gay people's

H R

SEPTEMBER 1988

EVELAND PUBLIC LIBRA

CIAL SCIENCES DEP

PERIODICAL

N I

PUBLIS SEP 7-1988

foc

L E

CLEVELAND, OHIO

A Chronicle of the Lesbian & Gay Community

Michigan music festival stricken

by Dora Forbes

The 13th Annual Michigan Womyn's Music Festival was marred when many women who attended suddenly became sick with Shigella, a mild to fatal form of dysentery.

The Festival, held August 10 13 usually draws up to 9,000 women from all over the world to listen to Women's music and participate in Women's culture. Attendance this year was close to 7,500.

Before the Festival started workcrews began to show symptoms of Shigella, which is characterized by high fever, nausea, severe diarrhea and headaches. It can be fatal if not treated properly. When first alerted to the

problem Festival organizers called in the local health department to help determine the cause of the outbreak. When the health department concluded the water wasn't the cause, Organizers decided to go on with the Festival as planned and instituted some precautions so as to minimize the spread of the disease.

Some of the precautions that were instituted included changing the menus so there would be less chance of spoilage, changing the way the food was prepared and Clorox Bleach washes for dishes, hands and even the watermelons. An official of the Festival, who refused to be identified, said that the number of cases were greatly reduced after the precautions were in place. "They (the precautions) minimized the spread and it looked like

SACGLI hearings set

The State Advisory Council on Gay and Lesbian Issues (SACGLI) welcomes members of the Greater Cleveland lesbian and gay community to participate in a Hearing on Discrimination and Acts of Violence Against Lesbians and Gays in Greater Cleveland, to take place on Thursday September 15, 1988 at the Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center of Greater Cleveland at 1418 W.29th Street.

SACGLI was created in the 1983 Executive Order signed by Governor Richard Celeste committing the Executive branch of Ohio State government to "not discriminate in State employment against any individual based on the individual's sexual orientation." Its mission has been to advise the Executive branch on implementation of this order, and in doing so has organized hearings around

Center holds benefit

The Lesbian/Gay Community Center of Cleveland will hold its first benefit September 24, 1988 at Allen Memorial Library on the Case Western Reserve Campus at 8pm. Performing for the Center will be Lynn Lavner.

Lynn Lavner first appeared in Cleveland at the All Ohio Lesbian/Gay Conference in April, where she was a big hit. Ms. Lavner is a 5'2" Jewish lesbian who dresses in leather. Her act has been described as "Cabaret" style and is very appealing to lesbians as well as gay men. Lavner is one of the few Lesbian performers whose transcends the gender gap in the lesbian/gay community.

act

The Center's Director Aubrey Wertheim says that this benefit is very important to the Center. "The money we raise will go to general operating funds. We need to raise at least $4,000 dollars".

The Center, located at 1418 W29th (W29th and Detroit), operates the Lesbian/Gay Hotline, and many outreach programs including Alcohol and Drug Abuse and Youth.

Tickets for the Benefit are $8 advance or $10 at the door and can be purchased at Another State of Mind, Lakewood; Bookstore on W25th, Cleveland; High Tide/Rock Bottom, Cleveland Heights; Women's Building Project (The Civic), Cleveland Heights; and The Center. Call 522-1999 for more information. ▼

the state on anti-lesbian and gay violence and discrimination. The Cleveland hearing is organized by local volunteers and is the final hearing before a report to Governor Celeste is prepared documenting abuses and discriminatory acts suffered by the lesbian/gay community. Contained in the report will be recommendations on legal reform to protect the rights of lesbians and gays in areas of employment, housing, education, adoption, custody, taxes, contracts and wills.

Discrimination against members of the lesbian/gay community is widespread. The National Gay Lesbian Task Force has stated that "one in four gay men and nearly one in ten lesbians have been 'punched, kicked, or beaten' because of their sexual orientation," based on

Continued on Page 4.

they were paying off." Officials also insisted that they announced from the night stage every night about the outbreak of Shigella and warned the women how to avoid it.

In Cleveland, at least sixteen women came down with symptoms of the disease after they returned home. Four of the women were hospitalized because of the severity of the diarrhea which can cause dehydration that could lead to death. When questioned, Festival Officials commented "I don't think we did anything to cause it". Shigella is caused by heat and bacteria and is not unique to the Festival, although the close proximity of the women at the Festival could have helped spread the disease.

Joanne Colemen, who attended the Festival, commented that

she felt not enough was done to prevent the spread of the bacteria. "Yeah, there were Clorox rinses, but these weren't changed very often and were dirty most of the time." "I didn't even hear the announcement from the Night Stage. I was even in the Womb (infirmary) and they didn't say anything about it."

The conquences of this outbreak have not been fully determined. Officials of the Festival insist they did what they could. A meeting of Festival Organizers, National, State and County Health Officials has been scheduled but the results were not available at the time of writing. ▼

Candidate comes out

by L. Kolke

Michael Gelphi, 47, of Columbus is running as the first openly gay candidate ever for the U.S. Congress. Facing a tough battle in Ohio's historically conservative 12th district (which encompasses northeastern Franklin County, western Licking County, and all of Delaware and Morrow Counties), Gelphi came out publicly on June 23 when he opened his campaign headquarters. Recalling that he has always wanted to run for Congress but did not prior to now because of his being gay, Gelphi labeled his disclosure one of "political honesty." Gelphi may have hurt his chances by making the announcement, but some political observers feel he may have simply kept someone else from raising the issue more negatively in a rumour campaign. Initial public

Health conference held

by Aubrey Wertheim

Sixteen Clevelanders were part of the 1500 attendees of the Second International Lesbian and Gay Health Conference held July 20-26 in Boston. Representatives from Health Issues Taskforce (HIT), the Community Center and the Ohio Department of Health as well as local medical students and physicians experienced a daunting six days which boasted over 300 workshops, 10 pleneries, 7 miniconferances and innumerable special events such as book-signings, video screenings, award presentations and press conferences.

Controversy erupted even before the opening remarks with the barring of the Nicaraguan representatives by the Immigration and Naturalization Service. AIDS and health care workers were refused U.S. entry due to the continuing Central American troubles. The National Lesbian and Gay Health Foundation, the sponsors of the event along with GWU Medical Center and the American Association of Physicians for Human Rights, strongly criticized the Reagan Administration for the action at a press conference. The Federal Government was a source of debate and despair throughout the week.

The general consensus of the Cleveland contingent was a feeling that

the Conference was exhilarating but often overwhelming. For instance, Saturday morning alone offered 26 workshops, ("Lesbian Health Care", AIDS Education in Prison", "Substance Abuse in Gay/Lesbian Youth", "Life After Coming Out", for example), a review of posters from around the world, Cherl Crane (author of Detour and daughter of Lana Turner) and other writers signing, books, a forum entitled "Leadership and the Health Agenda," featuring nationally prominent lesbian, gay and AIDS leaders as well as 15 literature tables which were available for browsing.

Inspiration and discovery came from unexpected sources. Though Ted Kennedy emphatically lambasted the Reagan Administration for its continued lack of AIDS leadership and called for solid anti-discrimation measures, it was Renee McCoy, the new director of the National Coalition of Black Lesbians and Gays, whose forceful and rallying call for an "AIDS Plus Agenda", (AIDS plus all other health and community concerns) who had the attendees cheering.

Although James Curran, head of the CDC AIDS Program, commanded polite attention as he fielded difficult questions and charges, it was Frank Young, Commissioner of the FDA, who won respect as he kept Continued on Page 4.

reaction appeared to be mild.

Only one Democrat has been elected from this district in the past 30 years and then only for one term. The incumbent representative is popular third term conservative, John Kasich. Mark Brown, a follower of homophobe Lyndon LaRouche, won the Democratic Primary without opposition but has since been disavowed by the Democratic Party. Gelphi, a one-time Republican, is running as an Independent with the endorsement of the local Democratic Party.

Gelphi brings to the campaign a solid background of business management experience and civic involvement. A graduate of Georgetown University and a U.S. Army veteran, Gelphi has successfully run a family business and started his

Continued on Page 4.

Cleveland hosts softball tournament

On Labor Day Weekend, September 3-4, Cleveland NCAA. Softball League will host the 3rd Annual Midwestern Invitational Softball Tournament at Brookside's Rose and Elder Fields. At least 250 visitors are expected to attend the Tournament this weekend in Cleveland.

Lesbians and from gays Baltimore, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Toronto and Washington D.C. will play at Brookside from 11:30 am to 5:00 pm both Saturday and Sunday. Cleveland's All Star Team which consists of 4 women and 13 men will compete. The Tournament rotates annually between Columbus, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Detroit.

Attendance for fans is free. Brookside is located off I-71 near the 200, off the corner of Denison and Fulton Roads. Previous Tournaments in Columbus and Pittsburgh have been noted for fan enthusiasm, and organizers are expecting several hundred fans to attend and show support for the Tournament.

There will be a banquet for players and guests on Saturday, as well as a Goodtime II Cruise on Sunday at 9:00 P.M. A limited number of tickets are available for the boat cruise at sponsoring popular bars.