PERIODIC

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GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE

An Independent Chronicle of the Northern Ohio Lesbian and Gay Community

Gunman

threatens Akron bus

by Joseph Morris

AKRON CANTON BUREAU

After a late start and an all-night

ride, passengers bound for the March on Washington on one of the buses chartered by Akron's Committee '93 found themselves the target of a name-calling, gun wielding man in rural Maryland.

According to Jim DeLong of the committee, the two buses which originated in Wooster and Akron, met at Youngstown and filled up at about 2 am before setting out together. "We were so far behind schedule we had no traffic problems," he reported.

Worth the wait

LESBIAN

RIGHTS NC

LESBIAN

RIGH 10

Chaveland

Volume 8, Issue 11 May 14, 1993

PHOTO BY KEVIN BEANEY

Cleveland marchers carry their banner past the White House. The Ohio contingent79th out of 98 didn't march until after 5 pm.

The vehicles pulled into a highway rest stop just east of Hagerstown on Interstate 70 at about 9 am Sunday morning to allow passengers to stretch their legs and get some breakfast. The group was just 65 miles from its destination: the Pentagon parking lots and the March on Washington.

The fast food restaurant held some early morning churchgoers and a few other people on their way to the March. The influx of bus loads of high spirited gay people seems to have attracted attention.

If wasn't long after the buses loaded up and resumed the journey that DeLong, riding in the larger lead bus, noticed a Ford Bronco moving by in the passing lane. He and the passengers on the left side of the bus clearly

Continued on Page 4

Sailor pleads guilty to murder of Allen Schindler

Yokosuka, Japan-An American sailor pleaded guilty to beating to death a gay shipmate while drunk in a public restroom, but denied the attack was premeditated.

Airman Apprentice Terry M. Helvey, 21, of Westland, Mich., told a pretrial hearing that he continued to kick Petty Officer Allen Schindler in the head and stomach, even after his victim fell unconscious. By

1% survey got big play, but it was poorly done

Anonymous survey found higher numbers

by David Olson

What would you do if a total stranger knocked on your door, asked who you worked for and what you Social Security number was, and then asked if you were gay?

The question is more than academic. A Seattle-based research center did just that, and its finding that only one percent of men acknowledged they were gay became front-page news across the country. Already, right-wing groups are using the survey to tell politicians that supporting the concerns of such a tiny constituency is not worth the political risk.

Yet no major media outlet explained how the survey was conducted, either because the reporter did not bother to go beyond the four-page press release to

2

At

read through the actual study, or because and lesbians are frightened to publicly they simply did not realize that most gays declare their sexuality.

Many news accounts emphasized that respondents were granted "anonymity." But all that subjects got were promises from the interviewers that their answers

would be kept confidential.

Each respondent was required to fill out a survey form listing his name, address, Social Security number, workplace and work address, and the names of two friends or relatives and their phone numbers.

Researchers at the Battelle Human

Affairs Research Centers in Seattle defended how they conducted the survey.

MYNNWYS 7.

30,000 3

feet, Rev. Lou Sheldon discovers he's on a plane full of gay marchers

Oval Office meeting marks

lesbians and gays' "entry into the mainstream"

Continued on Page 9

18

H

Why

pleading guilty, Helvey sought to avoid a premeditated murder charge and possible death sentence.

Helvey did not say why he attacked Schindler. But he said he lied in previous statements when he claimed Schindler, 22, made sexual advances just before the killing.

The murder has been described by gay activists as a hate crime that illustrates the military's widespread hostility toward gays and lesbians.

"I remember hitting him in the face and stomping on his neck and kicking him in the groin," Helvey testified at the hearing before a military judge at Yokosuka Naval Base, headquarters of the U.S. 7th Fleet, southwest of Tokyo.

Helvey was arrested after Schindler's beaten and mutilated body was found in October in the restroom in a public park in the southwestern city of Sasebo, home port for their amphibious assault ship, the USS Belleau Wood.

Helvey has been charged with premeditated murder, which carries a maximum penalty of death. He pleaded guilty May 3 to a lesser charge of murder with intent to inflict great bodily harm, which would result in a maximum sentence of life in prison if accepted by the court.

The judge, Cmdr. David P. Holcombe, did not say when he would rule on Helvey's plea. Another pretrial hearing is set for May 24.

Another Michigan man, Airman Charles Vins, 21, of Sturgis, was arrested with Helvey after the slaying. He was convicted Continued on Page 13

INSIDE

they 25

hate gays: A look inside a political training seminar for fundamentalists

The voice of society's margins: The 6th Performance Art Festival wraps up

Events for

a weekend; experience of a lifetime

by Kevin Beaney

It was an event heralded and promoted throughout the gay media and grapevine for a year. It was to be the largest demonstration for civil rights and recognition ever staged in the United States. It was condemned by shrill critics, belittled by the news media, and snubbed by most politicians. It was a period of hype, hysteria, worry, anticipation and elation. And through it all, hundreds of thousands of gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, transgenders, families, friends and supporters made a historic journey to Washington, D.C., to create and sustain their own Harmonic Convergence for one historic, although brief, weekend.

The 1993 March on Washington for Lesbian, Gay, and Bi Equal Rights and Liberation took place as scheduled, on Sunday, April 25, under sunny skies, warm temperatures and a cloud of euphoria. The high positive gay energy generated and sent forth that day has started a ripple effect across the country that will be felt for years to come, in cities and in small towns, as returning marchers make an even greater commitment to conquering the ignorance, bigotry and disContinued on Page 10

Park Service

to review March count

Washington-Federal officials, responding to angry complaints that they undercounted the crowd at the March on Washington, agreed April 28 to review their estimate.

"We've agreed to take a look at the count and also to take a look at the methodology used at these times of large demonstrations," said Tom Collier, chief of staff for Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt.

The decision followed a meeting between Interior Department officials and March organizers. Also on hand was Bob Hattoy, openly-gay associate director of White House personnel and an adviser to President Clinton on gay issues.

The Park Service estimated the number of marchers flooding the National Mall at 300,000. Organizers put the count at 1.1 million, and expressed disappointment at the government's estimate. Crowd estimates Continued on Page 13

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