the city’ s 31 st Gay
Pride celebration, which wrapped up with a parade
along the City’s main artery, Peachtree Street. "Events
¯ like this help increase our visibility and help to let ¯
p.eo.ple k~,,o,w that Gay people do exist, that we’re not
clevlants, Benson Cohen said. "We don’ tjust exist in-
" the shadows."
The New York marriag, ceremonies were not le-
! gaily binding but served as ~i rallying point for activists
who would like to see samp-sex couples accorded the
same legal rights as.heteros.exual couples.
New York City’s domestic partnership law gives
public employees who are same-sex couples the same
health benefits as married couples, along with privileges
such as visiting rights in city institutions like
hospitals and jails.
~ Vermont is the only state that offers Gay couples the
option o.f civil unions, which give them the ~ame rights
as mamed couples. Legislation to legalize homosexual
unions has been introduced in New York state
but has never passed.
Gay Health Ads :
Pulled in. NYC :
NEW YORK (AP) - Local officials condemned-
the city and an ad agency tmde~- ¯
city contract for pulling apublic service ad ¯
that promoted a free health line f0~Gays ’
from s,everal bus stopsin the Bronx.
"It is outrageous thal when .new HIV
infection rates are soaring, especially "
among men of color, that a responsible ad "
like ~this, intended to confront this health ¯
crisis, is censored by the city and by Infinity
Outdoor,’.’ said state Sen. Tom Duane. :
"It is the height of irresponsibility on the
city’ s part and the height of hypocrisy on ¯
the part of Outdoor, the company behind
the Howard Stem show, to call this ad "
inappropriate or indecent," Duane added. °
Infinity Outdoor is the advertising company
that maintains the city’ s bus shelters._
Its parent, Infinity Broadcasting, airs the "
sometimes-raunchy Howard Stem radio
show.
City Councilwoman Christine Qninn
said New York City "should be doing
everything in its power tO heighten public
awareness of the epidemic and to educate
those at risk about steps they can take to
protect themselVeS."
The ad, paid for by the Bronx Lesbian
-..and Gay Health Resource C0ilsortium,
showed two men, one with his arm around
the other~ above a caption that read, "I’m
not Gay, but sometimes I have sex, with
other.guys," and included a numberfor the
health line.
Infinity Outdoor initially approved the
content of the ads.But company spokes~
man Dana McClintock said a significant
number Of complaints were rdceived,specifically
about the reference to sex. "Making
these decisions is tough;’ McClintock
said. "It’s a,gray area. It’s not black and
white, it’ s doing our best to ~strike a bal-.
ance between First Amendment rights and..
community concerns."
ButLisaWinters, founder of the consortium,
said the original was "not at all an
offensive ad." "There are ads for ’Sex and
the City’ up all over the place,~Lshe said.
"What’s wrong with these posters?" She
has said the ads featuring the two men
were intended to reach men in the Bronx
¯ who do not identify themselves as Gay.
The city’ s Department of Transportation
owns the shelters, and Commissioner
Iris Weinshall supported~ the company’s
decision to pull the ad. "This poster was
totally inappropriate, and we applaud. the
contractor fortaking it down," she said.
"We feel,that good taste can supersede the
First Amendment."_
The same ads featuring the two menalso
are displayed inside city buses, and have
, not been pulled. Bus ads are controlled by
TDI Worldwide, another company owned
bY Infinity Broadcasting.
People.with HIV
Share Stories
UNITEDNATIONS CAP)-DavidBrooks
.Arnold, a ~65-year-old grandfather from
Washington; D.C., and Josephine
Chiturttmam, a 42-year old mother of four
from Zimbabwe, have more in common
than they expected. They both w0rkfor the
Red Cross, both lost partners mAIDS and
both are HIV-positive.
People-from all walks of life with HIV
andAIDS traveledfromevery continent to
share their stories in moviiag testimonials
that drew an audience of government officials,
AIDS experts and U.N. Secretary-
General Kofi Annam
Patinya Noyphon, a petite Thai wOman
with a sweet smile and soft brown hair,
found out shewas HIV-positive when her
husband died of AIDS in 1996. Her story
moved many to tears Tliesday as she re-
- counted the shock of learning her husband
had the disease and that he left her with the
virus.
Ini997; she joined a network of AIDS
patients that began counseling others with
the vires thinmore than~36 million people "
are living with. That network has grown
into an international movement of people
living with HIV/AIDS and Tuesday they
formed a partnership with the Red Cross to
bring mo,re infectedpeople into caregiving
¯ roles.
’~"~e active participation.of those living
with HIV/AID-S is absolutely vital," Annan
¯ ; told a room of over 200 people gathered to
:hear HIV positive advocates speak out.
Annan, who h’as-made AIDS a personal
¯ -crusade, said the alliance "sends a powerful
message to decision-makers, and to
¯
society as ~ whole, about the importance
of tackling stigma .and discrimination."
Many attending the session, part ofa
three-day U.N. conference on HIV/AIDS,
openly talked about shame and discrimination.
"We are not viruses," said Adam
P0well, a member of the Norwegian delegation
to the conference, who is HIV
positive: "We are humanity," he said.
Others ’used the opportunity to mourn
loved Ones and encourage those infected
¯ to continue fighting. Chiturumani, an AIDS Counselor in her
¯ nau,~e Zimbabwe, lost her husbandto the
¯ pandemic last year. She also lost her
¯ brother, a nephew, a brother and sister-in-
" law and numerous cousins- 22 relatives in
all since 1994 - all taken by AIDS.
Over 20 years, Arnold, director of international
relations for the American Red
Cross, lost more than 100 friends, including
his 10ngtimepartner, to AIDS, Despite
vastly different backgrounds, a fatal dis-
" ease has madethem instant friends. "It’s
an immediate bonding; Arnold sat . He
¯ said that "Josephine is living my past,"
¯ noting that the disease detected among
: Gay men in the United States in the 1980s
¯ is now ravaging whole communities in
¯ Africa.
"- Chiturumani said reaching out to others
¯ with AIDS has helped her live with the
¯ virus. ’~’It makes me belieVe that tomorrow
¯ there will be someone out there who will
: care for me," she said.
In Africa, Stigma
Prevails
BAMAKO, Mali (AP)- Long years after
: becoming the first in hisSahara nation to
: publicly acknowledge carrying the AIDS
: virus, Mamadou Barry is still fighting the
: samebattleas0n Day One. Themissionis
¯ "convincing people thatAIDS exists," says
¯ Barry, whoin 1994feltcompelledtoleave
"- his family business after he revealed that
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he had tested positive for HIV:
In apandemic that stigmatizes as it kills,
AIDS in Africa today, remains a disease
that leaves many of its.victims choosing a
quiet death overthe proSpecfof a life of
pfiblic shame.
In government after government, reluctan~
c~,to co~icede that Africans are dying of
what s seenas aWes.terndegeneracyhelps
keep impoverished countries decades behind
the West in confronting the disease.
In household after household, the shame
blocks testing and tr_eatment and even the
simplest known preventative measures,
such as condoms.
In Mall’s capital, Bamako, a foreign
publication’s report this month that the
death of a promruent Malian official had
been due to AIDS angered many, in and
out of government.
PrimeMinisterMandeSidibe"wentinto
a rage," one aide related, speaking on
condition of anonymity. Countrywide, the
near unanimous response was that it was
wrong to dirty the name of an illustrious
dead man.
In all of Africa, the top official to admit
to having AIDS is Edwin Cameron, a
judge on South Africa’s Constitutional
Court. But Cameron is white, openly Gay
and able to afford treatment.- in all, not
someone to whom the average infected
African would look as a model.
AIDS is "considered a disease ofpeople
of bad morals, of the ill-bred," said Dr.
Allou Sylla, director of a Bamako center
that tests the few who dare to find out
whether they have AIDS. In the general
absence of testing, often the only rough
confirmation that a~madO~ w0mmi died of
AIDS comes when a spouse follows them
in death one or two years later.-
Overwhelmingly, the tendency is to
blame the diarrhea, the rashes, thehorrifying’
wasting away on witchcraft. Sorcerers
andfaith-healers flourish. AIDS treatment,
meanwhile, remains a rarity, ,affordable
only to a few thousand among the 26
million living with HIV across the continent.
Even thosewhofall ill with diseases that
bring AIDS-like symptoms, such as tuberculosis
with its weight loss, are shunned,
Often losing their jobs.
In polygamous African societies, AIDS
is spread mainly by sex between men and
women. It is also spread by contaminat&t
blood and by unsterilized blades - used
interchangeably andcommunally for tribal
rituals, circumcisions andbarbering. AIDS
hit hard from the start among prostitutes,
who literally line the streets in some African
cities. That contributed to the enduring
Stigma.
In Mali, Aminate Nana Kasse is among
those closely following the news out of the
U.N. AIDS eonferenceinNewYork. Nana
Kasse was infected with HIV by her husband,
who has since died. Nana Kasse has
a dream, a distant one, for Africa - that
every government will require HIV tests
ing for couples before they marry. ’"No
African wife would dare _demand of her
husband that he wear a Condom, let alone
suggest that.he take a test," Nana Kasse
said. With mandatory tests, "at least One
would know who she’s marrying," the
widow said.
Mall this year became one of 10 African
countries to enter deals with Western drugcompanies
for low’cost HIV drugs - although
in poorAfrica dying without care
will remain the norm. for millions.
There are other signs of hope, coming
only when local powers acknowledge and
accept the fight against AIDS. An example
is in Senegal, where Islamic imams
preach the prevealtion message in their
Friday sermons at the country’ s mosques.
"People are starting more and more to
believe in iL" said Sylla, the clinic director
in Bamako.
Still; no family in Mali wants it said in
the. community that they have a relative
infected with HIV in their midst.
"I .knew that it was for the. best," says
Barry, explaining his decision to sever ties
with his family after discovering he had
the AIDS virus. Now in his 40s, he still
lives estrangedfrom them. "I believe I was
taking- from them a"decision that the faroi!
y, soonerorlater,wouldhavebeen obliged
to take."
600K in China
Have AIDS Virus
UN1TED NATIONS (AP) -.More than
600,000 people in China are estimated to ."
be infected with the AIDS virus and the :
number is increasing by 30% annually, ¯
p.rimarily because of an upsurge in infec- ¯
tlons among intravenous, drug users, .
China’ s health minister said.
Although the prevalence of the HIV
virus and AIDS is still low -just 0.5% of ~
China’ s 1.27 billion population- the government
has launched a five-year plan to ;
reduce the-ingrease ~rom 3Q% 5o 10% -.
annually,’Zhang Wenkang toId Tl~e Associated
Press.
Theplan calls f0r includingAIDS awareness
in the sex edUcation curriculum for ¯
!.5-year-01ds, prevention messages from "
leading actors, condom vending machines :
and education programs at all leadership ¯
levels. Impro ced treatment- including the -.
possibility of cheap drugs - is also part of
the plan, Zhang said in an interview after "
addressing the first U.N. General Assem- ~
bly Special Session on HIV/AIDS. ¯
Five years ago,. about 40% of China~s "
HIV cases were the result of the illegal :
selling of blood, primarily..in rural areas ¯
where dirty needles were often used, he
said. Following a gove.rp_ment crackdown "
on illegal blood-buying, the percentage of :
HIV cases from tainted blood has dropped
to 4 to 6%.
About70% of current HIV cases are the
result ofintravenous drug use, Zhang said.
Another 10% are infected through heterosexual
or homosexual relations and a
smaller percentage from mother-to-child
transmission of the virus.
Professor Shao Yiming, deputy director
of China’ s National Center for AIDS Prevention
and Control, explained that the
numbers are just estimates. As. a developlng
country China can.dnly do limited
AIDS testing and people in rural areas
often,don’t recognize the HIV virus, he "
said.
Zhang said the estimate of more than :
600,000 HIV sufferers was made by epi- "
demiologists based on the actual number "
of reported HIV cases - 23,905 at the end ¯
of March. At that time, there were also956 "
AIDS patients and 537 confirmed deaths, :
he said.
The Joint U.N.-Program on HIV/AIDS
has said that "while East Asia and the
Pacific region still appear to be holding
HIV at bay, the recent steep rise in sexually
transmitted infections in China and
tile vast transmigration ofpcople- spurred
by economic growth - could unleash an
epidemic.." "
Outlining China’ s five-year plan to cut
new HIV infections, Zhang said people
will be urged to take preventative measures
against the disease, "... for instance
to develop a healthy lifestyle, without so
many sex partners, and secondly without
drug using. We advocate m,a~i,’tal sex. we
discourage extramarital sex.
Zhang called on pharmaceutical companies
toreduce the cost of the drug "cocktail"
that has proven effective in treating
HIV and AIDS because the current cost"is
unimaginable for the peasants and citizens.’"
About 200 Chinese afflicted with the
virus are currently taking part in a trial
using free drugs, he said. Shao said China
has the capability of making ’cheap drugs
to treat HIV and AIDS because it produces
many of the chemicals used in the medications,
"but the drug is only one ring of the
whole chain of treatment."
He said China is preparing a comprehensive
treatment program, from health
care infrastructure and well-trained doc-
.tors and nurses to drugs, laboratory testing
and monitoring.
Though China is starting to confront its
AIDS Crisis, the government still harasses
activists seeking to draw attention to the
problem - especially when doing so uncovers
government negligence.
Last month, Chinese officials ref.used.to
issue a passport to retired physician Dr.
Gao Yaojie to accept the Jonathan Mann
Award from the Global Health Council at
aceremonyin Washington, D.C., attended
by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
Gao,74, has publicized the spread ofAIDS
among poor farmers in central China,
blamed on an unsanitary, blood-buying
industry. She said officials accused her of
helping "anti-China forces."
Contacted at her home in Henan
province’s capital, 7Jaengzhou, Gao said
officials have told her patients to seyer ties
with her, saying she had been arrested.
People who have visited her at home have
been detained and officials have blocked
her from distributing donated medicine
and cash to AIDS victims, she said. Gao
has published her own report about AIDS
in China and plans to distribute tt free to
patients, health institutions and the media.
Eastern Europe/
Russia Hit By AIDS
NEW YORK (AP) - Eastern Europe and
the former Soviet Union,- which already
have the world’ s fastest rising rates ofnew
HIV/AIDS infections, are headed for a
large-scale" epidemic unless anti-AIDS
.programs go into full swing now, speciallsts
on the region have warned.
The numbers are still small compared
with Africa, where 26 million people ore
infected with HIV, the virus that causes
AIDS, but they are climbing fast. The
United Nations ~stimates that the number
of infected people:in the former Soviet
Union and Eastern Europe has skyrocketed
from 30,000 in 1995 to 700,000 as of
last year.
Ethan Nadelmann of the Lindesmith
Center/Drug Policy Foundation said the
region "leads the world in the connectioN’
between AIDS and intravenous drug use,
with80% of HIV infections linked to drug
abuse.
Nadelman moderated the panel discussion
"preventing an Epidemic" among
doctors, heads of rehabilitation programs,
politicians and researchers. Their meeting
was organized by the Open Society Institute,
a charitablefoundation active throughout
the region, and coincided with the
three-day United Nations’ Special Ses=
sion on AIDS.
Sergey Kovalev, a member of the Russian
Parliamentandlongtimehumanrights
activist, said his country has answered the
increase in intravenous drug use with repressive
measures that drive users underground,
rather than toward medical care.
Their sharing Of hypodermic needles has
spread HIV, especially among the young.
Kovalev said his government is not likely
to budge from that approach unless it is
p~essured to do so by Western nations.
Prison populations have swelled, with
correspondingincreases in drug useamong
inmates and in diseases such as tuberculosis
that prey on HIV-infected people. Although
there once was comprehensive
health care throughout the region, today
those systems have crumbled and there is
virtually no treatment offered for people
infected with HIV.
Paul Farmer, a Harvard Medical School
professor who leads AIDS programs m
Russia and Haiti, .said politicians in the
regi0I~ and internationally wil.l avoid tacklingthe
potential AIDS epidemic on their
own. To change that simalaon, he said,
- health professionals and activists need to
unite to establish fwo ’things: a comprehensive
plan for research, pre~,enfion, treatment
and care for orphans; and pilot programs_
that show how the work can be
accomplished. "All they need is division
in our ranks to say,’ No, i t can’ t be done,’"
he warned. "The search for excuses not to
do this is almost criminal."
.Konstanfin Lezhentsev, who helped establish
Ukraine’ s firstAIDS treatmentprogram
through Medecins Sans Frontieres,
or Doctors Without Borders, said the aim
ofhis group is to have"aneffecfive tool for
speaking with the government" about the
urgency Of every patient’s right to treatment.
A woman on the panel who asked to be
called only by her first nmne, Irina, spoke
of issues that go beyond government
policy: disci’iminafion against those with
HIV. Inherfirst public declaration that she
is infected with HIV, Irina described how
She became a drug addict, despite coming
from aloving family, studying at a university,
etc. She thought all her troubles were
over when she completed a drag rehabilitaftonprogram,
but soon she found out that
she was HIV-posifive.
HIV-infected people are shunned by
family and afraid to go to doctors, she said.
Even people she had helped through drug
programs deserted her.
by Jim Christjohn, entertainment editor
"Planets of the Universe", the first single
off Stevie Nicks’ .new album "Trouble in
¯ Shangri La" is scheduled for release to
stores on July 3rd. The single will include.
several club remixes. It should be good,
the song itself is great, and hopefully, for
the first time since 1986’ s "I Can’ t Wait",
fans will be able to go to
the clubs and dance t6 a
Stevie song. It would be
niceifthe clubs in Tulsa
are wise enough to get a
clue and play it rather
than the mixes they usually
spin.
One club version is
11 minutes long and
contains lyrics cut from
the album version.
The tour should be
interesting in that La
Diva Nicks is ~bandoning
the "Stevie Nicks/
ment jn theatre is taking place July 11-14
with Tulsa Experimental theatre’s production
of",The dkDistance Between Bod-
Ies Grows Greater Every Day:" Call
Summerstage for tix at 596-7111.
- "Always, Patsy Cline," an allegedly true
story about a fan’s relationship with the
singer is brought to you by American
"The Haunted Castle
opens its doors July 4th:
Johnny inherits a haunted
castle in EnOland (isn’t
that where they all are?)
and ~oes to claim his
inheritance. It’s a whole
lott~a troubleafter that, as
the devil seems to think
Theatre Company July
12-211 Featuring the
music of-the great lady,
.ax are available by calling
596-7111/ Hmm,
anyone else experiencing
drjh vu? Anyone
else got that number
memorized?
"Love Letters," a writing
exercise thatbecame
a romance and then a
play, is offered up July
12-21 by the Centerstage
Players, and once
more tix are available at
Fleetwo~d Mac Great- he’s the rightful owner. - say it with me - 596-
est Hits’ package,-in " ~ 71’1,1.
which only’ one or two new ~ongs were ¯ Adrian Zmed, 80 s heartthrob best
thrown in, and adding 5 new songs to the known for wrestling with William Shatner
set,includingsomeol~lersongsneverdone on that cop show he was in (Adrian was
in concert. She stops August 3rd in Dallas, hot, Adam not) and who showed his magand
tickets are going fast., nificen_t abs in the 80’ s tour of"Godspell",
Melissa Etheridge plays Will Rogers
coliseum in Fort Worth September 10th
and 1 lth, for which tickets go on sale July
7th. Karin, the .Raging Lesbian, reports-it
will.be two dates withjust Melissa and her
guitar. Sounds like a~ intimate evening,
which would be.great. The RLreports it is
called the ’,’Live and Alone Tour’’, as opposed
to the dead and en masse tour; RL
introduced me to her music, much like I
introduced her to Stevie’ s. (Read: "Forced
it down her throat until she knew every
song by heart!") Fortunately, m3’ enthusiasm
for Stevie took (asevidencedby find--
ing a Stevie cassette I KNEW.I hadn’t
g~ en her, and forced her to fess up that
she, indeed~ had bought it- and loved it.),
as did hers for Meli~sa
Interestingly enough, if ybu play the
track"I Miss You" from Stevie’ s "Trouble
in Shangfi" La" and.then play "Enough of
Me" from Melissa’ S"Breakdown", you’ll
find it’ s almost the same song - same chord
progressions, sameguitar. Whoinfluenced
who? John Shanks, Melissa’s producer,
produced some of Stevie’ s album, but not
that track. Interesting...
There’ s a new Imax 3-D movie coming,
and it’s sure to bring a bit of Halloween
into summer. "The Haunted Castle opens
its doors July 4th. Johnnyinherits ahaunted
caste in England (isff t that where they all
are?) and goes to claim his inheritance. It’ s
a whole lotta trouble after that, as the devil
seems to thinkhe’ s the rightful Owner. The
Imax Corp0fation actually tried to launch
an effort to ban this film due to its graphic
content, entreating theatre owners not to
show iLHow much of that is true and how
much hype I don’t know, but it did make
for an interesting press release. And it
looks like it would be a fun film to check
out, especially forhorror buffs.A new way
to get a chill in the heat of summer.
On the local front, an.intriguing expericomes
to Tulsa to play in "Big" - and oh
~e puns I could make endlessly here. He
is rather a tall man... And very broad
shouldered, actually. Anyway, back to the
column at hand-no, don’ t go there, either.
Anyh.oo, themusical that flopped onBroad-
" way is now suitable for touring produc-
’ taons and Theater Arts is bringing it to
town July 13-22 at the Van Trease Per-
¯ - forming Arts Center for Education
(PLEASE get a shorter name!) at 595-
¯ 7777. At least it’ s a different phone num-
- bet.
Tulsa CARES presents "Hairball 2001,
an event to raise bucks to combat AIDS
and raise awareness (and hair) in Tulsa. If
you canget it up- the hair, I should say, to
clarify for the more gutterminded among
thereadership - and, if you can’ t get it up,
for hair raising fun, call 834-4194 ~0r tix to
the Tulsa CARES hair ball, er, hair (raising)°
ball. And have a ball, at the ball. Oh,
I think this column has just descended to a
whole new level, and it ain’t up.
For the folks still reading after that last
¯" bit who are into women, Shadia Dahlal
." ("Hello, dahling!" she says to thekids) and
¯ her Purple Roses of Cairo dance troupe
: swing into town July 26-29 to writhe and
¯ swing hips for your delight. "Passage to a
: world of dark-eyed women, mysterious
¯ customs,veils,incenseanddrums."Hmm,
¯ I know a couple of Lesbians that would
like to explore those mysteries, I bet.
¯ And on the lighter side, Theater Pops
¯ weighs in with ,Bash" July 26-August 5. ¯
"Bash" is acollection of 3 one act plays
." about people capable of unspeakable acts
: of evil and complexity.
¯ Nothing like a dose of Complex "evil to ¯
get the brai,’,n working. Better than coffee.
: Bi~lledas a portraitofhowdarkthehuman
: spirit can become," which I think I discov,
: ered all too well from grade school on
¯ through high school.
American Theatre Co.
presents.
July-12-21
John H. Williams Theater
Performing Arts Center
For tickets and information,
call 596-7111 or 800-364-7111
www.tulpac.com
Timothy W. Daniel
Attorney at Law
An Attorney who will fight for justice
& equality for-Gays & Lesbians
Domestic Partnership Planning,
Pers0nalInjury, Criminal Law & Bankruptcy
1-800-742-9468 or 918-352-9504
128 East Broadway, Di’umright, Oklahoma
Weekend and evening appointmenls are available.
Holland Hall
A SCHOOL THAT HAS iTS ACT TOGETHER
Holland Hall ranks
first in the city of Tulsa
and second in the state
for average ACT scores.
And, our seniors, Class of 2001,
have received acceptances to
colleges that include Brown,
Colorado College, Georgetown,
Harvard. MIT, Tufts, Tulane,"
University of Michigan,
Vanderbilt and Yale.
Laboratory work engages students in the new
18,000-square-foot Duenner Family Science,
Mathematics and Technology Center.
~PreSchool through G’i~tde 12
(918} 481-1111, ext. 251
the folks who provide the funding that
Gov. Frank administers to Oklahoma Today.
While our legislature’s no model of "
progressive thinking, there are a few sena- ¯
tors and representatives who.believe that ¯
evenGayOklahomans deserve tobe treated - ¯
fairly - and who know that Oklahoma
Today is funded with our tax dollars too.
Last but not least, I should note that this ¯
problem of invisible Gay people i~ not
new. We saw the same problem with the
"homo-free" Tulsa Centennial. Andinterestingly
enough some of the same players
retum~
If one could bring "disbarment" proceedings
againsta professor as you can
against a negligent attorney, thenOU professor
of letters Danney Goble, Ph.D.
should have his credentials revoked for
deliberately suppressing the history, ofGay
Tulsans in his Centennial book.
Some might excuse this as an oversight
but within a day after Goble received the
contract to write the Centennial history~ I
called him and gave him names and phone
numbers of several individuals who could
speak about the last 30 years of Tulsa’s
Gay history. Goblenever even bothered to
call any of these people and .yet claimed
his book was more reflective of the history
of Tulsa’ s minority communities.
Hadhe called and found the information
lacking, the omission might be justified.
Instead we just have plain and simple
bigotry. Also noteworthy is the recogni:
tion OT gives to Sharon King Davis who
was chair of Tulsa’s bigoted Centennial
effort. Davis, is both a staunch Baptist but
also a major Democratic Party leader.
Ofcourse, OklahomaDemocrats, mostly
want to pretend that there are no Gay
people here except for when national
Democratic groups require that they m,
elude us, oh, and when they need money,.
like certain former governor or current
congressman who both received or asked
for major donations from "rich Gays"
Of course, some will argue who cares
about Oklahoma Today? The only people
who read it are 62 year old white bigots
(and at least this 43 year old editor). But
the way we as a community are represented
in the media is crucial to our survival
and progress. When we are misrepresented,
prejudices remain and help create
an environment where hatred, assault
and even murder can flourish. When we
are rendered invisible, in effect, told we
are not even worthy of acknowledgement,
Oklahoma Todayhelps reinforcea climate
of intolerance.
Rendering minorities invisible is a.mil-~
lenniaold technique. Those whoconquered
eradicated the language, the culture of
those defeated. In America, history was
written as that of white men, whether or
not it really was until quite recently.
In Tulsa, all notices of the 1921 Race
Riot were torn out of the archives, and this
was not taught in~ any Tulsa public or
private school w.ell into the ’90’ s.
And of course, in Oklahoma today, we
see that there are no Gay people.
and 89% (220) were from urban areas.
Jackson County, including Kansas City,
had the largest count of same-sex couples,
1,723.
But whenthe 1,463 same-gender couples
in No. 2-ranking St. Louis County were
added to the 1,297 from the city of St.
Louis, No. 3 on the list, the total of 2,760
mtranked Jackson County.
For Elizabeth Radford and Marlssa Pace
of St. Louis, describing themselves as a
couple on their Census paperwork "’just
came easily because it’s who we are and
we are comfortable withit," said Pace, 32,
a chemist.
Radford, a 34-year-old social worker,
said she and Pace took the step last year of
having a marriage ceremony performed
by clergy during a party attended by about
70 friends and relatives in St. Louis.
In Ohio, 16,244 (88%) same-sex unmarried
households are in urban areas,
while 2,288 (12%) are in rural areas, according
to the census data. This marksa
slight change from .the 1990 census when
only 9% (336) of same-sex unmarried
households were in rural parts of the state
and 91% (3,441) were in urban areas.
In Alabama 5,778 (71%) same-sex .unmamed
households are in urban areas,
while 2,331 (29%)are in rural areas.
In1990, only 25% (262) of same-sex unmarried
households were in rural parts of
the state and 76% (807) were in urban
areas.
In Kansas, the census figures showed
that 2,544 (64%) same-sex unmarried
households are in urban areas, while 1,429
(36%) areinrural areas. In 1990;only 29%
(185) of same-sex ufimarried households
were in rural parts of the state and 71%
(462) were in urban areas.
Mike Silverman, 28, a computer software
e~glneer, and his partner of more
than five yearL Dave Greenbaum, recently
returned from Vermont, where they had a
civil union ceremony. Lawrence is home
of the University ofKansas, and Silverman
said it’ s the only city in the state with an
anti-discrimination ordinance protecting
Gay men and Lesbians.
In New York, 43,529 (94%) same-sex
¯ tmmarried households are in urban areas,
; while 2,961 (6%) are in rural areas. In the
¯
last census, only 4% (561) of:same-sex
¯ tmmarried households were in rural parts
of the state and 96% (13,187) were m
¯ urban areas.
Men with a male partner accounted for
¯ 15,016 households, and female couples
¯ made up 1’0,890 households, in 2000. The ¯
census also confirms that enclaves ofGays
¯ are concentrated in the Manhattan neigh-
" borhoods of Chelseaandthe’vVestVillage.
¯ Data on other states will be released in
~ batches through mid-August, according to
¯ census officials. The Human Pdghts Cam-
" paign (HRC), the largest national Lesbian
~md Gay political organization, is working
~ with the Urban Institute, a Washington,
¯ D.C. think tank specializing in statistical
: analysis, to analyze same-sex partner
¯ household data. HRClobbies Congress; ¯
provides camp.aign support and educates
¯ .thepublic to ensurethat LGBT Americans
¯ can be open and safe at home and at work
~7 Lamont Lindstrom, Ph.D.
Lastmonth some970 guns, several bales
of marijuana, and forty or so boxes of
pornography went up in smoke The Tulsa
Police Department used fire
clean its evidence lockers
of items it didn’t want to
auction back to the community.
Thank goodnesswe
are now thus secured
against these three menaces
to society:, weapons,
drugs, and dirty pictures.
The day the lurid glossies
went into the furnaces,
I happened to be reading
Barry Werth’s recent biography
The Scarlet Professor:
Newton Arvin- A Literary
Life Shattered by
Scandal.
Arvin was an ennnent
literary critic and professor
of English at Smith (in
Northampton, MA), 0neof
the Ivy-league’s "Seven
Sister" colleges for women.
His books on Nathaniel
Hawthbm, Walt Whitman,
~ind Herman Melville (the
later of which won~the National
BookAward) helped
create the canon of 19th
century American literature,
loved or cursed by
today’s English majors. Literature made
Arvin, and literature -of a sort also
destroyed him. Arvin was arrested,~fined,
institutionalized,, mad forced to retire for
possessing Gay pornography.
Born at the turn of the century, Arvin
was-shy, short, balding, and: often depressed.
He hdd married and divorced in
his early 30’ s but only slowly and partially
reconciled himself emotionally to his homosexuality.
He progressed through a
number of short-lived relationships with
younger men, some of whom he recruited
as English instructors. (In thgse days, sleep:
ing with the boss could be a more obvious
requirement of one’ s job.)
Truman Capote, a young writer Arvin
met at an artist colony, dated Arvin for two
years, and dedicated to him his first novel,
Other Voices, Other Rooms. To Arvin’s
credit, he kept in touch with many of his
lovers years after they had parted.
In his 50’s, Arvin discovered nearby
Springfield’s several Gay bars, cruising
New York City bathhouses (the Everard),
and also skin magazines. Arvin’ s renewed
sexual adventuresomeness partly reflected
an increasing loneliness of late middle age
but also the sudden appearance in New
York City newsstands of accessible Gay
pornography. In the 1950s, pioneer pornographers
such as Sam Roth and also
Bob Mizer, in the guise of the Athletic
Model Guild, began publishing pictures of
mostly naked (apart from a posing strap or
two) young men. Thom Fitzgerald’s recent
video Beefcake documents the historyof
the muscle maga~i,’nes that led to,
Arvin’s downfall such as Grecian GuiM
Piciorial, MANual, and Trim.
Before the 1950s, Gaypornography was
to spnng-
"... Pornography
9nly exlsts in soeiet~es
where sexuality, or
aspects thereof, is
repressed and
inhibited.
Pornography’s
secrecy and
saladousness furl its
conslderahle charm.
One may imagine,
however, some sexual
ecology...- past or
future-where .all
facets of se- x are
simply mundane and,
as a eonsec~uenee,
pornography is
unthlnhahl-e... "
scarce and hard to find. Basically, one had
¯ to write or draw or photograph it onesdf,
: or else somehow acquire obscure special
¯ editions and art prints mostly published in
Europe. By midcentury, however, Ameri2
can enterprise and knowhow
had at last brought
graphicpornography home
to the masses. Arvin began
buying and collecting the
new musclemagazines, and
also films of nude wresfling
and the like. A novel
technology, 8ram film and
the home movie projector
(perhaps Arvin borrowed
his from Smith College
classrooms?), also boosted
the mass market for pom
-productions.- We’ve recently
experienced similar
technological boosts with
the VCR, .DVD, and the
Intemet.
Pornography, actually,
as an idea is rather recent.
The word, a fancy madeup
Greek term meaning
"writing about harlots,"
first appeared around 1850
or so. Victorian archaeological
excavations of Roman
Pompeii and
Herculaneum had uncovered
shocking sexual imagery
in murals, mosaics, and decorative
household objects. These artifacts were
quickly.squirreled awayin secret museum
caches but they inspired a fierce interest, a
fascination only partly disguised by
"’pornography’ s" net-Greek facade.of polite,
scientific objecfiyity. Terminological
alternatives similarly have historically
shallow roots. Obscene is a Latin worst
that originally meant ominous or illomened;
and smut an Old English word
meamng sooty or smudged.
Pornography only exists in societies
Where sexuality, or aspects thereof, is repressed
and inhibited. Pornography’s secrecy
and salaciousness ftiel its considerable
charm. One may imagine, however,
some sexual ecology - past or .future -
where all facets -of sex are simply mundane
and, as a consequence, pornography
is unthinkable.
But not in Massachusetts in 1960, on the
cusp of the Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations.
Wily politicians then witch--
hunted pornographers and-their customers,
building careers on burning dirty pictures.
A new federal law, passed in July
1960, had made it illegal to send pornographic
material through the mail or to
otherwise distribute this. Arvin and his
circle of Gay. friends met occasionally to
trade magazines and films and to show off
new items in their collections. But postal
inspectors got busy tracking down pore
mailings-and, on September 2, 1960, three
police officers pounded on Arvin’ s door.
They seized his films and magazines and
Arvin too. Terrified, he ratted on Ms Gay
friends and colleagues two ofwhom, along
with Arvin, were convicted and lost their
teaching positions, see Studies, p. 11
Tulsa Oklahomans for
Human Rights
(TOHR) invites individuals, businesses and
organizations to a
Community-Wide
Meeting:
A Permanent Location for the
Community Center
Thurs., July 26th
6:30, meet & greet, program at 7pm_
LGBT Community Center, 21st & Memorial
Discussion Topics:
Where? How Big?
As Focus for New Neighborhood?
For info,, call 743-GAYS (743-4297)
IGTA member
Call 341. 6866
Intorn tion l
~TourS formoreinformation.
TULSA COUNTY
DEMOCRATIC
PARTY
Country Club Barbering
Custom Styling for Men & Women
David Kauskey
3310 E. 51st, 747-0236, Tues.-Fri., 8-5:30, Sat. 8-5pm
Want to save
Money and
Help Build a
Community
Center?
Switch to
Rainbow
Communications
Long Distance and More,
10% of Revenues Will
Benefit Tulsa Oklahomans
for Human Rights.
Capital Campaign and
General Fund
For more
information,
call 665-3401
or evenings
at A.A.7-8602.
Tulsa’s only
professional
body-piercing
Kelly Kirby,-CPA, PC
Certified Public Accountant
a professional-corporation
Lesbians and Gay men face many special
tax situations whether single or as couples.
Electronic filing is available for faster refunds.
747-5466
4021 South Harvard Avenue, Suite 210, Tulsa 74135
by Karin Gregory
You know when it hitS, don’t you? Ev- "
cry word she utters is golden, no matter ¯
how crude; every look she gives, you want .-
to capture on film to replay; every phone °
message she sends, you save mad listen to "
on your loneliest days(and especially ¯
nights!). You’re the homiest Lesbian in .
town, yet when you think of HER, you "
¯ don’t think of the next time you’ll have ¯
sex, just how good it feels to be with her, °
whether for an hour or a whole night, "
waking up with her the next morning. You .
want to learn her, be a part of her, and fuse o
yourtwo soulsinto one. Youwritehideous ~
purple prose in the second person that ¯
some poor folks in Tulsa will read (well, ¯
maybe not after this paragraph!). :
When-you’re with her, you’re on an "
emotional high, blocking out everyone ¯
around but the two of you. An hour after "
she’s left, you’re still high. Somewhere "
between the second and third hour, how- ¯
ever, your emotions sink so fast and so low
that you don’t think you can live until you "
see her again. When you hear from her, "
you sound like the silliest schoolgirl who .
ever lived. She’s the only woman who
makes you nervous because you can’ ttalk
to her like other women. You have to be "
honest. Her bluntness and honesty make
you want to be a better person, not only for "
her, but for yourself. Yoi~’re feeling emotions
you never thou.ght you had. Dare you
question? Analyze? Categorize every feel- .:
ing? Then put a label on those feelings? ¯
Can it be <gasp!> love? HELP!
Why do I need help?why don’ t Ijust sit "
back and enjoy the ride like most couples? ¯
For the first time in my life, I’m ready for ¯
that "R" word. She’s beautiful, talented, "
creative, interested in me. So what’s the ¯
problem? Miss Interested-In-Me has only
one flaw--the same flaw that haunts many
Gay couples--the dreaded_EX! Yup, I’min "
love with a woman who’ s stillinlove with ¯
her ex. Before you start calling me all °
kinds of stupid, I knew about the ex before °
I met Miss Interested-In-Me in person. I
just didn’ t know, nor did she, the extent of °
those feelings. Now you can call me all "
kinds of stupid! I walked into this trap. "
I even met Ms. X once at my,.., my,.
.. my.... whatever’s house. Gay Felix and "
I liked her very much. No, she couldn’t be "
rude, crude, and vulgar, could she? She "
couldn’t be evil and have a wart on her ¯
nose. Oh, no! Remember, we’re talking ."
Gregory luck here. She and "my girl" are "
- even best friends. OUCH! And Ms. X "
likes me. I found out about that when Miss °
Interested-In-Me and I spent aparticularly
soulful night together.. "She likes you," :
she said. "She. likes how attentive you are ."
to me." ¯
It occurred to me to say, "Well, it’ s nice "
to get the first wife’s permission,’" but I "
thought better of it. If this woman has ¯
taught me anything, it’ s to think before I ;
speak--a first for me. I’ ve also learned that "
it’s easy to live with a stake through your "
heart. It’s just when that stake is twisted ¯
around that you think you won’t ever be "
able to breathe again. She also tells me I’m "
.anincredible person to listen to her and not "
to run. I’dlike to say that incredible people
are not easy to find; that once you find one,
you hold on for dear life. But then I have to
think about that and realize that too much
too soon will run off Miss Interested-In-
Me.
Some people say she’ s using me. Others
say that shejust needs time. Hell, she’ s had
at least two years! Gay Felix, who’s been
around her more than others, told me the
other day, "Karin, she’s called you, invited
you over, initiated sex--I’ dbe happy!"
He’s a man--what else did you expect?
I’m also remembering a line from a
musical, for which mosrof you Gay men
would be proud. Around the end of ’~The
Music Man", when the townspeople discover
that "Professor" Harold Hill is a con
man, they run after him with tar and feathenng
in mind. Marian the Librarian’ s little
brother, Winthrop, tells Hill to run away.
Hill says he can’ t. He. looks at Marian and
declares,"For t_he first time in my life; I got
my foot caught in the door.’"
Marian, if you’re out there, think of my
foot and how it must hurt being stuck in
your door for so long. Think of "that stake
twisting through my heart. Know that this
salesman won’ t bemaking any morehouse
calls for a long time. Aren’t exes a bitch?
Arvin’s collection of soft, nudie guy
imagery, lugged imo court as evidence,
undoubtedly was subsequently burned.
Arvin died two years after his trial, in
1963.
Forty years later, it is quaint, one could
say, that the state still strikes matches to
protect us from the perils of pornography.
Butitmaybe alosing battle, particularly in
Oklahoma. The more sexual repression,
themorepornography. It’ s maybe no accident
that Tulsa spelled backwards, as ~veryone
knows, is A SLUT.
Lamont Lindstrom teaches anthropology
ht the University o[Tulsa, and can be
reached at lamont10@yahoo.com
It is time for society tO recognize that
Gays and Lesbians are a responsible minority
facing unjust discrimination and
mistreatment by the majority - just like
every other minority which has struggled
forjustice a~.d equal treatment inAmerica.
- Nathaniel Batchelder, Director
The Peace House, Oklahoma City
In statements to TFN, McClure noted
that repeated efforts to discuss and resolve
these issues with Tulsa Comity commis,
Sioner John Selph, a Democrat and with
Tulsa Mayor Susan Savage, also a Demo:
crat, both of whom are represented on the
Criminal Justice Authority, have been rebuffed
to date.
McClure also issued a written challenge
to Savage and the county commissioners
to meet with him to resole these issues.
present.s
I
JuIy 14, 8pm, PAC’sWestby Pavilion ~ LaFortune
Studio,
$80 donation.
Call Rebecca at 834-4194
Withholding Medicines
TULSA (TFN) - Early in June, the Stipe Law Firm
notified the Tulsa County Criminal Justice Authority,
that it was suing the authority on behalf of Daniel
McClure..McClure, aperson living with AIDS (PLWA)
was arrested onJune 12, 2000 andbookedinto the Tulsa
Jail. Per the notice of tort claim letter, and statements
made to TFN while being held at thejail, McClure was
denied access to his medicines as well as to timely
medical care despite repeated requests. Because anumber
of HIV treatments have strict regimens, failure to
take the drugs at the prescribed tim~" can result in
seriously greater illness.
The letter filed by the Sfipe Law Firm alleges that
"negligence of the Tulsa County Criminal Justice Authority"
has lead to a faster progressirn of McClute’ s
disease, "a.worsening of l~s medical condition and
emotional distress." The.claim is for in .excess of
Parade. +Festival 2001
TULSA ~FFN) - It was a part new event and part old
event. The 2001 Pride celebrations, organized by Tulsa
Okla,.omans for Human Rights (TOHR) had a new
paraae route, alarger festival in the old sit~ and some o
the_same old protesters. The parade featured even more :
church floats anda shorterlength going along Cherry St. "
from Utica to Veterans Park. But true to prior years, a "
handful offundamentalist Christians mostly peacefully ¯
protested along the route. The protesters included some
of .the anti-Gay Fred Phelps cult of Topeka, Kansas.
The night before the parade and festival, the Tulsa
Country Club’w.as the site of a gala fundraising dinner. "
And while the event may have been slightly "
underattended, it was rinsed more funds than any prior
sort of event. Community Hero awardee, Rick Martil
used a spirited auction style to solicit funds from attend: "
ees to match a $5,000 commitment from TOHR supporter
Mark Bouney. NOt only was the match made but "
due to the generosity of Williitms Cos. DiVersity Director
Eric Watson, Who attended with his wife, over "
$20,000 wasraised. The attendence of Mr. Watson on ¯
behalf of Williams was a first for any major Tulsa ."
corporation as was their $5,000 donation. "
TOHR will be ho!ding their monthly meeting onJuly "
10 at 7pro at the LGBT Center and solicits feedback on
the Pride events fl~e. TOHR members also attended ."
the Okla. City parade, carrying the 120’ rainbow flag.
IJJ DIRECTORY
~ EDITORIAL/PRI DE.15HOTOS
US & WORLD NEWS
HEALTH NEWS
ENTERTAINMENT + MORE P, 8
GAY STUDIES/RAGING LESBIAN P, 10/11
P, 2 "
P, 3
P, 4 "
P, 6
~Serving ~Lesbian’ ,.,=,.Gay’ ~~,Bisexual=T~~ans+gend~r~ed¯ Tulsans, O0r.. r__ammesFamili + Friends"
=mo ng¯ -D ’ve¯rs!ty :¯ _P’ ride Everywhere.. NYC,
Tulsa Pride Parade & Festival i San Francmco + Omahti
¯ SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A Lesbian motorcade, which included topless riders waving rainbow flags,
¯ faux nuns, clowns and brides, rode down the street,
: kicking off the city’s 31st Annual Pride Parade and
¯ Celebration.
¯ An estimated 1 million people cheered as the group
¯ of Dykes on Bikes roared their motorcycles on Sun¯
day late in June and led floats of. drag queens, city officials, community groups and marching bands to
." the Civic Center plaza, where the celebration, lasted
¯ all day.
For Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals and Transgenders
¯ attending, the parade helped to create an atmosphere
." of acceptance and celebration. It’s also an opportu-
¯ nity to educate people about, their community. The
¯
parade is California’s largest public event and has .
¯ become one of the’world’s best known Gay pride
¯ celebrations.
¯ "Thi s is a great opporthnity to raise the visibility of
the Gay community," said city Supervisor Mark
¯ Lent, who is’ openly Gay and served as one the
¯ p ade s five marshals. S,a~,, Francisco has ,always
been a leader in Gay rights but nationwide, I m still
¯ a second-class citizen," Lent said. The parade is an
¯ opportunity to help oti~ers understand that Gay issues
¯ are everyone’s issues, he said.
The celebration also has became aforum to address
,,: the impact of AIDS on the community.over the past
¯ two decades. "I’m a survivor of the disease," said
David Lyons, an Oaldandresident whohas not missed
¯ aparade since !98l: "Tiffs is a great chance to educate
.you~..g_African-Ameri,¢~, ,~,,Gay people. We can’ t think
’ itself.
The 2001 Diversity Festival willfeature booths & entertaiment.
¯
U.S, Census Sh.ows More Gay
Couples; More Figures to Come ¯ WASHINGTON (AP/TFN)- U.S. census figures released at the ¯
end of last month for five states continue to show a dramatic
increase in the.number of households that comprise same-se~
partners but most likely still undercount the actual number due to
co,n,~,finued anti~.Gay bias, the Hum.an Rights Campaign said.
~ nese newngures continue to show a national trend where
record number of people are willing to acknowledge living in a
household with "a same-sex partner," said David M. Smith.
HRC’s communications director and senior strategist. "While
the census data suggest incredible progress, we believe thi
census continues to undercount same-sex partners because many
people are still not comfortable disclosingi~ a federal survey that
they are in a same-sex relationship. And despite an educational
effort by HRC and other, groups, not all respondents were aware
of the census question. -
s___T~_.e ~ensns ~B,urean released da.ta today for Alabama, Mis-
¯ oun, ~xansas, r~ew York and Ohio. New York reported the
largest number of same-sex households with 46,490, a 238%
increase from the 1990 census. Ohio reported the next largest
tiumber with 18,937 same-sex.households, a 401% increase.
Missouri ranked third with 9,428, a 388% increase. Alabama
reported 8,109 same-sex honseholds, a 659% increase. And
Kansas reported 3,973~ a 514% increas~
’.q’he census data have important social implications because
Americans will become acutely aware that Gay and Lesbian
families are numerous and face discrin~natory barriers in terms
Ofpubh"c poh"cy," stu" d Smi’ th. "Asmore of these families become
visible in their communities, people will work to end the unfair
treatment andlegal discrimination they often face." "
Census figures released also show that the number of same-sex "
unmarried partners in rural areas have. increased slightly. The
most substantial change was in Missouri, where 7,095, (75%) "
same-sex unmarried households are in urban areas while 2,333 "
(25%) arein rural areas. This marks a significant change from the "
1990 census when only 11% (1,711) of same sex unmarried
households were in rural parts of the state see Census, p. 9
G " " bymanywhohavefoughtfor
ay rights. Everybody did the hard work," she said.
’~Now, there are so many non-Gay people who.come
and bring th(ir children: This to me means acceptance.
It gives me a sense of belonging.’"
This year’s event featured several new additions
and promised more diversity than ever, plus a more
family friendly environment, organizers said.
Cecilia Chung, Gay Pride Parade president, estimated
1 million people attended Sunday’s celebration.
.
But the drag queens in sequined dresses and feathers
along with the young, buff men wearing tight
shorts were a bit too much ~or some tourists who got
caught in the middle of the celebration "It’s enlightening,"
said Sally Christenson, 48. "I was naive. I
never thought people would expose themselves to
this extent. You don’t see this in Minnesota."
However in Minneapolis...
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -Anestimated 200,000 people
gathered in Loring Park inMinneapolis to celebrate
Gay pride. "It’s the one weekend of the year where
people can be themselves and not have tO worry," said
TBiw~i N~.n.al~, One ofthe organizers ofl~e 29th annual
in t~mes ~ay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Pride
Festival.
While likely a little less flamboyant than the event
in San Francisco, the turnout in Miuneapolis showed
that statem,,e.n,t above by Sally Christenson isn’t quite
accurate. It s a fun time," said Jolene K,o,stohryz,
who stud she attends the festival every.year. You get
to see a whole bunch of different kinds Of people."
And in Omaha,
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - The city’s 17th a.~uualGay
Prideparadedrew hundreds ofparticipants and watchers
as it snaked through 12 downtown blocks. The
theme for the parade was "Phoenix Rising," which
organizers said was a reference to the movement’s
renewed efforts after last year’ s passage of Initiative
416.
see Pride; p, 5
Tulsa Clubs & Restaurants
*~amboo Lounge, 7204 E. Pine
*Play-Mor, 424 S. Memorial
Polo Grill, 2038 Utica Square
*Renegades/Rainbow Room, 1649 S. Main
*St. Michael’s Alley Restaurant, 3324-L E. 31st
~Schatzi’ s, 2619 S. Memorial
*The Star, 1565 Sheridan
*TNT’ s, 2114 S. Memorial
*Tool Box II, 1338 E. 3rd
*Vortex, 2182 S. Sheridan
*The Yellow Brick Road Pub, 2630 E. 15th
832-1269
610~5323
838-9792
744-4280
585-3405
745-9998
280-1316
834:4234
660-0856
584-1308
835-2376
749-1563
Tulsa Businesses, Services, & Professionals
Assoc. inMed. & Mental Health, 2325 S. Harvard 743-1000
Barnes & Noble Booksellers, 8620 E. 71 250-5034
Barnes & Noble Booksellers, 5231 E. 41 665-4580
BodyPiercing by Nicole, 2722 E. 15 712-1122
*Borders Books. & Music, 2740 E. 21 712-9955
*Borders B.ooks & Music, 801~ S. Yale 494-2665
Brookside Jewelry, 4649 S. Peoria 743-5272
*CD Warehouse, 3807c S. Peoria 746-0313
*Cheap Thrills, 2640 E. 1 lth 295-5868
Cherry St. Psychotherapy, 1515 S. Lewis 581-0902, 743-4117
Commuuity Cleaning, Kerby Baker 622-0700
Tim Daniel, Attorney 352-9504, 800-742-9468
-*Deco to Disco, 3212 E. 15th 749-3620
Doghouse on Bro0kside, 3311 S. Peoria 744-5556
*Elite Books & Videos, 821 S. Sheridan 838-8503
Encompass Travel, 13161H N. Me~ofial 369-8555
Ross Edward Salon 584-0337, 712-9379
Events Unlimited~ 507 S, Main_ ~ 592-0460
Floral Design Studio, 3404 S. Peoria 744-9595
Four Star Import Automotive, 9906 E. 55th P1. 610-0880
Cathy Furlong, Ph.D., 1980 Utica Sq. Med. Ctr. 628-3709
G~y & Lesbian Affordable Daycare 808-8026
*Gloria Jean’s Gourmet Coffee, 1758 E. 21st 742-1460
Leanne M. Gross,-Insurance &financial planning 459-9349
Mark T. Hamby, Attorney 744-7440.
*Sandra J. Hill, MS, Psychotherapy, 2865-E. Skelly 745-1111
*International Tours 341-6866
Jacox Animal Clinic, 2732.E. 15th 712-2750
*Jared’ s Antiques, 1602 E. 15th 582-3018
David Kauskey, Country Club Barbering 747-0236
The Keepers, Housekeeping & Gardening 582-8460
*Ken’ s .:Flowers, 1635 E. 15 599-8070
Kelly Kirby, CPA, 4021 S. Harvard, #210 .747-5466
*Li,~ing ArtSpace, 308 Soffth Kenosha 585-1234
*Midtown Theater, 319 E. 3rd 584-3112
Mingo Valley Flowers, 9720c E. 31 663-5934
*Mohawk Music, 6157 E 51 Place 664~2951
Puppy Pause II, 1060 S. Mingo 838-7626
*The Pride Store 743-4297
Rainbowz on the River B+B, POB 696, 74101 747-5932,
;’Richard’s Carpet Cleaning 834-0617
Teri Schutt, Ellen & Co. 834-7921,748-0224
Paul Tay, Car Salesman 260-7829
*Tulsa Comedy Club, 6906 S. Lewis 481-0558
Venus Salon, 1247 S. Harvard 835-5563
Fred Welch, LCSW, Counseling 743-1733
*Wherehouse Music, 5150 S. Sheridan 665-2222
*Whittier News Stand, 1 N... Lewis 592-0767
www.gaytulsa.org - website for Tulsa Gays &Lesbians
Tulsa Agencies, Churches, Schools & Universities
AIDS Walk Tulsa, POB 4337, 74101 579-9593
All Souls Unitarian Church, 2952 S. Peoria 743-2363
Black & White, Inc: POB 14001, Tulsa 74159 587-7314
Bless The Lord at All Times Christian Center, 2207 E. 6 583-7815
B/L/G/T Alliance, Univ. of Tulsa United Min. Ctr. 583-9780
Chaml~r of Commerce Bldg., 616 S. Boston 585-1201
*Chapman Student Ctr., University of Tulsa, 5th P1. & Florence
Church of the Restoration UU, 1314 N.Greenwood 587-1.314
*Community of Hope Church, 2545 S. Yale 747-6300
*Community Unitarian-Universalist Congregation 749-0595
Council Oak Men’s Chorale 748-3888
*Delaware Playh_ouse, 1511 S. Delaware 712-1511
918.583.1248, fax: 583.4615
POB 4140, Tulsa, OK 74159, e-mail: TulsaNew.s.@earthlink.net
Publisher + Editor: Tom Neal
Writers + contributors: James Christjohn, Karin Gregory, Barry
Hensley, J.-P. Legrandbouche, Lamont Lindst¢om,Esther
Rothblum, Mary Schepers, Hughston Walkinshaw
Member of The Associated Press
Issued around the 1 st of each month, the entire contents of.this
publication are protected by US copyright-2001 by Tulsa
Family News and may notbe reproduced either in whole or in
part without written permission from the publisher. Publication
of a name or photo does not indicate a person’ S sexual
orientation. Correspondence is assumed to be for publication
unless otherwise noted, must be signed & becomes the sole
property of Tulsa Family News. Each reader is entitled to 4
copies of each edition at distribution points.
Additional copies are avail-able by calling 583~1248:
¯¯ *Democratic Headquarters, 3930 E. 31 742-2457
Dignity/Integrity of Tulsa- Lesbian & Gay Catholics &
¯ Episcopalians; POB 701475, 74170-1475 355-3140
: *Fellowship Congreg. Church, 2900 S. Harvard 747:7777
¯ *FreeSpiritWomen’ s Center, call for location&info: 587-4669 ¯
Friend For A Friend, POB 52344, 74152 747-6827
¯ Friends in Unity Social Org., POB 8542, 74101 582-0438
¯ *Tulsa C.A.R:E.S, 3507 E. Admiral 834-4194
¯ HOPE, HIV Outreach, Prevention, Education 834-8378 ¯
*HouseoftheHoly SpiritMinstries,1517 S. Memorial 224-4754
¯ *MCC United~ 1623. N. Maplewood 838-1715
¯ NAMES Project, 3507 E. Admiral P1. 748-3111
: NOW, Nat’l Org forWomen, POB 14068, 74159 365-5658 ¯ OK Spokes Club (bicycling), POB 9165, 74157
¯ *OSU-TUlsa
¯ PFLA-G; POB: 52800, 74152 749-4901
¯ *Planned Parenthood, 1007 S..Peoria 587-7674 Prime-Timers, P.O. Box 52118, 74152
¯ R.A:I.N., Regional AIDS Interfaith Network 749-4195
¯ *Red Rock Mental Center, 1724 E. 8 584-2325 ¯
St. Aidan’ S Episcopal Church, 4045 N. Cincinnati 425-7882
: St.Dunstan’s Episcopal, 5635 E. 71St 492-7140
: *St. Jerome’s Parish Church, 205 W. King 582-3088
¯ Soulforce-OK,Rt.4,#3534,Stigler74462 587-3248,452-2761 ¯
*Tulsa Area United Way, 1430 S. Boulder 583-7171
¯ *TNAAPP (Native American men), Indian Health Care 582-7225
¯ Tulsa County Health Department, 4616 E. 15 595-4105 ¯
¯ Confidential HIV Testing - by appt. on Thursdays only
Tulsa Okla. for Human Rights,.Gay Comm. Center 743-4297
" TUL-PAC, PositiveAdvoeacy Coalition, POB2687,TUlsa 74101
¯ T.U.L.S.A. Tulsa Uniform/Leather Seekers Assoc. 298-0827
: .-*Tulsa City Hall, Ground Floor Vestibule
¯
*Tulsa Community College Campuses
¯ *Tulsa Gay Commtmity Center, 2Ist & Memorial 743-4297
¯ Unity Church of Christianity,3355 S. Jamestown 749-8833
¯ BARTLESVILLE
Barflesville Public Library, 600 S. Johnstone 918-337-5353
TAHLEQUAH ~
¯ Stonewall League, call for information: 918-456-7900
¯ Tahlequah Unitarian-Universalist Church .918-456-7900
Green Country AIDS Coalition, POB 1570 918-453-9360
¯ EUREKA SPRINGS, ARKANSAS
¯ Autumn Breeze Restaurant, Hwy. 23 501-253-7734
." Jim & Brent’.s,Bistro, 173 S. Main 501-253-7457
.. DeVito’s Restaurant, 5 Center St. 501-253-6807
¯ Emerald Rainbow, 45 &l/2 Spring St. 501-253-5445
¯
MCC of the Living Spring o 501-253-9337
¯ Geek to Go!, PC Specialist, POB 429 501-253-2776
¯ Old Jallhouse Lodging, 15 Montgomery 501-253-5332
Positive Idea Marketing Plans 501-624-6646
¯ White Light, 1 Center St. 501-253-4074
¯
JOPLIN, MISSOURI
¯ Spirit of Christ MCC, 2639 E. 32, Ste. U134 417-623-4696
: ~ is where youcan find TFN. Not all are Gay-owned but all are Gay-friendly.
Council Oaks Men’s Chorale
As a Gay Dad, I recently experienced a
wonderful first. During the TOHR coordi:
~ J~ation of Tulsa Gay Pride week celebration,
: my younger son, his cousin and a high
¯ school peer of theirs attended their first ever
¯ " gay related function. Since divorcing and
¯ coming out five years .ago, this is the first
time one of my children has attended a gay
: function. Of the varied venues offered dur-
: ing the 2001 Tulsa Gay Pride week, we
chose to attend the Council Oak Men’s
¯ Chorale mini concert heldMonday evening.
at the central library.
¯ This was the first time my son and his
¯ friends had been exposed to the Gay com-
" muuity in such "large numbers", for high
¯
school "kids" accustomed to the top 10 rock/
¯ pop/rap tunes, the concert repertoire was a
¯ - bit austere, however, I am pleased to say
¯ these urban kids, left the concert with a new ¯
refreshing positive attitude and respect to-
" ward the Gay .community at large. As a
¯ compliment, FII tell you that the most re-
. peated comment was... "these guys are
¯
gay?" Fortunately, as we all began to openly
¯ talk during the eveni~ig many typical worn
¯, out"stereotypes andmyths"were dispelled.
Thank you Council Oak guys for your
¯ hard work and continued efforts to be a
¯ positive force and professional face on be-
-¯ half of .our community. You’ ve helped in
part to make a great difference in the con-
: tinuing relationship with my son. I am honored
to consider Council Oak Chorale as
¯ being part of "my extended family". ¯
- Milton-Nunley, Tulsa
¯ Oklahoma City Removes
: Gay Banners Despite Permit
¯ The Gay Pride banners which ~Tere hung
¯ on light poles at the north end of Classen
¯ Boulevard in Oklahoma City cost the spon\
¯ soring organizations $11,000. Their design.
¯ was approved in advance by the City of
¯ Oklahoma City. The legal permit to hang
¯ them extended through July 7. For the City
¯ to remove the banners ten days before the
." permit expired is a blatant <~xample of dis-
: crimination against the gay and lesbian or-
,¯ ganizations which followed procedures and
incurred great expense to have the banners
¯ professionally produced and placed on the
." poles.
¯ "No News is Good News" - Oklahoma
: City’ s Gay Rights March and Pride Parade
¯ on Sunday afternoon, June 24, included a
¯ festival beforehand in Memorial Park, with
¯ booths, tables, livemusic, and refreshments ¯
- and a huge street party afterwards. Some
¯ 7,000 to 10,000 participants and supporters
." took part in. the events, which were well
¯ organized; peaceful, and celebrative. That
" the events were poorly reported by the local
." news media - or not covered at all - repre-
¯ . sents more disc.rimination against homo-
. ¯ sexuals.
: Gays and Lesbians struggle to find their
¯ place in a society where, religious leaders,
¯ editorial writers, parents, and teachersjudge
i" them, condemn them, and vilify them for
¯ who they are. Gay teenagers commit suicide
." in far higher percentages than do hetero-
¯ sexual, teenagers.
: see Letters, p. 11
by Tom Neal
Oklahoma Today, the official magazine of the State of
Oklahoma, just released their July/August issue which
features Tulsa. But is it a rather peculiar Tulsa.
Just as once the majoritywhite culture refused to
acknowledge racial minorities, creating a whites only
image, Oklahomt~ Today(OT)has shownTulsaas "straights
only."
Now we should give them a very little credit. They did
get a few black folks in the issue and actually even ones
who are wall regarded in the black community in,~tead of
Tulsa’ s white leadership’ s favorite "acceptable" blacks.
Butjournalists, at least when they really do theirjob, are
supposed to reflect reality. And the reality is that there are
Lesbian and Gay people in Tulsa: we exist. ~
Oklahoma’s oldest Lesbian and Gay organihations are
here: the oldest, the Metropolitan Community Church
United, renamed but still extant, and Tulsa Oklahomans
for Human Rights (TOHR), which runs the Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual and Transgendered Community Center, And this
publication has been around nearly eightyears. It would
have taken very little to mention the community center, or
to identify, just as was done for Tulsa blacks, one or
another community leader, or mention a community publication-
as was done of, obviously, The World, but also,
The Oklahoma Eagle and that waste of newsprint, the
prejudiced and anti-Gay Urban Tulsa.
’What’ s baffling about Oklahoma’Today’s failure (~t its
heart, simply to tell the truth about our city) isthat after a
conversation ] had with its editor Louisa McCune about
four years ago, OT ran a mention of the first or second
Pride March (before the first parade). McCune knows that
we exist.
But perhaps the problem doesn’t lie there. Oklahoma
Today publisher Joan Henderson’s response to my coneems
was that when OT featured Oklahoma City some
issues back, they proudly ignored OKC’ s LGBT community
also.
Later in the conversation, she variously suggested that
they could not write about us because they give OT to 4th
graders and theycan’ t write "about sex," thattheir readers
are all about 62 years old and they don’ t even want to read
about blacks or Indians, and that they’re a state magazine
.and if we have a problem with what Oklahoma Today’s
doing, wecanjust talk to her Republican boss, Gov. Fr~tk
K.eating, Lt. Gov~ Mary Fallin, and Tourism and Recreataon
Executive Director Jane Jayroe.
Of course, I-wouldn’t waste my breath tr~ing to talk
with the ethically bd’uddled Keating et al, but I do think it
will be quite interesting to talk with members of the
legislature - see Today, p. 8
Official Refuses to
Perform Gay Marriages
LEEUWARDEN, Netherlands (AP) - A civil servant
who has refused to officiate Gay marriages could be
fired by the city, officials said last month. Nynke
Yxinga-Boomgaardt can only save herpart-time job if
she signs a contract agreeing to wed same-sex couples
at city hall, municipal authorities in Leeuwarden said.
Same-sex mamages were legalxzed in April, making
the Netherlands the first country to grant Gay
couples the same rights as heterosexual couples, including
~e right to adopt children. "In this job she has
the obligation to enforce the law, and under Dutch law
Gay couples have equal rights," said Jan van der Hoek,
a spokesman for the city, about 100 kilometers (60
miles) north of Amsterdam. If she refuses, the.spokesman
said, her contract will be .terminated in September.
Eringa-Boomgaardt refused to wed fwo Gay couples
over the past three months, saying she is principally
opposed to same-sex marriages. The couples are still
waiting to be married.
"This is about the battle betWeen equality and my
right to have conscientious objections," Eringa-
Boomgaardt told the Trouw daily newspaper..
Gay-Pride Flag
Burners Arrested
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - A man with a history of
desecrating the Gay-pride flag is one of two people
charged with burning the baiaher during a parade.
Police charged Charles Spingola, 45, and Thomas
Meyer, 47, both of Newark, with open buming, a firstdegree
misdemeanor punishable by as. much as six
months in jail. .
A state appeals court last week upheld Spingola’s
conviction on criminal damage charges for tearing
down:aGay-prideflag thatwas flying at the Statehouse
two:years -ago a~ a’similar parade. " .
Police said Spingolaand Meyer setfire to arainbow-"
colored flag they had been carrying as the last marchers
in the Columbus Pride Parade passed the Statehouse.
Police Sgt. Michael Piccininni said Spingola
had burned another Gay-pride flag about 21/2 hours
earlier outside Broad Street United Methodist Church,
where a Gay-oriented service took place before the
parade.
Piccininni said Spingola was given a waming, but
returned later during the parade with a new flag and a
small container 0f gasoline.
Andrea Critchet, head of parade security, said she
was splashed with gasoline after approaching Spingola
andMeyernear the Statehouseand telling themto keep
away from parade participants. ’°We were there to
protect him, to-keep the crowd away from him,"
Cfitchet said. "He said, ’You’ re all gonnaburn in hell,’
and he flipped it (the flag) up on me.". Cfitchet was
~checked by paramedics for burning in her’throat but
was not injured.
Teresa Spingola, 46, said her husband and her two
sons, 12 and 16, intended to burn the nylon flag, but
didn’ t expect the scuffle or arrests that followed. "It’ s
legal to bum the American flag. We thought it’ s OK to
bum the queer flag," she said. She said that last.year,
the family burned a Gay flag at the same intersection
without incident.
Presbyterian Pastor
Comes Out, Resigns
¯ chief policy-making body of the Presbyterian Church
¯ " (U.S:A.) voted to relmmmend lifting a ban on ordaining
homosexual clergy.
The measure must still be ratified over the next year
by .a majority Of the ~hurch’s 173 presbyteries, or
regional legislatures. That will be harder to achieve
and, besides,. Hawley cannot endure any=longer the
stress of living in two worlds.
’T ve had a lot of personal, emotional and health
struggles, and I just realized I could not live in the
closet anymore," said Hawley, 42, who led the Genesee
Valley Presbytery, which represents 73 congregations
in the Rochester region_ in western NewYork. "I knew
I had to get more open with my sexuality if I was going
to recover. There’ s been a lot of pain in terms of being
silent when I personally ~’elt I s.hould have been sw.aking."
Hawley did not plan to have his departure from the
church coincide with the emotional debate in Louisville,
Ky., where the General Assembly of thenafion’ s
. sixthlargest Protestant denomination voted 317-208m
favor of ordination of Gays attd Lesbians.
What his decision will do is allow him to speak more
forcefully on an issue that several mainline Protestant
denominations, notably the Episcopal Church and
United Methodist Church, have struggled with in recent
years. "I feel~badly in a way that I haven."t been
more outspoken but that’ s part of the problem with the
closet - it’s not safe to," he-said. "But now I can tall
people how destructive it was to try to live that life and
quietly serve."
Hawley, who grew up in Montrose, Pa., and studi_e,d.,.
atthe Jesuit-run University of Scranton~ said he didn t
realize he was Gay when he was ordained in 1983. He
¯ figured it out in 1995 after years of turmoil.
Although he was not in a relationship,Hawley said
: he constantly feared losing his job. He might have
¯ battled to keep it now, he said, but knew that conserva-
¯ fives in the presbytery would have pushed for his
removal. "That’ s the fight that I didnotpersonally want
¯
to take," said Hawley, who plans a new career in
teaching. ’-’The only way I can be honest and comfortable
about myself is to come out and to resign. It’ s a
. ¯ matter.of integrity."
¯ At last year’s General Assembly meeting, Hawley
said he was forced to listen quietly as conservatives
argued against inclusion Of Gays in the leadership of a
church that has a~ many as 3.6 million members. The
¯ remarks were not~"hateful so much as ignorant," he
¯ said. The push to remove the ban on Gay clergy from ¯
the church’ s constitution "would mean-the church has
made a really radical shift, and I’mnot sure that ithas,’~
he added.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) - In hi’s .t8th year as a ¯
Presbyterian minister, the Rev. Bill Hawley realized ¯
he could nolonger keep his sexual orientation a secret. -’.
¯By revealing that he’s Gay, Hawley also decided his :
only real choice was to quit the church. ¯
His resignation took effect June 15, the same day the ~ :
Bank Refuses Account
to Anti-Gay Group
: MONTREAL (AP) - A Canadian bank is refusing to
¯ open an account for a coalition of conservative and ¯
religious.groups that opposes MontreaV s bid to host
¯ the2006GayGames.Montrealis competingwiththree
¯ U.S. cities- Chicago, Atlanta and Los Angeles - to
host the Gay Games, which typically draw 24,000
:’ athletes and 200,000 spectators.
: -The No ’C-ommittee2006 was formed in April after
¯ -Montreal announced its. bid. The. committee’s mem-
: bers indudethe Christian Heritage Party and the Cam~
¯ paign Life Coalition for Quebec. The Rev. Daniel
Cormier, who heads the committee, said the group
¯ fears visiting athletes could spread the HIV virus that ¯
leads to AIDS.
A Royal Bank spokesman-confirmed the No Committee
2006 was denied a bank account for donations
for supporters. "We refuse to support or oppose di.scriminatory
activities of ~any kind," said bank spokes-
"man Raymond Chouinard.
Cormier called thebank’ s refusal discriminatory. He
said at a news conference Friday that his group would
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take the case to court or the Quebec Human Rights.
Commission.
East Ohio Methodists
Oppose Anti-Gay Stance
LAKESIDE, Ohio (AP) - A group of United Methodist
ministers and parishioners from the East Ohio "
Conference is preparing for another attack on th~ "
hurch s anti-Gay doctrine.
Thirty United Methodist ministers in the regional
groupjoined dozens of church members in signing the "
"East Ohio Declaration," whichopposes the doctrine’ s "
anti-Gay stance, andwill begin a series of discussions
in September aimed at the issue. The United:Methodist
church has more than 9 million members worldwide .
most are in the United States. ¯
During its national quadrennial meeting in Cleve- ¯
land last summer, about 1,000 church leaders voted 2- ¯
1. to uphold the church’ s stance on Gays. The doctrine .
states that homosexuality is incompatible with ~aris- ¯
tian teaching; thatno sexually-activehomosexual rain- ¯
isters should be ordained; and that same-sex mamages ¯
will. not be honored.
Bishop Jonathan D. Keaton - who oversees the ¯
192,000-member East Ohio Conference - planned a ¯
series of discussions in preparation for revisiting the "
issue when the United. Methodist Church meeots again "
in Pittsburgh in 2004.
Two representatives from each of the 12 East Ohio :
Methodist districts will attend a September 22 prelimi- ."
nary meeting. One representative will sent to support .
existing church doctrine, the other to argue for change. ¯
Those delegates plus 40 other church officials will air ¯
their views and be traine3l to organize similar meetings .
around the state.
: A magistrate had said the state did not have enough
: evidence to support the aggravated kidnapping charge.
¯ But the Supreme Court disagreed, saying though the
facts are in dispute, there is enough evidence to argue
them in court.
us," said Tom Aeschlimann, one of the event’ s orgamzers.
For the first time the parade had a grand
marshal, Scott Winkler, a native of Loomi s who is an
insurance agent in Omaha.
New York City Event Rivals SF One
NEW YORK (AP) - Three dozen Gay couples celebrated
their same-sex partnerships to kick off New
York City’ s 32nd annum Gay pride parade, a Celebration
of flamboyant costumes and floats. "We’d like to
be recognized as a couple," said Sheneen Ellis, wearing
awhite veil and mini-dress decorated with tiny red
rhinestones, as she stood with her partner, Alona
Hartnett, dressed in white ~lacks and jacket.
They were surrounded by their five children as two
ministers and a rabbi blessed them ifi a ceremony
Sunday at the entrance to Central Park just before the
Heritage of Pride parade.
"Two mothers are better than having only one,", read
a sign carried by one of the children, 10-year-old
Calhea Johnson. "I love mommy and mommy."
The parade included Lesbians on motorcycles, a
rainbow arch of balloons and a top-down convertible
carrying veterans of the 1969 Stonewall riots, in which
The initiative banning same-sex marriages passed
by 70% to 30% last November. "We’re going to be
here and we’ re going to stay around. You better accept
ThomasTavl0rofBrockville aretir....¯ . _ _ " pa.tronsofaGaybarinG-reenwichVillagefoughtback "
: " .r . , euNnmsterwno ¯ - -s " . .............. ag--m’n-s"tapou""ceram..... , , ,~:. ¯
¯ ~,~ u,~. oz~tto1, a Vzmt. ,-.v~u n we corot just sit flown years to a colorful pageant drawing hundreds of thou
and talk and agree that we are not of one mind about
this," that would represent progress for the church;
Taylor said.
Church leaders who signed the East Ohio Declaration
said they have no intenfi.on ofdefying the church’ s
rules on Gays, and doubt that it will cause schism. A
Methodist minister could be disciplined for perform- :
ing a marriage ceremony for a same-sex couple, but "
Taylor said he knows of no same-sex couples in the
East .Ohi,o Conference that are seeking a Methodist -"
mamage.
Men, Parents Accused of i
Abducting Lesbian "
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - The Utah Supre~m~ourt
decided to allow two Jordanian men to be tried~for
aggravated kidnapping in the alleged abduction and
beating of their sister in October 1999. The ’woman’s
mother and father also are charged in the alleged
attack.
Prosecutors saybrothers IehabHawatmehand Shaher
Hawatmeh, their father, Jami] Hawatmeh, and their :
mother, Wedad Hawatmeh, kidnapped and beat 23- ."
year-oldMuna Hawatmeh when they discovered she
was a Lesbian. The woman said she agreed to-return to ~
Jordan as away to stop the beatings. Thenext morning, "
.the family was driving her to the airport from their :
home in Sandy when her partner spotted them and ¯
called police. The family agreed to take the woman to "
the Sandy police station, and a doctor later found "
bruises on her arms and legs. ¯
Thefour are charged with simple kidnapping, which "
cames a sentence of up to 15 years. But Assistant "
Attorney General Fred Voros argued that the defen- "
dants’ alleged use of weapons and threats warrants the
aggravated kidnapping charge, which carries a life
sentence.
¯ sands of participants and spectators, and has been
replicated in’cities around the world. .
¯ Paris-, Berlin, Chicago and Atlanta
In Europe, Pads and Berlin celebrated Gay pride on
¯ Saturday .with rollicking parades. At the center of the
festivities were the cities’ mayors, both openly Gay.
In Chicago, organizers expected approximately
350,000 to attend what has become one of the largest
parades in the city.
hi Atlanta, thousands of people, including several
mayoral candidates, participated in the city’ s 31 st Gay
Pride celebration, which wrapped up with a parade
along the City’s main artery, Peachtree Street. "Events
¯ like this help increase our visibility and help to let ¯
p.eo.ple k~,,o,w that Gay people do exist, that we’re not
clevlants, Benson Cohen said. "We don’ tjust exist in-
" the shadows."
The New York marriag, ceremonies were not le-
! gaily binding but served as ~i rallying point for activists
who would like to see samp-sex couples accorded the
same legal rights as.heteros.exual couples.
New York City’s domestic partnership law gives
public employees who are same-sex couples the same
health benefits as married couples, along with privileges
such as visiting rights in city institutions like
hospitals and jails.
~ Vermont is the only state that offers Gay couples the
option o.f civil unions, which give them the ~ame rights
as mamed couples. Legislation to legalize homosexual
unions has been introduced in New York state
but has never passed.
Gay Health Ads :
Pulled in. NYC :
NEW YORK (AP) - Local officials condemned-
the city and an ad agency tmde~- ¯
city contract for pulling apublic service ad ¯
that promoted a free health line f0~Gays ’
from s,everal bus stopsin the Bronx.
"It is outrageous thal when .new HIV
infection rates are soaring, especially "
among men of color, that a responsible ad "
like ~this, intended to confront this health ¯
crisis, is censored by the city and by Infinity
Outdoor,’.’ said state Sen. Tom Duane. :
"It is the height of irresponsibility on the
city’ s part and the height of hypocrisy on ¯
the part of Outdoor, the company behind
the Howard Stem show, to call this ad "
inappropriate or indecent," Duane added. °
Infinity Outdoor is the advertising company
that maintains the city’ s bus shelters._
Its parent, Infinity Broadcasting, airs the "
sometimes-raunchy Howard Stem radio
show.
City Councilwoman Christine Qninn
said New York City "should be doing
everything in its power tO heighten public
awareness of the epidemic and to educate
those at risk about steps they can take to
protect themselVeS."
The ad, paid for by the Bronx Lesbian
-..and Gay Health Resource C0ilsortium,
showed two men, one with his arm around
the other~ above a caption that read, "I’m
not Gay, but sometimes I have sex, with
other.guys," and included a numberfor the
health line.
Infinity Outdoor initially approved the
content of the ads.But company spokes~
man Dana McClintock said a significant
number Of complaints were rdceived,specifically
about the reference to sex. "Making
these decisions is tough;’ McClintock
said. "It’s a,gray area. It’s not black and
white, it’ s doing our best to ~strike a bal-.
ance between First Amendment rights and..
community concerns."
ButLisaWinters, founder of the consortium,
said the original was "not at all an
offensive ad." "There are ads for ’Sex and
the City’ up all over the place,~Lshe said.
"What’s wrong with these posters?" She
has said the ads featuring the two men
were intended to reach men in the Bronx
¯ who do not identify themselves as Gay.
The city’ s Department of Transportation
owns the shelters, and Commissioner
Iris Weinshall supported~ the company’s
decision to pull the ad. "This poster was
totally inappropriate, and we applaud. the
contractor fortaking it down," she said.
"We feel,that good taste can supersede the
First Amendment."_
The same ads featuring the two menalso
are displayed inside city buses, and have
, not been pulled. Bus ads are controlled by
TDI Worldwide, another company owned
bY Infinity Broadcasting.
People.with HIV
Share Stories
UNITEDNATIONS CAP)-DavidBrooks
.Arnold, a ~65-year-old grandfather from
Washington; D.C., and Josephine
Chiturttmam, a 42-year old mother of four
from Zimbabwe, have more in common
than they expected. They both w0rkfor the
Red Cross, both lost partners mAIDS and
both are HIV-positive.
People-from all walks of life with HIV
andAIDS traveledfromevery continent to
share their stories in moviiag testimonials
that drew an audience of government officials,
AIDS experts and U.N. Secretary-
General Kofi Annam
Patinya Noyphon, a petite Thai wOman
with a sweet smile and soft brown hair,
found out shewas HIV-positive when her
husband died of AIDS in 1996. Her story
moved many to tears Tliesday as she re-
- counted the shock of learning her husband
had the disease and that he left her with the
virus.
Ini997; she joined a network of AIDS
patients that began counseling others with
the vires thinmore than~36 million people "
are living with. That network has grown
into an international movement of people
living with HIV/AIDS and Tuesday they
formed a partnership with the Red Cross to
bring mo,re infectedpeople into caregiving
¯ roles.
’~"~e active participation.of those living
with HIV/AID-S is absolutely vital," Annan
¯ ; told a room of over 200 people gathered to
:hear HIV positive advocates speak out.
Annan, who h’as-made AIDS a personal
¯ -crusade, said the alliance "sends a powerful
message to decision-makers, and to
¯
society as ~ whole, about the importance
of tackling stigma .and discrimination."
Many attending the session, part ofa
three-day U.N. conference on HIV/AIDS,
openly talked about shame and discrimination.
"We are not viruses," said Adam
P0well, a member of the Norwegian delegation
to the conference, who is HIV
positive: "We are humanity," he said.
Others ’used the opportunity to mourn
loved Ones and encourage those infected
¯ to continue fighting. Chiturumani, an AIDS Counselor in her
¯ nau,~e Zimbabwe, lost her husbandto the
¯ pandemic last year. She also lost her
¯ brother, a nephew, a brother and sister-in-
" law and numerous cousins- 22 relatives in
all since 1994 - all taken by AIDS.
Over 20 years, Arnold, director of international
relations for the American Red
Cross, lost more than 100 friends, including
his 10ngtimepartner, to AIDS, Despite
vastly different backgrounds, a fatal dis-
" ease has madethem instant friends. "It’s
an immediate bonding; Arnold sat . He
¯ said that "Josephine is living my past,"
¯ noting that the disease detected among
: Gay men in the United States in the 1980s
¯ is now ravaging whole communities in
¯ Africa.
"- Chiturumani said reaching out to others
¯ with AIDS has helped her live with the
¯ virus. ’~’It makes me belieVe that tomorrow
¯ there will be someone out there who will
: care for me," she said.
In Africa, Stigma
Prevails
BAMAKO, Mali (AP)- Long years after
: becoming the first in hisSahara nation to
: publicly acknowledge carrying the AIDS
: virus, Mamadou Barry is still fighting the
: samebattleas0n Day One. Themissionis
¯ "convincing people thatAIDS exists," says
¯ Barry, whoin 1994feltcompelledtoleave
"- his family business after he revealed that
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he had tested positive for HIV:
In apandemic that stigmatizes as it kills,
AIDS in Africa today, remains a disease
that leaves many of its.victims choosing a
quiet death overthe proSpecfof a life of
pfiblic shame.
In government after government, reluctan~
c~,to co~icede that Africans are dying of
what s seenas aWes.terndegeneracyhelps
keep impoverished countries decades behind
the West in confronting the disease.
In household after household, the shame
blocks testing and tr_eatment and even the
simplest known preventative measures,
such as condoms.
In Mall’s capital, Bamako, a foreign
publication’s report this month that the
death of a promruent Malian official had
been due to AIDS angered many, in and
out of government.
PrimeMinisterMandeSidibe"wentinto
a rage," one aide related, speaking on
condition of anonymity. Countrywide, the
near unanimous response was that it was
wrong to dirty the name of an illustrious
dead man.
In all of Africa, the top official to admit
to having AIDS is Edwin Cameron, a
judge on South Africa’s Constitutional
Court. But Cameron is white, openly Gay
and able to afford treatment.- in all, not
someone to whom the average infected
African would look as a model.
AIDS is "considered a disease ofpeople
of bad morals, of the ill-bred," said Dr.
Allou Sylla, director of a Bamako center
that tests the few who dare to find out
whether they have AIDS. In the general
absence of testing, often the only rough
confirmation that a~madO~ w0mmi died of
AIDS comes when a spouse follows them
in death one or two years later.-
Overwhelmingly, the tendency is to
blame the diarrhea, the rashes, thehorrifying’
wasting away on witchcraft. Sorcerers
andfaith-healers flourish. AIDS treatment,
meanwhile, remains a rarity, ,affordable
only to a few thousand among the 26
million living with HIV across the continent.
Even thosewhofall ill with diseases that
bring AIDS-like symptoms, such as tuberculosis
with its weight loss, are shunned,
Often losing their jobs.
In polygamous African societies, AIDS
is spread mainly by sex between men and
women. It is also spread by contaminat&t
blood and by unsterilized blades - used
interchangeably andcommunally for tribal
rituals, circumcisions andbarbering. AIDS
hit hard from the start among prostitutes,
who literally line the streets in some African
cities. That contributed to the enduring
Stigma.
In Mali, Aminate Nana Kasse is among
those closely following the news out of the
U.N. AIDS eonferenceinNewYork. Nana
Kasse was infected with HIV by her husband,
who has since died. Nana Kasse has
a dream, a distant one, for Africa - that
every government will require HIV tests
ing for couples before they marry. ’"No
African wife would dare _demand of her
husband that he wear a Condom, let alone
suggest that.he take a test," Nana Kasse
said. With mandatory tests, "at least One
would know who she’s marrying," the
widow said.
Mall this year became one of 10 African
countries to enter deals with Western drugcompanies
for low’cost HIV drugs - although
in poorAfrica dying without care
will remain the norm. for millions.
There are other signs of hope, coming
only when local powers acknowledge and
accept the fight against AIDS. An example
is in Senegal, where Islamic imams
preach the prevealtion message in their
Friday sermons at the country’ s mosques.
"People are starting more and more to
believe in iL" said Sylla, the clinic director
in Bamako.
Still; no family in Mali wants it said in
the. community that they have a relative
infected with HIV in their midst.
"I .knew that it was for the. best," says
Barry, explaining his decision to sever ties
with his family after discovering he had
the AIDS virus. Now in his 40s, he still
lives estrangedfrom them. "I believe I was
taking- from them a"decision that the faroi!
y, soonerorlater,wouldhavebeen obliged
to take."
600K in China
Have AIDS Virus
UN1TED NATIONS (AP) -.More than
600,000 people in China are estimated to ."
be infected with the AIDS virus and the :
number is increasing by 30% annually, ¯
p.rimarily because of an upsurge in infec- ¯
tlons among intravenous, drug users, .
China’ s health minister said.
Although the prevalence of the HIV
virus and AIDS is still low -just 0.5% of ~
China’ s 1.27 billion population- the government
has launched a five-year plan to ;
reduce the-ingrease ~rom 3Q% 5o 10% -.
annually,’Zhang Wenkang toId Tl~e Associated
Press.
Theplan calls f0r includingAIDS awareness
in the sex edUcation curriculum for ¯
!.5-year-01ds, prevention messages from "
leading actors, condom vending machines :
and education programs at all leadership ¯
levels. Impro ced treatment- including the -.
possibility of cheap drugs - is also part of
the plan, Zhang said in an interview after "
addressing the first U.N. General Assem- ~
bly Special Session on HIV/AIDS. ¯
Five years ago,. about 40% of China~s "
HIV cases were the result of the illegal :
selling of blood, primarily..in rural areas ¯
where dirty needles were often used, he
said. Following a gove.rp_ment crackdown "
on illegal blood-buying, the percentage of :
HIV cases from tainted blood has dropped
to 4 to 6%.
About70% of current HIV cases are the
result ofintravenous drug use, Zhang said.
Another 10% are infected through heterosexual
or homosexual relations and a
smaller percentage from mother-to-child
transmission of the virus.
Professor Shao Yiming, deputy director
of China’ s National Center for AIDS Prevention
and Control, explained that the
numbers are just estimates. As. a developlng
country China can.dnly do limited
AIDS testing and people in rural areas
often,don’t recognize the HIV virus, he "
said.
Zhang said the estimate of more than :
600,000 HIV sufferers was made by epi- "
demiologists based on the actual number "
of reported HIV cases - 23,905 at the end ¯
of March. At that time, there were also956 "
AIDS patients and 537 confirmed deaths, :
he said.
The Joint U.N.-Program on HIV/AIDS
has said that "while East Asia and the
Pacific region still appear to be holding
HIV at bay, the recent steep rise in sexually
transmitted infections in China and
tile vast transmigration ofpcople- spurred
by economic growth - could unleash an
epidemic.." "
Outlining China’ s five-year plan to cut
new HIV infections, Zhang said people
will be urged to take preventative measures
against the disease, "... for instance
to develop a healthy lifestyle, without so
many sex partners, and secondly without
drug using. We advocate m,a~i,’tal sex. we
discourage extramarital sex.
Zhang called on pharmaceutical companies
toreduce the cost of the drug "cocktail"
that has proven effective in treating
HIV and AIDS because the current cost"is
unimaginable for the peasants and citizens.’"
About 200 Chinese afflicted with the
virus are currently taking part in a trial
using free drugs, he said. Shao said China
has the capability of making ’cheap drugs
to treat HIV and AIDS because it produces
many of the chemicals used in the medications,
"but the drug is only one ring of the
whole chain of treatment."
He said China is preparing a comprehensive
treatment program, from health
care infrastructure and well-trained doc-
.tors and nurses to drugs, laboratory testing
and monitoring.
Though China is starting to confront its
AIDS Crisis, the government still harasses
activists seeking to draw attention to the
problem - especially when doing so uncovers
government negligence.
Last month, Chinese officials ref.used.to
issue a passport to retired physician Dr.
Gao Yaojie to accept the Jonathan Mann
Award from the Global Health Council at
aceremonyin Washington, D.C., attended
by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
Gao,74, has publicized the spread ofAIDS
among poor farmers in central China,
blamed on an unsanitary, blood-buying
industry. She said officials accused her of
helping "anti-China forces."
Contacted at her home in Henan
province’s capital, 7Jaengzhou, Gao said
officials have told her patients to seyer ties
with her, saying she had been arrested.
People who have visited her at home have
been detained and officials have blocked
her from distributing donated medicine
and cash to AIDS victims, she said. Gao
has published her own report about AIDS
in China and plans to distribute tt free to
patients, health institutions and the media.
Eastern Europe/
Russia Hit By AIDS
NEW YORK (AP) - Eastern Europe and
the former Soviet Union,- which already
have the world’ s fastest rising rates ofnew
HIV/AIDS infections, are headed for a
large-scale" epidemic unless anti-AIDS
.programs go into full swing now, speciallsts
on the region have warned.
The numbers are still small compared
with Africa, where 26 million people ore
infected with HIV, the virus that causes
AIDS, but they are climbing fast. The
United Nations ~stimates that the number
of infected people:in the former Soviet
Union and Eastern Europe has skyrocketed
from 30,000 in 1995 to 700,000 as of
last year.
Ethan Nadelmann of the Lindesmith
Center/Drug Policy Foundation said the
region "leads the world in the connectioN’
between AIDS and intravenous drug use,
with80% of HIV infections linked to drug
abuse.
Nadelman moderated the panel discussion
"preventing an Epidemic" among
doctors, heads of rehabilitation programs,
politicians and researchers. Their meeting
was organized by the Open Society Institute,
a charitablefoundation active throughout
the region, and coincided with the
three-day United Nations’ Special Ses=
sion on AIDS.
Sergey Kovalev, a member of the Russian
Parliamentandlongtimehumanrights
activist, said his country has answered the
increase in intravenous drug use with repressive
measures that drive users underground,
rather than toward medical care.
Their sharing Of hypodermic needles has
spread HIV, especially among the young.
Kovalev said his government is not likely
to budge from that approach unless it is
p~essured to do so by Western nations.
Prison populations have swelled, with
correspondingincreases in drug useamong
inmates and in diseases such as tuberculosis
that prey on HIV-infected people. Although
there once was comprehensive
health care throughout the region, today
those systems have crumbled and there is
virtually no treatment offered for people
infected with HIV.
Paul Farmer, a Harvard Medical School
professor who leads AIDS programs m
Russia and Haiti, .said politicians in the
regi0I~ and internationally wil.l avoid tacklingthe
potential AIDS epidemic on their
own. To change that simalaon, he said,
- health professionals and activists need to
unite to establish fwo ’things: a comprehensive
plan for research, pre~,enfion, treatment
and care for orphans; and pilot programs_
that show how the work can be
accomplished. "All they need is division
in our ranks to say,’ No, i t can’ t be done,’"
he warned. "The search for excuses not to
do this is almost criminal."
.Konstanfin Lezhentsev, who helped establish
Ukraine’ s firstAIDS treatmentprogram
through Medecins Sans Frontieres,
or Doctors Without Borders, said the aim
ofhis group is to have"aneffecfive tool for
speaking with the government" about the
urgency Of every patient’s right to treatment.
A woman on the panel who asked to be
called only by her first nmne, Irina, spoke
of issues that go beyond government
policy: disci’iminafion against those with
HIV. Inherfirst public declaration that she
is infected with HIV, Irina described how
She became a drug addict, despite coming
from aloving family, studying at a university,
etc. She thought all her troubles were
over when she completed a drag rehabilitaftonprogram,
but soon she found out that
she was HIV-posifive.
HIV-infected people are shunned by
family and afraid to go to doctors, she said.
Even people she had helped through drug
programs deserted her.
by Jim Christjohn, entertainment editor
"Planets of the Universe", the first single
off Stevie Nicks’ .new album "Trouble in
¯ Shangri La" is scheduled for release to
stores on July 3rd. The single will include.
several club remixes. It should be good,
the song itself is great, and hopefully, for
the first time since 1986’ s "I Can’ t Wait",
fans will be able to go to
the clubs and dance t6 a
Stevie song. It would be
niceifthe clubs in Tulsa
are wise enough to get a
clue and play it rather
than the mixes they usually
spin.
One club version is
11 minutes long and
contains lyrics cut from
the album version.
The tour should be
interesting in that La
Diva Nicks is ~bandoning
the "Stevie Nicks/
ment jn theatre is taking place July 11-14
with Tulsa Experimental theatre’s production
of",The dkDistance Between Bod-
Ies Grows Greater Every Day:" Call
Summerstage for tix at 596-7111.
- "Always, Patsy Cline," an allegedly true
story about a fan’s relationship with the
singer is brought to you by American
"The Haunted Castle
opens its doors July 4th:
Johnny inherits a haunted
castle in EnOland (isn’t
that where they all are?)
and ~oes to claim his
inheritance. It’s a whole
lott~a troubleafter that, as
the devil seems to think
Theatre Company July
12-211 Featuring the
music of-the great lady,
.ax are available by calling
596-7111/ Hmm,
anyone else experiencing
drjh vu? Anyone
else got that number
memorized?
"Love Letters," a writing
exercise thatbecame
a romance and then a
play, is offered up July
12-21 by the Centerstage
Players, and once
more tix are available at
Fleetwo~d Mac Great- he’s the rightful owner. - say it with me - 596-
est Hits’ package,-in " ~ 71’1,1.
which only’ one or two new ~ongs were ¯ Adrian Zmed, 80 s heartthrob best
thrown in, and adding 5 new songs to the known for wrestling with William Shatner
set,includingsomeol~lersongsneverdone on that cop show he was in (Adrian was
in concert. She stops August 3rd in Dallas, hot, Adam not) and who showed his magand
tickets are going fast., nificen_t abs in the 80’ s tour of"Godspell",
Melissa Etheridge plays Will Rogers
coliseum in Fort Worth September 10th
and 1 lth, for which tickets go on sale July
7th. Karin, the .Raging Lesbian, reports-it
will.be two dates withjust Melissa and her
guitar. Sounds like a~ intimate evening,
which would be.great. The RLreports it is
called the ’,’Live and Alone Tour’’, as opposed
to the dead and en masse tour; RL
introduced me to her music, much like I
introduced her to Stevie’ s. (Read: "Forced
it down her throat until she knew every
song by heart!") Fortunately, m3’ enthusiasm
for Stevie took (asevidencedby find--
ing a Stevie cassette I KNEW.I hadn’t
g~ en her, and forced her to fess up that
she, indeed~ had bought it- and loved it.),
as did hers for Meli~sa
Interestingly enough, if ybu play the
track"I Miss You" from Stevie’ s "Trouble
in Shangfi" La" and.then play "Enough of
Me" from Melissa’ S"Breakdown", you’ll
find it’ s almost the same song - same chord
progressions, sameguitar. Whoinfluenced
who? John Shanks, Melissa’s producer,
produced some of Stevie’ s album, but not
that track. Interesting...
There’ s a new Imax 3-D movie coming,
and it’s sure to bring a bit of Halloween
into summer. "The Haunted Castle opens
its doors July 4th. Johnnyinherits ahaunted
caste in England (isff t that where they all
are?) and goes to claim his inheritance. It’ s
a whole lotta trouble after that, as the devil
seems to thinkhe’ s the rightful Owner. The
Imax Corp0fation actually tried to launch
an effort to ban this film due to its graphic
content, entreating theatre owners not to
show iLHow much of that is true and how
much hype I don’t know, but it did make
for an interesting press release. And it
looks like it would be a fun film to check
out, especially forhorror buffs.A new way
to get a chill in the heat of summer.
On the local front, an.intriguing expericomes
to Tulsa to play in "Big" - and oh
~e puns I could make endlessly here. He
is rather a tall man... And very broad
shouldered, actually. Anyway, back to the
column at hand-no, don’ t go there, either.
Anyh.oo, themusical that flopped onBroad-
" way is now suitable for touring produc-
’ taons and Theater Arts is bringing it to
town July 13-22 at the Van Trease Per-
¯ - forming Arts Center for Education
(PLEASE get a shorter name!) at 595-
¯ 7777. At least it’ s a different phone num-
- bet.
Tulsa CARES presents "Hairball 2001,
an event to raise bucks to combat AIDS
and raise awareness (and hair) in Tulsa. If
you canget it up- the hair, I should say, to
clarify for the more gutterminded among
thereadership - and, if you can’ t get it up,
for hair raising fun, call 834-4194 ~0r tix to
the Tulsa CARES hair ball, er, hair (raising)°
ball. And have a ball, at the ball. Oh,
I think this column has just descended to a
whole new level, and it ain’t up.
For the folks still reading after that last
¯" bit who are into women, Shadia Dahlal
." ("Hello, dahling!" she says to thekids) and
¯ her Purple Roses of Cairo dance troupe
: swing into town July 26-29 to writhe and
¯ swing hips for your delight. "Passage to a
: world of dark-eyed women, mysterious
¯ customs,veils,incenseanddrums."Hmm,
¯ I know a couple of Lesbians that would
like to explore those mysteries, I bet.
¯ And on the lighter side, Theater Pops
¯ weighs in with ,Bash" July 26-August 5. ¯
"Bash" is acollection of 3 one act plays
." about people capable of unspeakable acts
: of evil and complexity.
¯ Nothing like a dose of Complex "evil to ¯
get the brai,’,n working. Better than coffee.
: Bi~lledas a portraitofhowdarkthehuman
: spirit can become," which I think I discov,
: ered all too well from grade school on
¯ through high school.
American Theatre Co.
presents.
July-12-21
John H. Williams Theater
Performing Arts Center
For tickets and information,
call 596-7111 or 800-364-7111
www.tulpac.com
Timothy W. Daniel
Attorney at Law
An Attorney who will fight for justice
& equality for-Gays & Lesbians
Domestic Partnership Planning,
Pers0nalInjury, Criminal Law & Bankruptcy
1-800-742-9468 or 918-352-9504
128 East Broadway, Di’umright, Oklahoma
Weekend and evening appointmenls are available.
Holland Hall
A SCHOOL THAT HAS iTS ACT TOGETHER
Holland Hall ranks
first in the city of Tulsa
and second in the state
for average ACT scores.
And, our seniors, Class of 2001,
have received acceptances to
colleges that include Brown,
Colorado College, Georgetown,
Harvard. MIT, Tufts, Tulane,"
University of Michigan,
Vanderbilt and Yale.
Laboratory work engages students in the new
18,000-square-foot Duenner Family Science,
Mathematics and Technology Center.
~PreSchool through G’i~tde 12
(918} 481-1111, ext. 251
the folks who provide the funding that
Gov. Frank administers to Oklahoma Today.
While our legislature’s no model of "
progressive thinking, there are a few sena- ¯
tors and representatives who.believe that ¯
evenGayOklahomans deserve tobe treated - ¯
fairly - and who know that Oklahoma
Today is funded with our tax dollars too.
Last but not least, I should note that this ¯
problem of invisible Gay people i~ not
new. We saw the same problem with the
"homo-free" Tulsa Centennial. Andinterestingly
enough some of the same players
retum~
If one could bring "disbarment" proceedings
againsta professor as you can
against a negligent attorney, thenOU professor
of letters Danney Goble, Ph.D.
should have his credentials revoked for
deliberately suppressing the history, ofGay
Tulsans in his Centennial book.
Some might excuse this as an oversight
but within a day after Goble received the
contract to write the Centennial history~ I
called him and gave him names and phone
numbers of several individuals who could
speak about the last 30 years of Tulsa’s
Gay history. Goblenever even bothered to
call any of these people and .yet claimed
his book was more reflective of the history
of Tulsa’ s minority communities.
Hadhe called and found the information
lacking, the omission might be justified.
Instead we just have plain and simple
bigotry. Also noteworthy is the recogni:
tion OT gives to Sharon King Davis who
was chair of Tulsa’s bigoted Centennial
effort. Davis, is both a staunch Baptist but
also a major Democratic Party leader.
Ofcourse, OklahomaDemocrats, mostly
want to pretend that there are no Gay
people here except for when national
Democratic groups require that they m,
elude us, oh, and when they need money,.
like certain former governor or current
congressman who both received or asked
for major donations from "rich Gays"
Of course, some will argue who cares
about Oklahoma Today? The only people
who read it are 62 year old white bigots
(and at least this 43 year old editor). But
the way we as a community are represented
in the media is crucial to our survival
and progress. When we are misrepresented,
prejudices remain and help create
an environment where hatred, assault
and even murder can flourish. When we
are rendered invisible, in effect, told we
are not even worthy of acknowledgement,
Oklahoma Todayhelps reinforcea climate
of intolerance.
Rendering minorities invisible is a.mil-~
lenniaold technique. Those whoconquered
eradicated the language, the culture of
those defeated. In America, history was
written as that of white men, whether or
not it really was until quite recently.
In Tulsa, all notices of the 1921 Race
Riot were torn out of the archives, and this
was not taught in~ any Tulsa public or
private school w.ell into the ’90’ s.
And of course, in Oklahoma today, we
see that there are no Gay people.
and 89% (220) were from urban areas.
Jackson County, including Kansas City,
had the largest count of same-sex couples,
1,723.
But whenthe 1,463 same-gender couples
in No. 2-ranking St. Louis County were
added to the 1,297 from the city of St.
Louis, No. 3 on the list, the total of 2,760
mtranked Jackson County.
For Elizabeth Radford and Marlssa Pace
of St. Louis, describing themselves as a
couple on their Census paperwork "’just
came easily because it’s who we are and
we are comfortable withit," said Pace, 32,
a chemist.
Radford, a 34-year-old social worker,
said she and Pace took the step last year of
having a marriage ceremony performed
by clergy during a party attended by about
70 friends and relatives in St. Louis.
In Ohio, 16,244 (88%) same-sex unmarried
households are in urban areas,
while 2,288 (12%) are in rural areas, according
to the census data. This marksa
slight change from .the 1990 census when
only 9% (336) of same-sex unmarried
households were in rural parts of the state
and 91% (3,441) were in urban areas.
In Alabama 5,778 (71%) same-sex .unmamed
households are in urban areas,
while 2,331 (29%)are in rural areas.
In1990, only 25% (262) of same-sex unmarried
households were in rural parts of
the state and 76% (807) were in urban
areas.
In Kansas, the census figures showed
that 2,544 (64%) same-sex unmarried
households are in urban areas, while 1,429
(36%) areinrural areas. In 1990;only 29%
(185) of same-sex ufimarried households
were in rural parts of the state and 71%
(462) were in urban areas.
Mike Silverman, 28, a computer software
e~glneer, and his partner of more
than five yearL Dave Greenbaum, recently
returned from Vermont, where they had a
civil union ceremony. Lawrence is home
of the University ofKansas, and Silverman
said it’ s the only city in the state with an
anti-discrimination ordinance protecting
Gay men and Lesbians.
In New York, 43,529 (94%) same-sex
¯ tmmarried households are in urban areas,
; while 2,961 (6%) are in rural areas. In the
¯
last census, only 4% (561) of:same-sex
¯ tmmarried households were in rural parts
of the state and 96% (13,187) were m
¯ urban areas.
Men with a male partner accounted for
¯ 15,016 households, and female couples
¯ made up 1’0,890 households, in 2000. The ¯
census also confirms that enclaves ofGays
¯ are concentrated in the Manhattan neigh-
" borhoods of Chelseaandthe’vVestVillage.
¯ Data on other states will be released in
~ batches through mid-August, according to
¯ census officials. The Human Pdghts Cam-
" paign (HRC), the largest national Lesbian
~md Gay political organization, is working
~ with the Urban Institute, a Washington,
¯ D.C. think tank specializing in statistical
: analysis, to analyze same-sex partner
¯ household data. HRClobbies Congress; ¯
provides camp.aign support and educates
¯ .thepublic to ensurethat LGBT Americans
¯ can be open and safe at home and at work
~7 Lamont Lindstrom, Ph.D.
Lastmonth some970 guns, several bales
of marijuana, and forty or so boxes of
pornography went up in smoke The Tulsa
Police Department used fire
clean its evidence lockers
of items it didn’t want to
auction back to the community.
Thank goodnesswe
are now thus secured
against these three menaces
to society:, weapons,
drugs, and dirty pictures.
The day the lurid glossies
went into the furnaces,
I happened to be reading
Barry Werth’s recent biography
The Scarlet Professor:
Newton Arvin- A Literary
Life Shattered by
Scandal.
Arvin was an ennnent
literary critic and professor
of English at Smith (in
Northampton, MA), 0neof
the Ivy-league’s "Seven
Sister" colleges for women.
His books on Nathaniel
Hawthbm, Walt Whitman,
~ind Herman Melville (the
later of which won~the National
BookAward) helped
create the canon of 19th
century American literature,
loved or cursed by
today’s English majors. Literature made
Arvin, and literature -of a sort also
destroyed him. Arvin was arrested,~fined,
institutionalized,, mad forced to retire for
possessing Gay pornography.
Born at the turn of the century, Arvin
was-shy, short, balding, and: often depressed.
He hdd married and divorced in
his early 30’ s but only slowly and partially
reconciled himself emotionally to his homosexuality.
He progressed through a
number of short-lived relationships with
younger men, some of whom he recruited
as English instructors. (In thgse days, sleep:
ing with the boss could be a more obvious
requirement of one’ s job.)
Truman Capote, a young writer Arvin
met at an artist colony, dated Arvin for two
years, and dedicated to him his first novel,
Other Voices, Other Rooms. To Arvin’s
credit, he kept in touch with many of his
lovers years after they had parted.
In his 50’s, Arvin discovered nearby
Springfield’s several Gay bars, cruising
New York City bathhouses (the Everard),
and also skin magazines. Arvin’ s renewed
sexual adventuresomeness partly reflected
an increasing loneliness of late middle age
but also the sudden appearance in New
York City newsstands of accessible Gay
pornography. In the 1950s, pioneer pornographers
such as Sam Roth and also
Bob Mizer, in the guise of the Athletic
Model Guild, began publishing pictures of
mostly naked (apart from a posing strap or
two) young men. Thom Fitzgerald’s recent
video Beefcake documents the historyof
the muscle maga~i,’nes that led to,
Arvin’s downfall such as Grecian GuiM
Piciorial, MANual, and Trim.
Before the 1950s, Gaypornography was
to spnng-
"... Pornography
9nly exlsts in soeiet~es
where sexuality, or
aspects thereof, is
repressed and
inhibited.
Pornography’s
secrecy and
saladousness furl its
conslderahle charm.
One may imagine,
however, some sexual
ecology...- past or
future-where .all
facets of se- x are
simply mundane and,
as a eonsec~uenee,
pornography is
unthlnhahl-e... "
scarce and hard to find. Basically, one had
¯ to write or draw or photograph it onesdf,
: or else somehow acquire obscure special
¯ editions and art prints mostly published in
Europe. By midcentury, however, Ameri2
can enterprise and knowhow
had at last brought
graphicpornography home
to the masses. Arvin began
buying and collecting the
new musclemagazines, and
also films of nude wresfling
and the like. A novel
technology, 8ram film and
the home movie projector
(perhaps Arvin borrowed
his from Smith College
classrooms?), also boosted
the mass market for pom
-productions.- We’ve recently
experienced similar
technological boosts with
the VCR, .DVD, and the
Intemet.
Pornography, actually,
as an idea is rather recent.
The word, a fancy madeup
Greek term meaning
"writing about harlots,"
first appeared around 1850
or so. Victorian archaeological
excavations of Roman
Pompeii and
Herculaneum had uncovered
shocking sexual imagery
in murals, mosaics, and decorative
household objects. These artifacts were
quickly.squirreled awayin secret museum
caches but they inspired a fierce interest, a
fascination only partly disguised by
"’pornography’ s" net-Greek facade.of polite,
scientific objecfiyity. Terminological
alternatives similarly have historically
shallow roots. Obscene is a Latin worst
that originally meant ominous or illomened;
and smut an Old English word
meamng sooty or smudged.
Pornography only exists in societies
Where sexuality, or aspects thereof, is repressed
and inhibited. Pornography’s secrecy
and salaciousness ftiel its considerable
charm. One may imagine, however,
some sexual ecology - past or .future -
where all facets -of sex are simply mundane
and, as a consequence, pornography
is unthinkable.
But not in Massachusetts in 1960, on the
cusp of the Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations.
Wily politicians then witch--
hunted pornographers and-their customers,
building careers on burning dirty pictures.
A new federal law, passed in July
1960, had made it illegal to send pornographic
material through the mail or to
otherwise distribute this. Arvin and his
circle of Gay. friends met occasionally to
trade magazines and films and to show off
new items in their collections. But postal
inspectors got busy tracking down pore
mailings-and, on September 2, 1960, three
police officers pounded on Arvin’ s door.
They seized his films and magazines and
Arvin too. Terrified, he ratted on Ms Gay
friends and colleagues two ofwhom, along
with Arvin, were convicted and lost their
teaching positions, see Studies, p. 11
Tulsa Oklahomans for
Human Rights
(TOHR) invites individuals, businesses and
organizations to a
Community-Wide
Meeting:
A Permanent Location for the
Community Center
Thurs., July 26th
6:30, meet & greet, program at 7pm_
LGBT Community Center, 21st & Memorial
Discussion Topics:
Where? How Big?
As Focus for New Neighborhood?
For info,, call 743-GAYS (743-4297)
IGTA member
Call 341. 6866
Intorn tion l
~TourS formoreinformation.
TULSA COUNTY
DEMOCRATIC
PARTY
Country Club Barbering
Custom Styling for Men & Women
David Kauskey
3310 E. 51st, 747-0236, Tues.-Fri., 8-5:30, Sat. 8-5pm
Want to save
Money and
Help Build a
Community
Center?
Switch to
Rainbow
Communications
Long Distance and More,
10% of Revenues Will
Benefit Tulsa Oklahomans
for Human Rights.
Capital Campaign and
General Fund
For more
information,
call 665-3401
or evenings
at A.A.7-8602.
Tulsa’s only
professional
body-piercing
Kelly Kirby,-CPA, PC
Certified Public Accountant
a professional-corporation
Lesbians and Gay men face many special
tax situations whether single or as couples.
Electronic filing is available for faster refunds.
747-5466
4021 South Harvard Avenue, Suite 210, Tulsa 74135
by Karin Gregory
You know when it hitS, don’t you? Ev- "
cry word she utters is golden, no matter ¯
how crude; every look she gives, you want .-
to capture on film to replay; every phone °
message she sends, you save mad listen to "
on your loneliest days(and especially ¯
nights!). You’re the homiest Lesbian in .
town, yet when you think of HER, you "
¯ don’t think of the next time you’ll have ¯
sex, just how good it feels to be with her, °
whether for an hour or a whole night, "
waking up with her the next morning. You .
want to learn her, be a part of her, and fuse o
yourtwo soulsinto one. Youwritehideous ~
purple prose in the second person that ¯
some poor folks in Tulsa will read (well, ¯
maybe not after this paragraph!). :
When-you’re with her, you’re on an "
emotional high, blocking out everyone ¯
around but the two of you. An hour after "
she’s left, you’re still high. Somewhere "
between the second and third hour, how- ¯
ever, your emotions sink so fast and so low
that you don’t think you can live until you "
see her again. When you hear from her, "
you sound like the silliest schoolgirl who .
ever lived. She’s the only woman who
makes you nervous because you can’ ttalk
to her like other women. You have to be "
honest. Her bluntness and honesty make
you want to be a better person, not only for "
her, but for yourself. Yoi~’re feeling emotions
you never thou.ght you had. Dare you
question? Analyze? Categorize every feel- .:
ing? Then put a label on those feelings? ¯
Can it be <gasp!> love? HELP!
Why do I need help?why don’ t Ijust sit "
back and enjoy the ride like most couples? ¯
For the first time in my life, I’m ready for ¯
that "R" word. She’s beautiful, talented, "
creative, interested in me. So what’s the ¯
problem? Miss Interested-In-Me has only
one flaw--the same flaw that haunts many
Gay couples--the dreaded_EX! Yup, I’min "
love with a woman who’ s stillinlove with ¯
her ex. Before you start calling me all °
kinds of stupid, I knew about the ex before °
I met Miss Interested-In-Me in person. I
just didn’ t know, nor did she, the extent of °
those feelings. Now you can call me all "
kinds of stupid! I walked into this trap. "
I even met Ms. X once at my,.., my,.
.. my.... whatever’s house. Gay Felix and "
I liked her very much. No, she couldn’t be "
rude, crude, and vulgar, could she? She "
couldn’t be evil and have a wart on her ¯
nose. Oh, no! Remember, we’re talking ."
Gregory luck here. She and "my girl" are "
- even best friends. OUCH! And Ms. X "
likes me. I found out about that when Miss °
Interested-In-Me and I spent aparticularly
soulful night together.. "She likes you," :
she said. "She. likes how attentive you are ."
to me." ¯
It occurred to me to say, "Well, it’ s nice "
to get the first wife’s permission,’" but I "
thought better of it. If this woman has ¯
taught me anything, it’ s to think before I ;
speak--a first for me. I’ ve also learned that "
it’s easy to live with a stake through your "
heart. It’s just when that stake is twisted ¯
around that you think you won’t ever be "
able to breathe again. She also tells me I’m "
.anincredible person to listen to her and not "
to run. I’dlike to say that incredible people
are not easy to find; that once you find one,
you hold on for dear life. But then I have to
think about that and realize that too much
too soon will run off Miss Interested-In-
Me.
Some people say she’ s using me. Others
say that shejust needs time. Hell, she’ s had
at least two years! Gay Felix, who’s been
around her more than others, told me the
other day, "Karin, she’s called you, invited
you over, initiated sex--I’ dbe happy!"
He’s a man--what else did you expect?
I’m also remembering a line from a
musical, for which mosrof you Gay men
would be proud. Around the end of ’~The
Music Man", when the townspeople discover
that "Professor" Harold Hill is a con
man, they run after him with tar and feathenng
in mind. Marian the Librarian’ s little
brother, Winthrop, tells Hill to run away.
Hill says he can’ t. He. looks at Marian and
declares,"For t_he first time in my life; I got
my foot caught in the door.’"
Marian, if you’re out there, think of my
foot and how it must hurt being stuck in
your door for so long. Think of "that stake
twisting through my heart. Know that this
salesman won’ t bemaking any morehouse
calls for a long time. Aren’t exes a bitch?
Arvin’s collection of soft, nudie guy
imagery, lugged imo court as evidence,
undoubtedly was subsequently burned.
Arvin died two years after his trial, in
1963.
Forty years later, it is quaint, one could
say, that the state still strikes matches to
protect us from the perils of pornography.
Butitmaybe alosing battle, particularly in
Oklahoma. The more sexual repression,
themorepornography. It’ s maybe no accident
that Tulsa spelled backwards, as ~veryone
knows, is A SLUT.
Lamont Lindstrom teaches anthropology
ht the University o[Tulsa, and can be
reached at lamont10@yahoo.com
It is time for society tO recognize that
Gays and Lesbians are a responsible minority
facing unjust discrimination and
mistreatment by the majority - just like
every other minority which has struggled
forjustice a~.d equal treatment inAmerica.
- Nathaniel Batchelder, Director
The Peace House, Oklahoma City
In statements to TFN, McClure noted
that repeated efforts to discuss and resolve
these issues with Tulsa Comity commis,
Sioner John Selph, a Democrat and with
Tulsa Mayor Susan Savage, also a Demo:
crat, both of whom are represented on the
Criminal Justice Authority, have been rebuffed
to date.
McClure also issued a written challenge
to Savage and the county commissioners
to meet with him to resole these issues.
present.s
I
JuIy 14, 8pm, PAC’sWestby Pavilion ~ LaFortune
Studio,
$80 donation.
Call Rebecca at 834-4194
Original Format
newspaper
periodical
periodical
Files
Citation
Tulsa Family News, “[2001] Tulsa Family News, July 2001; Volume 8, Issue 7,” OKEQ History Project, accessed April 27, 2024, https://history.okeq.org/items/show/614.