Letters

Continued from Page 2

Let's have more good positive articles such as the one on Olivia Records. It is inspiring.

William Edward Glover Homosexual Information Center, Inc. 115 Monroe St. Bossier City, La. 71111

Call to battered lesbians

To the Editor:

Some lesbians are battered and some lesbians batter. This reality may be hard to accept by the Cleveland's women's community. Don't we, after all, hold up an image that violence does not exist in the women's community? Can our belief that we are a peaceloving and gentle community be marred by power struggles and violence within lesbian relationships?

The Lesbian-Gay Community Service Center is putting out a call to women who are being or have been battered. A few months ago, Doreen Fadiga wrote about the need for the community to respond by getting involved as a coalition to help support our sisters who are being battered. She also invited lesbians who are being battered to reach out for support. Response to the invitiation was encouraging, but more involvement is needed.

There is a coalition of concerned women meeting regularly around this issue. Our goal is to increase awareness, educate and provide support services. We seek to make Cleveland safe for battered women. Together, we can. If you are interested in joining the efforts of the coalition, please call us. If you are in a relationship that you suspect may be violent, please call us. Domestic violence includes but is not limited to: physical or sexual abuse, restricting your freedom, psychological or emotional abuse, threating to reveal your lesbian identity, jeopardizing your finacial welfare, or property destruction. Call Doreen at 631-2275 or Deb at 522-1999 Monday and Thursday.

Debra Presser

Reader resists classism

To the Editor:

I appreciate the intent of the column "Healing Ourselves" by Fern Levy, but find it necessary to inform you and the author that I found the March 1989 column "Healing Our Relationship With Money" one of most classist, insulting, and poorly thought out articles that has appeared in your publication.

I do not deny the value of affirmation or the concept of generalized prosperity, but this article reduced those concepts to mindless nonsense.

Ms. Levy opens the article with a discussion of how attitudes about the 'mystery' of money leads to our 'consciousness of scarcity'. I would have had no problem with this, had she entitled the article "Healing Our Relationship With Money For Those of Us Who Have Some", but she did not. Apparently the

author is unaware that most people are poor-to-working class, and we grew up understanding quite clearly where money comes from, where it goes, and call her 'consciousness of scarcity' a more clear and direct thing: 'awareness of poverty.

Perhaps I misunderstood, and in fact Ms. Levy's article was directed to the downwardly mobile set, who have struggles with money to which I only aspire. This notwithstanding, her leap from individual perceptions of wealth and prosperity to a reference to self-mademillionaires-by-dint-of-attitude is both dangerous and familiar. I first en-

April, 1989 including myself 2.) to create an awareness of a new consciousness of prosperity and abundance, and 3.) to transcend the class mentality which limits all of us.

You do not have to agree with everything I say. Nor do I need to agree with everything you say. Maybe there is a place where neither one of us needs to judge the other based on assumptions that may be unfounded, as most assumptions are. Maybe as we continue on our separate paths, we will meet at certain points and be grateful for what we have to learn from each other. Thank you for your letter.

countered it in George Gilder's book Kudos for Paul

Wealth and Poverty. Surely you remember Mr. Gilder, father of "the more there is for you, the more there is for me" supply-side economics, and darling of the Reagan administration. He uses, verbatim, the simplistic maxims espoused in Ms. Levy's article to explain why sexism and poverty are good for civilization, and after all are only states of mind. Between Mr. Gilder and Ms. Levy I'm beginning to wonder if there is no such thing as economic oppression, and all that I really need to do is to affirm myself into becoming a rich white male!

I regretfully inform Ms. Levy that money is not, ultimately, energy. My landlord is not interested in my creative energy on the first of the month; he wants a check. Money is not, as this editorial would have us belive, “being exchanged for creative energy". For most of us, it is exchanged for not-very-creative labour, and the amount of it depends upon one's age, race, gender, and the deemed social worth of one's employment.

I do not expect insightful political analysis from the "Healing Ourselves" column, and understand that this is not its purpose. I do expect, from both columnists and their editors, respectful, coherent opinions that do not insult the intelligence, nor make assumption about the class, of their readers.

Mistinguette Y. Smith-Malone

Fern Levy replies:

I appreciate your letter. Diversity of opinion is always present and needs to be discussed more in our community. Your taking time to respond to my column affirms my belief that there are many people out there who have a lot to teach me.

Perhaps the message of the March column, "Healing Our Relationship to Money" is unclear. Let me first state that my intention was not to critique Reaganomics, oppression based on age, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, or class, or even the imperfect world that we all live, work and pay rent in.

I am not a student of economics. I am a student and teacher of transformational consciousness. And, like many people, I resisted doing the spiritual work that now nourishes me. I respect others' resistance to this work taking full responsibility for our lives is indeed, very hard work.

This spiritual work does not eliminate, condone, or ignore oppression. It serves only as another path, another way of moving toward the possibility of healing ourselves. I believe that each of us undergoes transformation, each of us becomes a powerful force to change the world.

My goals were three-fold in writing this column: 1.) to present to the readers of this paper another perspective in looking at issues pertaining to money each of have,

HOSPITALIZATION.

ASSISTANCE

Frustrated with medical insurance claims...

...We Can Help.

We will process, file, and monitor your hospital and medical claims, including medicare for maximum benifits.

We also maintain records for tax purposes

Why not give peace of mind to yourself

or someone you love.

Call Hospitalization Assistance 779-9799

To the Editor:

Hurray and amen! Mr. A. Paul (Letters, January '89,) hit the nail on the head. He is a newly "transplanted-fromelsewhere" member of our community. He also echoes a comment I have made privately and publicly to persons in responsible leadership posts for more than 15 years.

As a point of reference, my allegorical comment compared our intraand interorganizational power struggling to the children's story of "The Little Red Hen." At the end of that story, everyone wanted to share in the bounty. But, they had done nothing to earn any of the reward. So "Auntie" Henny told them to go pound salt.

Before Stonewall and since, older gays and others worked tirelessly for what rights we now enjoy. Most of these beautiful-spirited people are today snubbed by the currently-dubbed 'beautiful people' who are now eagerly devouring the bread they baked, and very thanklessly, at that. Why? Mr. Paul said. he did not know for sure what the answer to that query would be. I may have only a piece of the answer, but it could provide a springpoint.

In the development of self-esteem and personal affirmation so vital to us as gay individuals, who were lacking these facets publicly and privately, we bought into what has been called the "me generation." It's not some demonic possession or rabid mania, as some may wish to declare. It's just plain and simple arrogance, egotism, conceit and careless disregard for anything that does not have grandiose, immediate and exclusive, selfsatisfying benefits. A sort of blatant statement of a philosophy, say, "Up with me and up yours, buddy!" Truly, in the quest for rectification of long-standing

injustices, the pendulum swings too far in the opposite direction, creating an equally dastardly wrong. Part of the solution for our present problem is to grab that pendulum and pull it back to a more central swoop.

Too long, the silent majority in gaydom has been voiceless. A. Paul, you spoke out in print! That took true courage. But, more than that, it took something not present or widely prevalent, in recently passed years: a gay press willing to "just say no" to more popularly-aired, but often misguided spokespersons of our lifestyle. The famous patriot said it best: "If we don't all hang together, we shall all, surely, hang separately!"

The Chronicle, and its reveredfounder, Charlie Callender, should be praised for printing your remarks. I trust

GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE Page 3 they will publish these words as well, in the spirit of policy Charlie set forth during his life.

I'm asking that this be signed with a simple pseudonym, because what I'm saying is not so much personal opinion, but the heart-felt cry of many who need my anonymity to bolster their own need to speak up and get into action as a working, cooperating volunteer. Voice your own concerns along with mine in print!

"Auntie" Henny

Keep up-to-date

To the Editor:

I receive several publications that often suggest that their readers send letters to their representatives about an upcoming bill.

Unfortunately, many of the publications, like the Chronicle, are only monthly. Because there is often a long time lapse between the editors' preparing the article and my actually receiving the paper in the mail, I'm unsure of the status of the legislation. The bill that I am interested in supporting may have already been voted upon.

Not only does this not encourage the legislators' support, except after the fact, it detracts from my status as a knowledgeable and concerned constituent.

Are there any resources available that can give me information about pending legislation and where it is in the process of being voted upon?

I believe that all gay men and lesbians, their friends and their family must learn to take the time to jot a letter to their representatives. They work for you! Let them know that we are here.

Sandy Bowers Kent, Ohio

The Human Rights Campaign Fund, the national lesbian-gay lobbying organization, can give you up-to-date information if you call them at 202-628-4160. They also operate a computer bulletin board called "HRCF Net" as well as a service you can sign up for which automatically sends mailgrams to Congress when needed.

Also, you can call your senator or representative's district officea local calllisted under "congressional representatives' in the Government Offices (blue pages) section of the phone book. Their Washington office phone numbers can be gotten from the Federal Information Center, in Cleveland, at 5224040.

Calling elected officials' offices just to ask about a bill shows them that there is constituent interest, and, of course, you can give them your opinion. Most office staffs keep track of phoned-in constituent opinion, even after a vote, and let their member know. Of course, letters are still the best way to register opinion.

The Chronicle encourages everyone to write and express their opinion about the paper or life in general. We reserve the right to edit, for length and clarity only. We will print your name unless you specifically ask us not to.

Address letters to the Chronicle, P.O Box 5426, Cleveland, Ohio, 44101.

Donald Resseguie, CPA

ACCOUNTING AND TAX SERVICES

(216) 228-1572