Page 4 GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE August, 1989

U4ia: 'a party every night'

by Martha Pontoni

Class returns to Cleveland's lesbian and gay dance clubs with the opening of U4ia in late August. U4ia, located on Berea Road in Cleveland, will be a large scale dance club with different activities scheduled every night of the week.

Hank Burger, former owner of Traxx in Cleveland (from 1975 to 1978), the Probe in Los Angeles, and owner of Hank's Cafe in Lakewood has announced the opening of his newest club. U4ia is on the site of Gabriel's, a popular club which closed after a few months. Burger stresses that U4ia and Gabriel's are not connected in any way. "They sold me the building, that is all" said Burger.

Billed as a "private club," U4ia is for "gays and their friends" according to Burger. "We aren't going advertise to straight people but they will be welcome. If they are with gay people they probably are cool." There will be no quotas or escort requirements.

The club will feature 130 feet of bar space with 11 stations including waiter

Letters

Continued from Page 2

little.

My life-partner and I came back from a wonderful vacation in the Poconos. We stayed at a privately owned cedar log cabin called "Stoney Ridge". It is a tastefully decorated, secluded, warm, cozy cabin. We went to sleep and woke to the sound of birds, no horns, no construction, no noise. We had a wonderful week exploring the many state and national parks, shops, restaurants, etc.

It took us seven hours from Cleveland and the drive was really worth it for a week vacation. We didn't get a chance to meet the owners, Pat and Greta, or see their guest house "Blueberry Ridge" but we hope to get there next time we go the cabin.

If you do get the chance to go, plan to really relax. One other suggestion is to travel during the day as the roads are winding and some are gravel, so be careful.

<<

The cabin is advertised in Lesbian Connection: 'Stoney Ridge', PatPoconos, Pa."

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Edy & Barb

Davis was bad P.R.

To the Editor:

As a member of ACT UP and the ACLU, I fight daily for the civil and political rights of gay men and lesbians. Mr. Daniel Davis' exhibitionist presentation at the Pride '89 celebration ran the risk of throwing Cleveland's gay movement back twenty years or more. We

stations. A $500,000 renovation restored the club to a warehouse look with a theatrical theme. The lavender walls are decorated with murals by Craig Robertson, a local artist. All of the furnishing, including the lighting fixtures, are Italian; the gargoyles are from Chicago's Grand Central Station. The stage has been expanded to accommodate national acts of all sorts. Rob Farinacci, U4ai's manager, commented on the origins of the theme. "We wanted it to be fun, theatrical, and bizarre enough to be interesting."

Wednesday through Sunday evenings will have featured events. Wednesday will be show night with an in-house cast of performers. Having a house cast is popular in many clubs on the coasts but this will be a first for Cleveland. It will be billed a "something new, something exciting, something professional." Thursday will feature Cookie Banks and House music. Friday is "U4fic Friday" with no cover and drink specials. Saturday will the "Big Night at the Big Club"

would all acknowledge his right to dress and express his opinions and sexuality as he sees fit, but, as a spokesperson for a segment of the gay community, his statements suggested an absence of discretion and a lack of judgment concerning what is politically necessary if gays are to win their full political and civil liberties.

When, in his speech, Mr. Davis said, "We chose to be gay," he perpetuated the greatest societal lie which straights use against gays. Most straights still hold the misconceived notion that "homosexuality" is a willful, immoral choice on our part and therefore deserving of religious, social, and political sanctions and retribution. In 1989 most gays know this to be patently false; sexual orientation seems to be the product of a complex interaction between innate predispositions and environmental fac-

tors.

Davis went on to imply that the gay cause is advanced by aggressive public displays of gay men in full leather; that they inspire in straights awe and respect towards themselves specifically and towards the gay community in general. He related an anecdote of how straights "part like water" when leather men walk down the street en masse. We must realize that this reaction does not occur out of respect or even out of fear. It is a natural response on the part of those straights to avoid others that they find alien or bizarre. Such acts of self expression should not be mistaken for communication. They are two different things. Self expression is its own reward, but the purpose of communication is persuasion. In all likelihood, those people who had been bullied off the sidewalk were not persuaded that gays are either strong or good. Self indulgence in the presence of straights only

THE GAY/LESBIAN STUDENT RESOURCE, UOFA PRESENT IN CONCERT

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with theme nights and national acts appearing on the stage.

The most daring night will be Sunday when Hank Burger plans to compete directly with the Lift, a progressive club, by featuring progressive music. The club will be called the Garage that night and will be geared toward younger lesbians and gays who are tired of disco music.

OBITUARIES

Lansdowne,

Jim 1958-1989

A private memorial service was held on June 26 in Vancouver, British Columbia, for gay activist, Jim Lansdowne. A public service was held in San Francisco July 10.

Lansdowne, 31, died June 19 of complications associated with AIDS. His partner of 11 years, David Lewis, was at his side.

Lansdowne was born in Cleveland. In the mid-1970s, he was director of GEAR, then Ohio's largest gay organization. In 1979, Lansdowne moved to San Francisco, where he was elected to the Harvey Milk Lesbian and Gay Democratic Club's Executive Commit-

reinforces their commonly held, negative stereotypes that all gays are weird, kinky, and bizarre.

Davis really drove home this impression of the bizarre at Pride '89. Even the most open-minded of our community were shocked and disconcerted by his discussion of "his boys." Apparently not separating sexual fantasy from political reality, he spoke of his desire to "own" and "dominate" "boys." In his statements he connected the themes of sadomasochism and (pseudo) pedophilia. Many straights already unjustly associate gay men with pedophilia and violence. Davis went on to represent a segment of our community as obsessed with this fantasy combination! Our political adversaries would hardly choose to distinguish between role playing among “men” (i.e. dominant males) and "boys" (i.e. sexually submissive adult men) and sexual relations between adult men and children. Hasn't NAMBLA already done enough to taint the image of our community? The gay-lesbian community could have been devastated by such statements had the sensationhungry media or our political opponents been present.

Mr. Davis' poor judgment carried over to his apparel. A straight friend of mine, attending Pride '89, questioned me: "Why is that man walking around with his bare ass hanging out? There are children at this party." The lesbian and gay parents with whom I have spoken were equally offended.

In his public address, Mr. Davis referred to the brotherhood and support system that exists within the leather clique. Did any of them advise him as to a suitable topic or preview his speech? Did any of them suggest that his attire was

The club will always be 21-and-over.

Both Burger and Farinacci stress that they want to be part of Cleveland's lesbian and gay community. They will be available for benefits to help out any community group. Burger says, "Expect a few mistakes. We are putting our money where our mouth is and we are going to have a party every night!"

tee. He served for nine years until his death.

Lansdowne was a leader in the San Francisco community, actively focusing on promoting AIDS educational programs.

He fought homophobia and AIDSphobia by speaking out on AIDS issues, and he tried to bring to public attention the discrimination faced by people with AIDS. He was featured in more than 50 media stories.

Lansdowne is survived by Lewis; his dog, Miz Brutuz the Basset Hound; and his family in Cleveland, three brothers, two sisters and his mother.

He requested that, in lieu of flowers, donations be sent to the Harvey Milk AIDS Education Fund, Box 14368, San Francisco 94114; or to AIDS Vancouver, Box 4991, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6B 4A6.

inappropriate to our family gathering? Did any of them warn him of the potential harm his statements could inflict upon the entire gay-lesbian community?

Twenty years after Stonewall we still do not have our fundamental rights and liberties assured. Many responsible members of the gay and lesbian community are struggling to secure those rights. Such lapses in sound judgment and blatant misrepresentations endanger all that we have gained in our fight for equality.

Accuracy

To the Editor:

G. Emerson Freedman

Thanks for printing Debra Hirschberg's letter [July issue] which addressed (among other issues), the financial discrepancies reported in the Women's Building Project's open letter [June issue]. Like Debra, I also believe it is important to report our past as accurately as possible. Thanks to the Chronicle for providing a forum for such reporting to occur.

Benita Chernyk

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. We will print your name unless you specifically ask us not to.

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