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GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE

An Independent Chronicle of the Ohio Lesbian and Gay Community

Volume 9, Issue 5 September 3, 1993

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Rights repeal is now on Cincinnati ballot

Backers of a movement to repeal the gay civil rights provision in Cincinnati's human rights ordinance have enough valid signatures to put the measure to a vote in the November election. The signatures were approved August 25 by the Board of Elections, said Shirley Lesser, executive director of Stonewall Cincinnati.

Gay activist organizations and their allies say they are ready for a fight.

"We had always anticipated they would get it on the ballot because of the low number of signatures necessary," said Lesser. It takes 9,905 valid signatures to ask City Council to put an issue on the ballot.

"Everybody is ready to fight the lies and distortions this community is going to hear." Lesser said. Gay groups have formed Equality Cincinnati to fight the ballot issue.

Peri Jude Radecic, an organizer for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, said her organization will bring experts to Cincinnati to train volunteers and help local activists organize. NGLTF is an organizer of the "Fight the Right Midwest Summit" in Cincinnati Sept. 4 and 5. The weekend will consist of strategy meetings, workshops aimed at dealing with the media and information on street action. The highlight of the weekend will feature a Saturday evening concert by the Flirtations. All events will be held at the Hyatt Regency in Cincinnati.

Take Back Cincinnati, a coalition of conservative groups and religious organizations, presented its petitions to the Hamilton County Board of Elections on August 20.

Phil Burress, coordinator of the TBC campaign, said the group gave the Board of Elections about 18,000 signatures.

The gay civil rights measure was passed

Conference is a 'fresh start'

for AIDS plan

by Aras van Hertum

In an effort to usher in a "new beginning in AIDS research," 50 key players in AIDS treatment and research met in Wisconsin in late July to reach agreement on a list of recommendations for the Clinton adminis-

tration.

"There's a fundamental need... to get a fresh start and take advantage of the opportunity that's there with the new administration," said one of the meeting's organizers, Martin Delaney, who heads the San Francisco-based treatment advocacy group Project Inform. "The administration continues to give signals that it desperately wants

Continued on Page 4

Cobb County Georgia says gays aren't part of community, diverts all arts funding

by City Council last year and bans discrimination in hiring and housing on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, marital status, color, religion, Appalachian origin or disability.

Organizers of the Cincinnati repeal effort say they are not anti-gay, but they oppose giving people "special status" under the law because of sexual orientation.

"There's nobody involved in this who hates anybody; it's not about that," Burress said. "It's about the right of people to petition their government for the redress of grievances. When there's something we don't like, we can fix it."

The anti-gay rights initiative is similar to other efforts throughout the country, but is the first in Ohio. Take Back Cincinnati was assisted by the Colorado group that sponsored the anti-gay Amendment 2 there.

But enforcement of that measure has been held up by the Colorado Supreme Court, and the constitutionality of the amendment is to be decided in a trial in October.

See Jane build

Carpenter Lorraine Bertosa cuts a framing member for a two-story house being built on East 36th St. by an all-women crew, for a single mother. The first "See Jane Build" project is a joint effort of Habitat for Humanity, Hard Hatted Women, the Women's Community Foundation, and Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW). The 10-day "building blitz" continues through Labor Day; after that, work continues on Saturdays for the next several months.

Stonewall fares better at state fair

COLUMBUS BUREAU

The 1993 Ohio State Fair is history, and for Columbus' Stonewall Union, the event was free of the hassles that beset the group last year.

"It was much, much calmer," said Stonewall office manager Mike Dittmer. "We had no problem with the fair staff.”

Last year, Billy Inmon, then general manager of the fair, tried to prevent the group from distributing what he called “pornographic material" at its information booth, specifically copies of Gaybeat, a Columbus gay newspaper.

Inmon tried to require Stonewall Union to submit its materials to a screening board, but backed off when Stonewall threatened to sue on the basis of discrimination. No such screening process had been used before.

For the past sixteen years, Stonewall Union has had a booth at the fair, where it distributes information and educational material about the lesbian and gay community, Dittmer said.

This year, it distributed the Chronicle and resource guides such as Lavender Listings; the Ohio Guide; fliers from Ohio State University's Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Student Services Office; and AIDS information. It also distributed about three cases of condoms, but condoms were not given to children, Dittmer said.

In addition to Stonewall volunteers, members of the Columbus chapter of the Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Veterans of America helped staff the booth and distributed literature about their group.

Dittmer said Stonewall asked a gayfriendly attorney to screen its materials be-

fore the fair to ensure that nothing could be construed as pornographic or contributing to the delinquency of minors. He said Stonewall did this voluntarily so as "not to give Inmon any more fuel for his fire."

According to fair officials, more than 906,000 people attended the 17-day event, which ended Aug. 22. Dittmer did not have an estimate of how many people visited the Stonewall booth, which is the only lesbian and gay booth at the fair.

Although Inmon was fired after last year's fair, he still tried to make trouble for Stone-

wall this year, Dittmer said. On opening day, Inmon held a morning press conference to discuss his independent candidacy for governor. Afterwards, he invited reporters to follow him to the Stonewall booth so they could see the "smut" that was distributed there. Some reporters did accompany him, but the building in which the booth was located had not yet opened.

"As far as I know, he never did come to the booth," said Dittmer. He also said he has not heard of any complaints from fairgoers about the booth.

AIDS IN A 'SECOND-TIER' CITY

What's being done?

by Charlton Harper

The lack of a national AIDS policy has instilled many doubts about public awareness and response to AIDS. Without coordinated plan of action, an effective approach seems

First in a series

hopeless. And

while the national scene has

long ignored the reality, what goes on at the local levels?

kin

A casual look through a list of Greater Cleveland's AIDS and HIV care provid ers reflects a major stumbling block: many services, coupled to a minimal amount of coordinated leadership. The obvious question follows: How effective can community response be without linkage and guid-

INSIDE

Daniels 23

The question 17 Barry Daniels

that never

really goes away: When to come out— and to whom?

evaluates the Cleveland theater scene and previews season for 8 theaters

Good news and bad: The new director assesses the state of Cleveland's Center

ance between disparate organizations? More questions tumble after: What kind of duplication of services exists? Is competition for funding so great that it provides only for the largest and loudest? What kind of roles should public and private sectors play? Is anyone trying to these question

find savers to

Cleveland, frequently labeled a "second-tier" city, has grappled with these and similar questions in the past. Because early needs demanded immediate reaction, little infrastructure formed. The AIDS Commission of Greater Cleveland, convened by local government agencies in the late 1980s, examined this gap by addressing concerns centering on policy and

News Briefs..

Editorials, Community Forum Entertainment

Charlie's Calendar.. Classified.. 27

Continued on Page 6

Personals.. 28 Resource.. 34