Page 2 HIGH GEAR September 1980

NEWS

Cinci. U. to host conference

By Pat Clayton This type of conference, one (CINCINNATI) The Cincinnati designed to deal with specific chapter of the Gay Academic gay and lesbian issues was first Union along with the Whittmandeveloped in Los Angeles by the Brooks Foundation and the Ohio Whittman-Brooks Foundation of California (formerly WhittmanGay Rights Coalition will sponsor the first Developing a Positive Radcliffe). The Foundation, a Gay/Lesbian Identity Confer-non-profit educational corporaence in the tri-state on Saturday, tion, was named after Walt Whittman, a 19th century gay AmeriOctober 18th. As a special event, Betty Fairchild, one of the foundcan poet and Romaine Brooks, a ers of Parents of Gays and author 20th century American lesbian of "Now That You Know", will painter who spent most of her adult years in Paris. The Gay give the keynote address. Academic Union-Cincinnati chapter, starting its second year, has traditionally sponsored more academic oriented events. Says Bob McNee, president, "We feel that the identity conference is something that is greatly needed and allows an opportunity to bring a lot of gays and lesbians together from around the tristate to share our own personai struggles." The Ohio Gay Rights Coalition enthusiastically supports the idea after a board member recently attended a similar conference in Detroit. The O.G.R.C.'s fall meeting will be held in Cincinnati on the day after the conference.

GEAR readies building for sale

By Thom David Glanfagna

(CLEVELAND) On August 1. the GEAR Foundation became legal owner of the Bernard building in Tremont, at a cost of $38,500 with monthly mortgage payments of almost $600. The second floor contains five apartments and an office, the first entirely occupied by the rambling former furniture stare. Two of the apartments presently have tenants with a dentist continuing his practice in the office space.

When opposition to a gay community center first developed, an attempt to explain its purpose was made by GEAR officers at a public meeting. The one councilman present (of three in the area) and the one sponsoring neighborhood organization had helped set up the meeting and used the situation politically. Turned into an anti-gay rally by a vocal minority, shouting bigots made threats of fire-bombing and violence.

Not willing to risk injury to even one person, GEAR attempted to negotiate a withdrawal from the business deal. After months of futile attempts it became necessary to choose: take possession of the building or risk losing the $7,000 down payment. That payment was the result of donations, large and small, from the gay community. The GEAR Board refused to allow that money to be lost because of bigotry. It authorized buying the building.

The present aim of the Founda-. tion is to make the building attractive to buyers. Part of that has been accomplished by finding tenants for the first floor. Tremont-West Development Corporation, a much more friendly organization, has occupied one-third of the floor. Another third has been taken over by a furniture business.

Repairs have been made. During the week of August 18th, the store areas and the apartments were cleaned. On Saturday,

August 23rd, volunteers restored vandalized parts of the building. removing broken glass windows, replacing them with plywood, getting rid of anti-gay slogans spray-painted on the walls.

Listed with a real estate agency, there are hopes for a quick sale of the building and the exit of GEAR from Tremont. The the Foundation can return to its major concern: setting up a community service center for gay men and women in Greater Cleveland.

Grace Park "cleanup" continues in Akron

ÄKRON (Gold) -For the past two months, gays in the Akron area are being arrested in the Grace Park area on charges that range from burnt out tail lights to soliciting police decoys who act as prostitutes.

Dignity meets in Michigan

(GRAND RAPIDS) On August 16, representatives from 11 Dignity chapters gathered in Grand Rapids, Michigan, for a day-long meeting of the Regional House of Delegates. Dignity Region 5 comprises all of the chapters of Dignity in Ohio, Michigan, Indi ana and Kentucky. At present ⚫ there are 12 chapters in 3 of the states. Kentucky has not had any chapters since the Louisville chapter, one of the first established in the U.S., was disbanded several years ago.

The 11 Regional Houses of Delegates (10 U.S. regions and Canada) were created following the action of the International Convention meeting in Chicago, Illinois, in 1976. Upon approval of the new Dignity Constitution and By-laws by the International Convention meeting in San Diego, California, in 1978, the Structure became formally established. The Regional directors serve as members of the Executive House of Delegates, the

highest representative body of the organization. The Regional Houses serve as intermediaries between the international governing body (with executive office in Washington, D.C.) and the autonomous local chapters.

The meeting began with an open house Friday evening, and included the Saturday working meeting and an evening religious celebration and dinner. During the working meeting, the delegates received officer and committee reports, as well as chapter

A recent killing of a man in the Grace Park area sparked Akron Police to take action and clean up the area by ridding the area of what Police call, "the bad element."

WAKR TV, in cooperation with Akron Vice Police, is placing microphones on the decoy prostitutes. Decoys then parade: around enticing people and thus entrap them into arrest for being solicited. WAKR's micophone is also attached to a hidden TV camera and at the time of the solicitation, all is recorded and reported as a muck raking live incident on WAKR TV exposing the arrested party involved.

Further reports indicate that an Officer Ipe of Akron Police car 21 on the evening shift has been entering the GP area, which is not their territory, and verbally abusing and slandering gays by calling them Queers, Fags and Cocksuckers. Officer Ipe was. reported to have told gay activist Ron Logan, that there is only one thing they hate worse than Que-

r

ers and that is nigger Queers!.

As a part of this discrimination against the gay lifestyle, Officer Ipe and his partner in car 21 and an unknown officer in truck 87, race through GP stopping gays for no apparent reason in an effort to clean up the area.

On Sunday, July 26, a group of 27 concerned gays met in an effort to form a new group against this type of harassment. The group which formed calls themselves AAMPL or Akron Area Minorities Protective League.

"The entire idea is based upon bringing workshops and resources to the community that most gays and lesbians don't readily have access to, either by our own or the larger community" states Jincey Merton, co-ordinator of the conference. "We hope to have workshops dealing with topics such as coming out, relationships, sexuality, health issues, and music and literature

all specific to gays and.. lesbians."

The conference will be held at Tangeman Center on the University of Cincinnati campus from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Pre-registration is $10 for students/limited income and $12 for all others. For more information write Identity Conference '80, P.O. Box 19158, Cincinnati, Ohio 45219 or call (513) 241-0001 M-F 7 p.m. 11 p.m.

The group is currently compil Rain dampens

ing a list of grievances from gays who have suffered abuse and arrest by these police at Grace Park. Recent arrests at a local gay bar were also discussed and several cases of lifestyle discrimination were documented.

The NAACP. Community Action Council, Concerned Citizens for Justice and The Humanity House has offered their support to the new organization.

for new chapters and received the Parents of Gays forms

reports. They accepted a Chapter Formation Packet, designed for new chapters and received the preliminary draft of a new public relations handbook for chapters. The handbook was written by a Cleveland delegate, who also serves as the chair of the Media Committee. The 2 Cleveland representatives chair 2 committees: Media (Max McLarty) and Women's Committee (Pattie Baskin).. Both are active in the GEAR Foundation.

By Gary Benson (CLEVELAND) The Gear Foundation is in the process of forming a Cleveland branch of Parents of Gays (POG). a nationwide organization aimed towards aiding parents to attain a better understanding of their gay sons and daughters. It is hoped that a POG group might better communicate between gays and

Dignity picnic

skies and ensuing thunder(CLEVELAND) Dark, overcast .storms dampened the spirits of attend the annual Dignity/Clevethose who were planning to land picnic on August 10. The fifteen members making the soujourn to the rural setting in a far-eastern suburb, were far less than the thirty which had been expected to attend.

The mid-afternoon, outdoor. mass began on rain-soaked pictheir parents and decrease the nic tables. Maybe it was the praygroups. Mary Ellen Wobek and sense of isolation felt by bothers of the faithful few which Dan Katowski will be the coordinators of the weekly meetings. Those interested should contact the Gay Community Center at

1012% Sumner Court (next to New Dimensions) or ca!! 6213380.

brought out the sunshine durng durng the middle mass.

Charcoal was lit and hamburgers and hot dogs began to sizzle as the picnicers enjoyed their meals under the welcome, sunny skies which they had awaited all day.