www.GayPeoples Chronicle.com

August 29, 2008

GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE 5

newsbriefs

Pioneering activist Del Martin has died at 87

San Francisco-Del Martin, a pioneering lesbian rights activist who married her lifelong partner on the first day same-sex couples could legally wed in California, has died. She was 87.

Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, said Martin died at a San Francisco hospital on the morning of August 27, two weeks after a broken arm exacerbated her existing health problems.

Kendell says Martin's wife, Phyllis Lyon, was by her side.

Martin and Lyon, who in 1955 cofounded the nation's first outspoken advocacy group for lesbians, the Daughters of Bilitis, were married at San Francisco City Hall on June 16.

Mayor Gavin Newsom, who officiated the wedding, singled them out to be the first gay couple to legally exchange vows in the city, in recognition of their activism.

It was the second time the couple were married in the city-the first time was in 2004, after Newsom ordered clerks to issue marriage licenses in San Francisco.

British spy agency recruits out members

London-Britain's domestic spy agency wants lesbian and gay recruits to know: It's time to come out of the closet.

After shunning them for decades over worries of blackmail, MI-5 is now asking gay and lesbian people to consider a career as a spy, promising the chance to fight terrorists, protect their country and earn a decent salary, plus benefits.

As part of an ongoing recruitment drive, MI-5 is already wooing women, minorities and people with language skills. The fact

Dancin'

Continued from page 1

rain that sent vendors scurrying to protect merchandise, leaflets and themselves from the sudden downpour.

However, unlike at Cleveland Pride last June, the storm passed quickly, leaving the rest of the day sunny and blazingly hot.

The rain also did not stop DJ Doug Burkart, who was spinning on a covered platform set up in the middle of Clifton.

Continuing the music, a stellar local lineup including Dwreck, DJ Debi, Jerry Szoka, Rob Black, Bob Ganem and Robin Harris kept the music going through the day into the nighttime hours.

Over on the performance stage, Mandy Merlot emceed the show, which featured drag kings and queens and fetish models. "Figures aren't totally in, tickets haven't been fully counted, but I would safely say we had about 2,200 people this year," said David Peifer of Club Cleveland. He is one of the people who saved the event from extinction three years ago when the AIDS Taskforce said they would no longer produce it after the 20th anniversary one.

"I thought on the whole, it was fun, it was outrageous, it was crazy, as Dancin' should be," Peifer noted. "It's not just a fundraiser but a way to thank the community for supporting the AIDS Taskforce."

He noted the efforts of John Katsaros, the owner of Twist next to the festival and one of the other people who brought the event back from the brink, saying he "couldn't have done it without him."

The dynamic duo were aided by a corps of volunteers, headed up by Vicci Simpkins and Larry Parsons.

"Dancin' couldn't be in existence without their coordinating efforts," Peifer noted. He also pointed to Keith Madden, who organized the fetish show, and Patti Harris, owner of the Nickel.

Peifer also commended the performances of the Cleveland Kings, He Said She Said, Hareem Shareem and the Rubber City Bombshells.

that they're now reaching out to Britain's gay community is long overdue, said Peter Tatchell, a London gay rights activist..

"Until a decade ago, gay people were seen as a security threat, and as recently as two decades ago, they were being witch hunted and sacked from the security services," he said August 25.

"It was part of the Cold War mentality that saw security threats, traitors, and spies everywhere," he said. "Gay people were regarded as vulnerable to blackmail, even if they were open and out about their sexuality."

Britain had some infamous gay agents during that era, such as Guy Burgess and Anthony Blunt. The two men were caught spying for the Soviet Union.

Currently, MI-5 has about 3,500 staffers, twice what it had in 2001. The new drive comes two years after MI-5 began publicly targeting women for recruitment, placing posters in gyms and advertisements in sports magazines that featured a black woman.

Applicants have to be British citizens, and must pass a lengthy vetting process. Available jobs include translators, computer specialists and surveillance officers.

Foster and adoption ban make ballot

Little Rock, Ark.-A proposal to ban unmarried couples living together from fostering or adopting children was approved on August 25 to appear on this fall's ballot, and opponents said they're preparing to challenge the measure in court.

Secretary of State Charlie Daniels certified the proposed initiated act for the November 4 ballot after verifying that the Arkansas Family Council Action Commit-

Hareem Shareem, who performed eastern belly-dances on the performance stage during the afternoon, "mesmerized the crowd at the end of the night with their flame dancing. It was just gorgeous."

Next year, he believes, will really be the one to watch, since Dancin' will be celebrating its 25th anniversary. It will be a massive party, but one with a slightly bitter after-

taste.

"In a time when the economy is really, really tough, it was emotional to see so many people come out for an important cause, a cause that's still not going away, unfortunately," Peifer concluded.

Curbside

THE EXF $%

FILES:

AT SEVENTEEN

tee had submitted 85,389 valid signatures from registered voters. Supporters needed to turn in at least 61,974 valid signatures.

The committee submitted additional petitions last week after the secretary of state said last month the group hadn't turned in enough valid signatures. State law allows an additional 30 days to gather more signa-

tures.

The proposal is aimed at banning gays and lesbians from becoming foster or adoptive parents.

The measure faces the threat of a lawsuit from groups who say that it unfairly discriminates against unmarried couples and limits the number of foster and adoptive homes available for children.

Arkansas Families First, a group campaigning against the measure, has said it plans to file suit to keep the measure from appearing on the November ballot. Debbie Willhite, a lead consultant for the group, said last week they have found numerous signatures that should have been rejected by the state as invalid, and that the group also plans to challenge the constitutionality of the measure.

Marriage foes just can't let go

Boston-Attorney General Martha Coakley on August 25 authorized a ballot question proposing to reinstate a nearly century-old law barring out-of-state gay

PT. 23

SOLO IN A GAY O MY FIRST TIME BAR I GOT PICKED UP BY A GUY I WASN'T ATTRACTED TO JUST BEGINNER'S LUCK, I GUESS.

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IM ENDED UP GIVING 2 OF HIS FRIENDS A RIDE HOME TOO.

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ONE OF THEM WAS DRUNK, BUT HE WAS QUITE THE HUNK! THANKS, MAN. REALLY PRE PRECIATE IT

couples from marrying in Massachusetts. The law, passed in 1913, was repealed by the legislature in late June.

In her ruling, Coakley said the question's supporters, MassResistance, had met the necessary technical requirement for filing a ballot question. The group must now gather 33,000 signatures by the end of October to appear on the November 2010 ballot.

Gay and lesbian couples have been allowed to legally wed since May 2004, six months after the Supreme Judicial Court said same-sex couples had the same right as heterosexual couples to marry.

In the aftermath of that ruling, then-Gov. Mitt Romney used the 1913 law to bar city and town clerks from issuing marriage licenses to out-of-state couples. The law bars couples from marrying in Massachusetts if their unions would be illegal in their home

states.

The house and senate voted in June to repeal the law. Gov. Deval Patrick signed the repeal, saying it eliminated a law once used to ban interracial marriage.

One prominent same-sex marriage opponent, Kris Mineau of the Massachusetts Family Institute, said his group is not participating in the referendum effort "because there is no winning on this issue."

Compiled from wire reports by Brian DeWitt, Anthony Glassman and Patti Harris.

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TO BE CONTINUED