Card gives money to six groups, three indviduals

Rainbow

1-800-99-Rainbow

Rainbow

October 25, 1996 GAY PEOPLE's ChronICLE 13

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Leadership award winners Urvashi Vaid, Tim Rosta and Suzanne Goldberg with co-founder Martina Navratilova.

by Doreen Cudnik

It was while driving home from the March on Washington three years ago that tennis ace Martina Navratilova and her longtime friends Pam Derderian and Nancy Becker came up for the idea for the Rainbow Card, a gay-friendly credit card that just celebrated its first year on October 9.

"I was sitting in the back waving at all the other gays and lesbians as we passed them on the freeway," Navratilova said. “We were talking about how nice it was to feel like a community, but it was so fleeting, it was just that one weekend. We wanted to do something that would make us feel like that all of the time. Someone said, 'How about a credit card?' And I said, 'Great, put it together and I'll pro-

mote it'."

Also announced were the Rainbow Card Leadership Awards, given to individuals whose work positively impacts the lesbian and gay community. This year's recipients, author and activist Urvashi Vaid; LifeBeat director Tim Rosta; and Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund staff attorney Suzanne Goldberg, each received a $10,000 award to help further their work.

Although this year's award winners were chosen by the six-member board of directors, Rainbow card holders will eventually have the opportunity to nominate people and vote for future award win-

Navratilova credits the election of President Bill Clinton and her being a resident of Colorado as two things that thrust her into the activist arena.

With the help of some start-up money from Subaru of America, Navratilova put her name and familiar face behind the project. In just a year, the card has grown to the point where the Rainbow Endowment, a non-profit group that distributes the money, was able to donate over $100,000 to six gay and lesbian health and civil rights groups.

The beneficiaries of the Rainbow Endowment were the AIDS Information Network; the Astraea National Lesbian Action Foundation; the Community Research Initiative on AIDS; the National Breast Cancer Coalition; the National Lesbian and Gay Health Association; and the National Center for Lesbian Rights. "We tried to spread [the money] between rights organizations and HIV/AIDS health organizations that serve both men and women," Navratilova said.

While use of the card is expected to grow, and along with it the list of beneficiaries, Navratilova said that the money will always be Carmarked specifically for gay and lesbian organizations.

"We're not going to branch out to include things like the Ms. Foundation," Navratilova aid. "However worthy those causes may be,

that's

's not our fight."

ners.

Having retired from playing tennis professionally, Navratilova said she has more time to devote to working for the civil rights of gay and lesbian Americans.

"I've been involved in a lot of different charities and organizations over the years, but I haven't really had the time to give that I'm giving now. I've been more active since I'm not playing tennis anymore."

Navratilova credits the election of President Bill Clinton and her being a resident of Colorado as two things that thrust her into the activist arena. She tried to get other Colorado residents to talk about the anti-gay ballot initiative Amendment 2 prior to the vote on it, but nobody would listen. "People were saying, 'Oh, it's not going to pass, there's nothing to talk about.' The day after the election, my publicist had over 250 phone calls from everybody in Colorado as well as around us, and suddenly, I'm a spokesperson."

Like many gays and lesbians this election year, Navratilova has felt some disappointment regarding Clinton's position on gay and lesbian issues.

“I want to give him credit for being the first leader to want to associate with the gay and lesbian community, but then he sort of retracted a lot of the good work," Navratilova said. “I'm really disappointed in how he has gone back into the closet."

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