10 GAY PEOPle's ChronICLE October 24, 1997

EDITORIAL

Michael White for mayor

Cleveland's gay, lesbian and bisexual residents have an important decision to make on November 4, and the outcome will determine who will lead Cleveland into the next century.

As expected, current mayor Michael R. White and popular Ward 14 councilmember Helen K. Smith emerged as the frontrunners in the September 30 primary election, collecting 95% of the vote (although only 20% of Cleveland voters turned out to vote in the primary).

Michael White

Smith, who collected 40% of the primary vote, has focused primarily on the neighborhoods during her campaign, saying White has focused money and resources almost exclusively on downtown. Smith says she is wooing Clevelanders who are “disillusioned" with White's style of government and feel left out of the political process.

White says that he is running on his eightyear record—a record that includes a drop in crime rates, and a rise in new jobs and new housing development.

Like our straight neighbors, lesbigay Clevelanders have many of the same concerns taxes, safe, clean neighborhoods, and, as more of us choose parenthood, the future of the Cleveland public school system. Yet, there are other issues that are unique to the lesbigay community.

Both candidates were interviewed about these issues on October 3, and the results were published in the October 10 issue of the Chronicle. The lesbigay community finds itself in the unique position of having two solid candidates to choose from, both of whom are gay friendly, or at least gay-educable.

Both candidates come with strengths and credible records. Prior to being mayor, White was a member of city council and a state senator. Smith has been a member of city council for the past 18 years and in that time, has earned the respect of her colleagues, many of whom are supporting her candidacy. She also has carned a reputation as a politician who represents the “little guy.” A victory in November would make her the first woman mayor of Cleveland.

But, a choice needs to be made to determine who is in the best position to lead the city.

On October 14, the five-member editorial board of the Gay People's Chronicle met to vote on our endorsement in the mayor's race. We considered the candidates' positions on some of the mainstream issues in this election, their track records on gay and lesbian legislation, and their general understanding of lesbigay issues based on their answers to questions posed during the October 3 interviews.

We came out of that meeting with a clear and unanimous decision to endorse Michael R. White for mayor of Cleveland.

The reasons are many. White's track record on gay and lesbian issues is a solid one. In 1994, he introduced a human rights ordinance that included lesbians and gays. In 1996, he signed into law a bill that stiffened penalties for employers who discriminate based on sexual orientation.

In August of this year, he appointed Robert Bucklew to act as a liaison to the gay and lesbian community. While this move has drawn some criticism since Bucklew is already the city of Cleveland's AIDS coordinator-a job that should keep him plenty busy-it does provide a portal through which the mayor can receive information regarding issues of importance to the gay and lesbian community.

In addition to Bucklew, Gary L. Holland and Pat Purdy, both of the city's Community Relations Board, have acted as conduits of information from the gay and lesbian community to the mayor.

Back in the early days of Cleveland's Pride March, White approved having a lavender stripe painted down the center of Euclid Avenue, in the same way that a green stripe had been painted for St. Patrick's Day parades. Smith has made appearances at past Pride events, but only when they were held in her Ward 14. White has never attended, but said, as did Smith, that he would attend a future Pride event as mayor.

When the "neighborhood" issue was raised at the October 3 meeting, all five members of the Chronicle's endorsement board could point to improvements in their own backyards-whether it was in the form of new housing, new businesses moving in, or increased police protection. We agreed with Council President Jay Westbrook-a White supporter-who said, "It would be hard to find a neighborhood that can say they are not doing better [than before White took office]. There is a universal feeling that

Cleveland is on the right track."

Certainly, our endorsement does not come without some concerns. While it is important to continue to obtain all of the federal grant money that is available for the fight against AIDS, the $25,000 from the city's general fund is a pittance, especially considering that Cleveland is a Title I city. The feeling among the HIV community and the lesbigay community is that it was too little, too late. We need to challenge the mayor to do a better job on this.

We also need to hold White-and any other elected officials-accountable for their campaign promises. White has said he would attend Pride; let's make it easy for him by giving his schedulers plenty of advance notice. White has said that he doesn't believe that domestic partnership legislation would pass City Council; let's begin discussing the issue with our city councilmembers, so that when and if the issue does get introduced, there will be at least some familiarity and perhaps even a climate of receptivity. We need to start empowering ourselves, instead of waiting for someone to do it for us.

The lesbian, gay and bisexual community in Cleveland knows where it stands with Mayor White. As an African-American, he is a man who understands first-hand the effects of discrimination. He has publicly stated his view that discrimination based on sexual orientation is the same as discrimination based on race or gender. He is a person who has welcomed us to the table at city hall and has put people in place to listen to our con-

cerns.

Most of Smith's campaign has focused on the shortcomings of Michael White. The gay community would need a compelling reason to oust a mayor who has not made any grievous errors, who has consistently been more friend than foe, and so far, Smith has not provided any.

Perhaps most unsettling was Smith's answer to the question, "If you are endorsed by the Gay People's Chronicle, will you publicly acknowledge that endorsement?" Her answer hinted at a fear that being linked to the lesbigay community is somehow a political liability. While that may be considered true by some, we need a mayor who welcomes the participation of all Clevelanders, regardless of sexual orientation, and is not afraid to stand up for what is right, even when that stand has a cost.

White has been that mayor. That is why we encourage lesbian, gay and bisexual voters to re-elect him mayor of Cleveland on November 4.

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Handled with caution

To the Editors:

The interviews with candidates Michael White and Helen Smith in the October 10 issue provide valuable insight into the candidates for Cleveland's mayoral race. Every conscientious member and supporter of the gay, lesbian and bisexual community should read the interviews before going to the polls next month. The Chronicle is to be commended for this high-quality reporting.

On a personal level, I was shocked and appalled to read Helen Smith's remark that she did not know if she would accept the Chronicle's endorsement if it were offered. She mentions that all kinds of groups, including one supporting the legalization of marijuana, were coming forward to endorse her, and she wasn't sure what to do. The offensive implication, of course, is that the gay, lesbian and bisexual community is a fringe group to be handled with caution. This comment reveals amazing ignorance.

If Helen Smith isn't sure she wants my vote, she certainly won't get it.

Michael J. Ruffing Cleveland

COMMUNITY FORUM

Agent nixed her stop

To the Editors:

In the October 10 issue, businessman Paul Zeitzew lobbed a couple of stink bombs at the ACLU.

Mr. Zeitzew wrote to complain that author Patricia Nell Warren declined to appear at his place of business during her visit to Cleveland and reported that this was the fault of the ACLU.

I write to correct the record.

The ACLU invited Patricia Nell Warren to be the featured speaker at our annual meeting on October 23. We are a grassroots organization funded by our membership, and seldom in a position to offer speakers an honorarium. We offer to pay for transportation and other travel expenses and hope a speaker will agree to work with us, because we share with them a vision of human rights for all people, regardless of sexual orientation, race or gender.

Ms. Warren's other appearances while in Cleveland were completely under the control of her own publicist. The ACLU had nothing to do with her decision to decline Mr. Zeitzew's invitation-despite what he may have been told.

We wanted Clevelanders to hear from Ms. Warren. In addition to a lifelong commitment to human rights, Patricia was a client of the ACLU's in a landmark case decided by the Supreme Court last term. In the case ACLU v. Reno, we challenged a federal statute called the Communications Decency Act. The CDA, if found constitutional by the Supremes would have allowed the government to suppress material on the Internet that it, the government, deemed "indecent."

Exactly what would be suppressed under CDA? Breast cancer support groups, information on AIDS/HIV, reproductive health, human sexuality and web sites such as Ms. Warren's which provide a private place for adolescents to navigate the treacherous waters of sexual identity and orientation.

In light of what we know about teen suicide and the stress of figuring out one's sexual identity, Ms. Warren's web site offers needed protection against government censorship. At stake in this case: Both a valuable community service and Ms. Warren's First Amendment rights to free speech (and the rights of the kids who participate in her web forum.)

The ACLU won this case. And although we provide free legal representation to the

people we agree to represent, we are always grateful to those who agree to be our clients. It takes a special kind of courage to be a party in a First Amendment law suit. It is stressful, time consuming and sometimes even dangerous. Without clients such as Patricia Nell Warren, our volunteer attorneys could not conduct the landmark litigation that protects us all from abuses of government power.

While I am sorry that Mr. Zeitzew was disappointed in Ms. Warren's choice to decline his invitation, the ACLU had nothing to do with her decision. In fact, I would find it inappropriate to make such choices for someone else.

Reputations and credibility are precious in an activist community. Pettiness and infighting can cause more damage than all of our enemies together. I am distressed that Mr. Zeitzew used an influential and public forum such as the Gay People's Chronicle to express his anger at Ms. Warren and the ACLU, anger which I find both misdirected and overstated. With the constitutional right to free speech comes the private responsibility to be mindful of

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