Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013, September 01, 1995, Page 5, Image 5

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    just out ▼ sop tom ber 1. I M S ▼ 5
national briefs
CALIFORNIA
Fifteen years ago, two young men were re­
moved from Disneyland’s Tomorrowland Ter­
race for dancing together, in violation of what was
then The Magic Kingdom’s ban on same-sex
dancing. On Sept. 9, lesbians and gay men will
gather at the Tomorrowland Terrace to com­
memorate that expulsion and the subsequent court
ruling that overturned Disney’s 27-year ban.
ft- 4 hi'H
battle earlier this year by right-wing activists to
defend sexual-orientation discrimination in a pro­
posed change to the school district’s curriculum.
In a letter seeking support from members of
the militant anti-gay group The Report, Gramm
condemned the “radical homosexual community”
for mounting an “attack on our children.” He
accused lesbians and gay men of threatening “the
very essence of our nuclear families.”
More Space, Merchandise and Opefl Longer
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Open Mon-Sat 1 0 -9 , Sun 11-6
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Live “pop 40” bands will provide the enter­
tainment. The dance begins at 7:30 pm. Admis­
sion to Disneyland is $33 for adults. Those attend­
ing the dance are urged to wear clothing and
buttons that celebrate lesbian and gay pride, such
as those with a Lambda, pink triangle or rainbow
flag.
This is not a Disneyland-sanctioned event; it is
an informal gathering. For further information,
call (619) 778-3869.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Last month, the U.S. Department of Veterans
Affairs became the latest cabinet-level govern­
ment department to include sexual orientation in
its nondiscrimination policy. The new policy,
entitled “Reaffirmation of Equal Employment
Opportunity Policy,” was issued Aug. 16.
Lesbian- and gay-rights groups have pushed
the Clinton administration to prohibit discrimina­
tion based on sexual orientation in federal em­
ployment. In response, the administration in­
structed the various departments and independent
government agencies to issue nondiscrimination
policies.
▼ ▼ ▼
Oral arguments in Colorado’s Amendment 2
court case are scheduled to be heard by the U.S.
Supreme Court on Oct. 10. Arguments are set to
begin at 10 am.
▼ ▼ ▼
Dr. Robert H. Eichberg, co-founder of the
Human Rights Campaign Fund’s National Com­
ing Out Project, died Aug. 11 from complications
of AIDS. He was 50 years old.
In 1988, Eichberg, a psychologist, co-founded
National Coming Out Day, an organization that
encouraged lesbians and gay men to fight dis­
crimination by being open and honest about their
sexual orientation. National Coming Out Day is
celebrated each year on Oct. 11. In 1993, the
National Coming Out Day organization became a
program of the Human Rights Campaign Fund.
Its name was changed earlier this year to HRCF’s
National Coming Out Project. The program fo­
cuses year-round on supporting organizations that
help people to come out.
OHIO
A federal judge here ruled Aug. 4 that HIV
may be considered an “extraordinary physical
impairment” under the federal sentencing guide­
lines used to determine reduced prison terms.
In considering the case of Carlo Streat, who
was sentenced to 63 months in prison for robbing
a Cleveland bank, federal Judge Ann Aldrich of
the Northern District Court of Ohio, Eastern Di­
vision, ruled that while HIV status alone does not
warrant a sentence reduction, “once a defendant
has developed infections...related to his or her
compromised immune system, those impairments
may be sufficient to warrant a [reduced sen­
tence].”
This ruling is the first in the country to hold
that a prisoner’s becoming HIV symptomatic,
without his or her having developed AIDS, may
justify a reduction in a jail sentence. It does not
provide for a reduced sentence for every prisoner
with HIV. An “individualized determination” of
each prisoner’s condition must be made by the
courts.
PHOTO BY UNGA
VERMONT
Stating that the only criterion for adoption
should be “what’s in the best interest of the child,”
Vermont Gov. Howard Dean said he will not sign
a bill reforming the state adoption process if it
includes an anti-sexual-minority amendment.
Amendment 2, an anti-sexual-minority initia­
tive passed by Colorado voters in November
1992, has been overturned by courts at every step
of its journey up the judicial ladder. Most re­
cently, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled the
measure unconstitutional.
Although arguments will be heard in October,
a decision is not expected before next spring.
▼ ▼ T
In what some perceive as an attempt to rescue
his floundering campaign for the Republican presi­
dential nomination, Sen. Phil Gramm (R-Texas),
is supporting an effort by a far-right political
group to oust an openly gay member of the Des
Moines, Iowa, School Board. The Iowa Christian
Coalition, a chapter of Pat Robertson’s political
group, has targeted Jonathan C. Wilson for defeat
in the upcoming school board elections. Wilson
publicly acknowledged that he is gay during a
(5 0 3 ) 2 3 6 - 0 5 0 5
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Speaking with the Vermont gay newspaper
Out in the Mountains, Dean discussed his impres­
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an atmosphere of tolerance in Vermont than there
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