May 1, 1985

By MARTHA PONTONI

Just how political is AIDS? Larry Bush, leading gay journalist, says that politics stands in the way of finding a cure for AIDS, which by next year will have killed 9800 people.

By 1988, the death toll will be 40,000, almost as many as those killed in the Vietnam War.

In spite of these shocking figures, the Reagan administration is ignoring the problem.

Rampant homophobia among Republican members of the Senate Health Committee has forced appropriations for AIDS to be hidden in bills that are not subject to the Committee's jurisdiction.

As of now, Bush said, the Reagan Administration is not managing a health crisis but rather a public relations

Gay Peoples Chronicle

campaign. The spread of AIDS is being blamed on gays rather than on the Administration's inaction.

"In reality," he said, "it is people who are dying. Right now it is one person a day; by next year it will be two." Noting the many gay leaders who have died from AIDS, Bush called for everyone in the community to become involved, rather than depending on its more prominent members. "We are going to need each other every step of the way," he said.

Besides large-scale community involvement, Bush advocated working through caucuses and with non-gay groups, and suggested mobilizing the gay men and lesbians who have been elected to office. He warned that there may be only one more year during which gay people can set the agenda for action on AIDS.

National and local Gay/Lesbian leaders discuss the future directions of the movement.

COMING IN FUTURE ISSUES; INTERVIEWS WITH CHRIS RIDDIOUGH; VALERIE TERRIGNO; MORE.

page 9

COGITATES, CELEBRATES AT CWRU

By MARTHA PONTONI

Centering on establishing and maintaining gay families, this workshop was facilitated by Peter Beebe, Ph.D. Dr. Beebe, who has

Lesbian/Feminist poet Chocolate Waters

recites on of her poems.

worked in Cleveland and New York, is a psychologist and a leading authority on homosexuality in the Cleveland area.

Dr. Beebe opened the workshop with four statements: First, "If you are different, be prepared to do something." Second, "The world views gays and lesbians in one dimension. Sexual lifestyle issues are seen as more important than homo-identity." Third,

"Most so-called truths about gays and lesbians are false." Fourth, "Everything

is a system. Gays and lesbians need support from family, from other gays and lesbians, and from institutions. The gay/lesbian community does not have many supporting institutions."

He stressed the need for collective responsibility. Concerns expressed in the well-attended workshop included such questions as how to establish and maintain relationships. Several persons asked how to deal with their children or those of their lovers. Other questions centered on the legal aspects of adoption and custody.

The workshop showed a clear need for much more discussion of gay family

options. Dr. Beebe is setting up a taskforce to address the issues raised at the workshop. If you are interested in this project, please contact Peter Beebe at 229-4290.

Her honor Valerie Terrigno addresses

a packed Hatch Auditorium.