▼ A a « w t I M I T i l
national news
NEA bans
discrimination
Gay and Lesbian Caucus sponsored a motion banning
discrimination at recent convention then helped it pass
,
Lesbians and
gays sue
Case against University of Chicago has national importance
by Rex Wockner
ing to members of the caucus. They have dis­
he Gay and Lesbian Caucus o f the
criminated against gays and lesbians by not al­
National Education Association re­
lowing them to be members or leaders in their
ceived overwhelming approval and
organization.
support for several gay and lesbian
issues that were brought before the
Military branches have also been prevented
more than 8,000 representatives o f education
from setting up exhibits because of the same
attending this years annual National Education
NEA policy.
Among the other successes were adoption of
Association convention held July 2-7 in Miami
three motions. The first calls for an advertising
Beach, Florida. Three members of the caucus
ban in all NEA publications by organizations or
were from Oregon and Washington.
businesses that have discriminatory practices.
During the 1989 NEA convention, members
of the NEA Gay and Lesbian Caucus sponsored
Second, the convention approved funds to
and helped to pass a motion banning any organi­
conduct training programs for educators around
zation or business that has discriminatory prac­
the country on how to better serve and meet the
needs
of gay and lesbian youth.
tices that are contrary to NEA’s non-discrimina­
And finally, the delegates adopted a motion
tion policies from exhibiting at the convention.
As a result, a booth promoting the Boy Scouts
calling for the association to develop and distrib­
ute a database o f information dealing with gay
of America was removed from the NEA exhibit
and lesbian anti-discrimination policies and con­
hall. The objection was based on the Boy
Scouts’ discriminatory practices on the basis of
tract language used by school districts and higher
gender, sexual orientation, and religion, accord­
education institutions.
T
substantial costs and heavy usage of the libraries
gay couple, represented by Lambda
and athletic facilities by employees and students
Legal Defense and Education Fund,
themselves, we believe the current policies are
sued the University of Chicago June
justified by circumstances and consistent with
25 over its refusal to grant gay and
our legal obligations.’’
lesbian couples spousal benefits.
Lambda charged, however, that the university
The two men, who remain anonymous be­
allows “patrons” and corporations to use its li­
cause of aggressive harassment of gays on the
braries and recreation facilities despite the fact
campus this year, demand spousal access to uni­
that they have no other formal relationship with
versity library and recreation facilities for non­
the institution.
student domestic partners of U. of C. students.
Lambda lawyer Paula Ettelbrick described the
The complaint was lodged with the Chicago
case as “part of a national effort to establish
Commission on Human Relations, charging vio­
equality for unmarried domestic partners and, in
lation o f the city Human Rights O rdinance,
particular, for lesbian and gay couples, who are
which bans “public accommodations” from dis­
not allowed to marry.”
criminating based on sexual orientation or mari­
Among the universities that currently treat
tal status.
gay and lesbian partners as equal to unmarried
The university’s own anti-discrimination poli­
heterosexuals are Stanford, Princeton and the
cies also protect gays and lesbians from such
New York University Law School.
treatment. But in response to written demands
from Lambda, the university stated, “Given the
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