NEWS

HIGH GEAR/JULY 1977

PAGE 3

OHIO COALITION LAUNCHES PETITION DRIVE, EDUCATION

By DAN MCGUIRE

The Fifth Ohio Gay Rights Coalition meeting was held on June 19, 1977 in Columbus on the Ohio State University Campus. Of primary concern to all who attended was Anita Bryant, and the associated events of Dade County, Florida. Because the purpose of OGRC is to obtain gay civil rights legislation in Ohio, and because of the amount of false information spread by Anita Bryant, it was decided a great amount of effort should be placed in the area of education on the subject of homosexuality.

Representatives from Cleveland started planning a "Gay.

Educational Pamphlet," which would address many concerns of straights regarding homosexuality. In preliminary planning, possible subjects for the pamphlet include marriage (Do gays cause divorce?), decadence (Have gays been the downfall of societies in the past?), gay relationships (Is there more to the question that one night stands?), coming out (When did you realize you were gay?-How did you handle it?), cause of homosexuality (Who's "fault" is it?), and some information about Parents of Gays groups. A rough draft of this pamphlet is to be presented at the next OGRC meeting.

A public education committee was formed to educate the

public about homosexuality. One of the tools they will use is the pamphlet being assembled by representatives from Cleveland. In addition to this, the committee plans to register with Chamber of Commerce speakers' bureau lists in several cities, submit monthly articles to traditional media, regarding positive aspects of gays, and generally promote a positive image of gays to the public.

In regards to legislation, OGRC representatives from Columbus have been examining current Ohio civil rights legislation, using present legislation as a base to draft an Ohio gay civil rights bill. They now know where to amend current legislation to include phrases ap-

plicable to gays. In conjunction with this piece of legislation, members of COL (Central Ohio Lesbians), have drawn up support petitions. The support statements state the signers are in support of gay civil rights legislation at the federal, state and local level. Blank petitions can be obtained from: OGRC, Box 30, Wilder Hall, Oberlin, Ohio 44074.

A communications network was discussed, with an aim to get representatives in several counties. If you would like the telephone number of the representative in your area, please contact the Newsletter Collective at OGRC, Box 30, Wilder Hall, Oberlin, Ohio 44074, (216) 775-7315. Both the

PROUD GAYS TAKE TO THE WORLD'S STREETS

HERE, THERE, AND EVERY. WHERE The June 25 weekend commemoration of the 1969

Stonewall riots brought hundreds of thousands of gay men and lesbians into the Western

CLEVELAND PRIDE

GANTH DIGNITY

World's streets to celebrate Gay Pride. Numbers ranged from 30 people who rallied in Kansas

City to 230,000 marchers in San Francisco. The turnout in San Francisco was much heavier

y Body elongs To Me

newsletter collective and the county representative have information regarding OGRC meetings and activities.

Presently, there is some initial planning to have OGRC "seen" at the Ohio State Fair. Although it is too late to obtain booth space for this year's fair, OGRC will be leafletting people at the fair, and will be asking sympathetic groups to distribute our materials. If you are interested in helping, please contact OGRC, at the address and telephone number listed above.

The next OGRC meeting will be held at the Kent State Student Center on Sunday, August 7, at 12 Noon. Hope to see you there!!

than usual because of the wide support of straight people outraged at the brutal murder of 33 year old Robert Hillsbrough: (see Odds and Ends for details). On the East Coast, the parade up Fifth Avenue in New York City (first time on that major route and they did it without a permit) attracted 25,000 participants and stretched 28 city blocks long.

Peaceful demonstrations were held Saturday, June 24 in Great Britain and the Netherlands. Over 1000 gays paraded in London, culminating their march with a picnic in Hyde Park. In Amsterdam, 2000 demonstrated to protest the Florida Dade County Gay Rights ordinance repeal. In Barcelona, Spain, police fired rubber bullets to disperse a crowd of 4000 people at a rally sponsored by the Gay Liberation Front of Catalonia.

MRS. CARTER SENDS RECIPE

By: DAN MCGUIRE

Dignity/Cleveland has received a response from Rosalyn Carter, with a recipe contribution for their cookbook. The committee sent a letter to Mrs. Carter, explaining the purpose of Dignity, and asking for a donation of a recipe. Mrs. Carter, through her correspondence secretary, sent a recipe for Flank Steak, along with her wishes for a successful project.

The committee also reports that it is not too late to enter recipes, and that any contributions should be sent to Dignity/Cleveland, P.O. Box 1847, Cleveland Heights, Ohio 44118. To be submitted, recipes need not be original, but should be favorites of the donors. Also, the committee is asking for help from any party interested in working on the project. If you would like to work on the cookbook, please send your name and phone number to the above address. Presently, the greatest amount of work has to be done by typists and artists.