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national news
More states consider
marriage bans
A proposal to ban same-sex marriages entered
the Nebraska Legislature with 28 cosponsors,
three more than the number of votes it will need
to pass, according to an Omaha World-Herald
story. The bill, sponsored primarily by Omaha
Sen. Jim Jensen, adds a ban on marriage between
persons of the same sex to existing bans on
multiple marriages and marriages between close
relatives, and stipulates that Nebraska will not
recognize such marriages from other states.
Meanwhile, leaders of both parties in the Min
nesota House of Representatives favor enacting a
law to prohibit same-sex unions, reports the Saint
Paul Pioneer-Press. House Speaker Phil
Carruthers and House Majority Leader Ted Win
ter have offered their support for a bill authored
by House Minority Leader Steve Sviggum that
would bolster the language of the state’s current
definition of marriage as “a civil contract between
a man and a woman.”
And state senators voted unanimously and
without debate to enact a law prohibiting homo
sexual marriages in Mississippi and denying rec
ognition to same-gender marriages performed
legally in other states. According to the Biloxi
Sun Herald, members of the House are expected
to affirm the decision and pass into law the execu
tive order signed last year by Gov. Kirk Fordice to
deny recognition of same-sex marriages.
Wisconsin campus groups
face funding threat
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In a suit filed by three University of Wiscon-
sin-Madison law students, U.S. District Court
Judge John Shabaz ruled in January that students
at the school should not have to pay for student
groups they do not approve of, reports the Mil
waukee newspaper In Step. Under the current fee
structure each student contributes $37 as part of
their tuition that is allocated to groups by the
student government.
Judge Shabaz ruled that this fee policy vio
lates the students’ First Amendment rights to free
speech and association, despite the school’s argu
ment that the fees do not compel speech on behalf
of the plaintiffs but simply support the expression
of different views and the free exchange of ideas
without direct endorsement of an ideology or
political beliefs.
The plaintiffs, all devout Christians, named 18
groups in their trial brief whose ideological or
political stance they found objectionable. Two
sexual minority groups—the Lesbian, Gay and
Bisexual Community Center and the Madison
AIDS Support Network—as well as Amnesty
International, Community Action on Latin
America, and Students of National Organization
for Women, were among the groups listed.
If the decision stands, students will be able to
opt out of subsidizing campus groups that they do
not support. The change in funding structure could
effectively shut down targeted groups. After re
ceiving a deluge of letters from across the state,
UW-Madison has decided to appeal the ruling.
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Florida youth project gives
dropouts another chance
The Dade County coalition of gay youth
groups, Project YES, has instituted a GED pro
gram specifically for sexual minority youth who
have dropped out, according to a Miami Herald
report. Organizers of the equivalency course are
attempting to enroll the required number of stu
dents without encouraging currently enrolled stu
dents to drop out. They are hoping to provide an
education alternative for gay and lesbian young
people who dropped out of high school to find
relief from verbal and physical abuse.
Although the GED course will be offered at a
community college, where participants may have
less reason to fear harassment by other students,
Project YES is also considering the feasibility of
an alternative high school program like the Harvey
Milk School, which was established in New York
City in 1985.
National studies have determined that the drop
out rate among gay and lesbian youth is 28 per
cent; in Dade County schools the overall dropout
rate in 1995 was 8.8 percent, which is broken
down by gender and race but not by sexual orien
tation. Stories of gay students being harassed and
beaten have recently gained attention from the
national media, but experts and activists fear that
many incidents go unreported.
Alternative Barbie
hits it big
What began as a clever birthday gift may soon
become the latest Tickle Me Elmo craze: San
Francisco resident Paul Hansen’s anti-Barbies are
set to make their art-
gallery debut. A l
though the dolls will
no longer be advertised
or sold as Barbies, due
to the legal objections
of Mattel, interested
consumers may be able
to mail-order their very
own Trailer Trash “ 11
1/4-inch
Generic
Doll,” complete with
cigarette, baby on hip,
platinum blonde hair
with black roots, who
comes complete a word
balloon reading, “My
Daddy swears I’m the
best kisser in the county.” Hansen’s other creations
have included Drag Queen Barbie (who is really a
Ken doll), Big Dyke Barbie, Voodoo Barbie and
Barbie in a Rat Trap.
In-jean-ious, the store that carried the dolls
during San Francisco’s lesbian and gay pride fes
tivities, quickly sold out after the story was picked
up by the media and spread worldwide. The store
has had to set up a special phone system to handle
the flood of orders and plans a mailing in a few
weeks to provide details on prices and ordering.
Human rights victory
in Atlanta
Mayor Bill Campbell signed an administrative
order Dec. 20 requiring that all city contracts
exceeding $1,000 include a provision prohibiting
anti-gay discrimination among the contractors
and their employees. Georgia does not currently
have a statewide law banning discrimination based
on sexual orientation, although the City of Atlanta’s
discrimination policies and Fulton County’s em
ployment policies protect sexual minorities from
discrimination.
Nick Gold, a spokesman for the mayor, told
the Washington Blade the mayor’s action was
inspired by recent legislation in San Francisco
that compels city contractors to provide domestic
partner benefits to their employees. San Francisco
has required its contractors to prohibit anti-gay
discrimination among employees since 1972.
Compiled by Christopher D. Cuttone