I
ju s t o u t
T mpril 7, 1 9 9 5 f 5
national news
CALIFORNIA
The San Francisco Bay Times is now the first
gay and lesbian newspaper in the United States to
gain union recognition. The staff of the newspaper
has affiliated with the Northern California News
paper Guild Local 52.
▼ ▼ ▼
A U.S. federal court judge in Los Angeles has
ruled that California Federal Bank may discrimi
nate against a
gay employee by
refusing to grant
him and his part
ner a discounted
home loan that is
offered to other
employees. Cur
rently the dis
counted loan is
offered to em
ployeespurchas
ing a home with
a spouse or other
family member.
The bank de
nied the loan to
Jeffrey Bagley,
one of its vice
presidents, because his partner, Peter Lavin, is
neither Bagley’s spouse nor a member of Bagley’s
immediate family.
▼ ▼ ▼
A new California Department of Social Ser
vices policy not to deny adoption applications
based solely on the applicants’ marital status has
been reversed by Gov. Pete Wilson. Wilson or
dered the reinstatement of the old policy favoring
adoption by married couples. The new policy had
made it easier for gay and lesbian couples to adopt.
Wilson is considering a run for the 1996 Re
publican presidential nomination.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Sexual orientation has finally been added to
the nondiscrimination statement of the U.S. De
partment of Education. This now brings to 23 the
number of federal agencies that include sexual
orientation in their nondiscrimination statements.
FLORIDA
A referendum in Tampa that could have legal
ized job and housing discrimination based on
sexual orientation has been struck from the ballot.
Circuit Court Judge Manuel Menendez ruled that
the wording of the referendum was illegally
changed from the language that appeared on peti
tions. The petitions were circulated by the Ameri
can Family Association of Florida.
A broad coalition of civic, religious, business
and political groups had joined together to form
Citizens for a Fair Tampa to fight passage of the
referendum.
ILLINOIS
A ninth-grader in the city of Normal was sent
home from school for wearing a floral-pattern sun
dress to class. According to the Associated Press,
Chiddix High School principal Ed Heineman sent
student Josh McElwee home when he refused to
change clothes.
McElwee said he got the idea from a class
exercise in which students dressed like natives of
other countries. The purpose of the exercise was to
experience what it would be like to be treated
differently. He said his friends dared him to wear
the dress. According to McElwee, he is neither gay
nor a cross-dresser.
▼ ▼ ▼
An executive order signed by Cook County
Treasurer Ed Rosewell forbids financial institu
tions that have county government funds on de
posit from discriminating against gay men and
lesbians in lending decisions. In signing the ex
ecutive order, Rosewell was making good on a
campaign promise. It is estimated that Cook County
deposits more than $7.5 billion in more than 120
Cook County financial institutions each year.
▼ ▼ ▼
The American Academy of Matrimonial Law
yers has taken the position that child custody
should not be denied someone simply because that
person is gay or lesbian. The policy position
appeared in a friend-of-the-court brief filed by the
AAML in the Sharon Bottoms custody case now
before the Virginia Supreme Court.
In 1993, a Virginia trial court denied Bottoms
custody of her son because she is a lesbian. Pamela
Kay Bottoms, the boy ’ s grandmother, was awarded
custody. A subsequent ruling by an intermediate
appeals court ordered the boy returned to his
mother. The grandmother appealed that ruling to
the Virginia Supreme Court.
BRIAN MARKI FRAMING
21 YEARS EXPERIENCE
AND SERVICE TO TH E COMMUNITY
Oversize w ork our specialty
2236 NE Broadway, Portland
503-249-5659
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INDIANA
The National Women’s Music Festival, the
oldest women’s music festival in the country, will
be held June 1
to 4, on the In
diana Univer
sity cam pus
in
B loom
ington. Author
R ita
Mae
Brown w ill
give the key
note address at
the festival.
M usic p er
form ers will
include Janis
Ian, Mar-gie Adam, Ubaka Hill, the Laura Love
Band, and disappear fear.
Look for registration information at women’s
bookstores or write to PO Box 1427-PR, India
napolis, IN 46206-1427, or call (317) 927-9355
and leave your name and address.
MARYLAND
A circuit court judge ruled Feb. 15 that an HIV-
positive gay man may have overnight visits with
his three daughters, reported the Baltimore Gay
Paper. The judge also ruled that David North may
take his daughters to a church where most of the
parishioners are gay or lesbian.
During the proceedings, North’s former wife
argued that the girls would be at a higher risk of
exposure to HIV if allowed to visit overnight with
their father and his lover.
MONTANA
Although Montana has not yet been hit with
any ballot initiatives discriminatory to gay men
and lesbians, activists are already organizing to
prevent or defeat any such measures. To that end,
PRIDE! Inc., a statewide gay, lesbian and bisexual
advocacy organization, and Montana P-FLAG are
developing a speakers bureau. The groups invited
Northwest Speak Out of Portland to present skills-
building workshops in Missoula, Billings and
Bozeman, according to a report in Stonewall News
Northwest.
NEW YORK
A lesbian from Putnam County has filed an
appeal with the state Appellate Court, arguing that
she should be allowed to legally adopt the child
that she and her partner have been co-parenti ng for
four years. The biological mother conceived the
child through anonymous donor insemination.
The couple now seeks legal parental status for the
nonbiological mother.
In 1993 a family court judge ruled that the
nonbiological mother could not adopt because
state law only allows adoption by single individu
als or married couples. The court held that the
petitioning woman is not married, and, because
she is in a long-term relationship, she is not “single.”
Compiled by Kristine Chatwood
,
in Lotta’s Select
headed cocktail dresses, vintage
fashion, sequined evening wear
and line collectables!
Janice Scroggins.lazy. Pianist
even first Thursday
274-2574
Open l ues. - Sat. 11 am-7 pm
NW Portland, Corner of 23rd Place & Vaughn
Chris Bonner, GRI
Associate Broker
Judy Carnahan. Certified
New Homes Specialist
Scott Bottaro
Donald Falk
Gerry Federico, CRI
Kathleen Ira
Val Thorpe-Galvin
Greg Washington
. ude Watson, GRI
Associate Broker
m MllH ^4
15
v :
i a ks
Bridgetown Realty
Bridgetown
Realty
congratulates
its Million
Dollar
Producers
for 1994.
Rill Galvin
Associate Broker
Linda Welch
21570 Willamette Drive
West Linn, Oregon 97068
( 503 ) 655-8015
Red Lion Lloyd Center
1000 N.E. Multnomah
Portland, Oregon 97232
( 503 ) 287-9370