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8 ▼ fo b ru a ry 2 1 , 1987 ▼ ju s t out
Good Books
& Bad Art
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122 NE 28th
Portland
503-235-5343
202 Cascade St.
Hood River
541-387-2482
ARE
a
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t
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Em ily Simon is pleased to
announce that Tracey C ordes,
form erly of the M etropolitan
Public Defender and the
Crim inal Justice Com m ission
and a proud m em ber of our
com m unity, has joined her
as an associate.
From now on, w e will be
known as
Emily Simon &
Associates
"Never on the fence when it
comes to criminal defense . "
Specializing in misdemeanor,
felony, traffic, and DUE actions
in state, federal, and juvenile
courts, civil forfeitures, and
administrative actions.
Call us, if you need us, at:
Emily Simon & Associates
620 SVV Tilth Avenue, Suite 1204
Portland, O R 97 2 0 4
YOlJ HIV
NEGATIVE?
Do you want to get together with other HI V negative guys?
Are you worri ed about staying negative?
Is it hard t al ki ng about being H I V negative with you r H I V
pos it ive f ri en ds?
A support group for H I V negative gay and b i s e x u a l men
___ ___________
is now f or mi ng.
T o s i gn up telephone Alan at 2 2 3 . 5 9 0 7 , ext ensi on 1 0 7
S p e a k to Y o u r B r o t h e r s
is a p r o g r a m o f
Cascade A I D S Project
national news
California set to nix
discrimination in schools
Rep. Sheila Kuehl (D-Santa Monica), the first
openly homosexual member of the California
Assembly, has introduced a proposal to ban dis
crimination against bisexuals, lesbians and gay
men in public education. The measure would
prohibit bias based on sexual orientation in school
employment, curriculum and the treatment of
students on campus. It would also prevent schools
and universities from using public money to sup
port groups, like the ROTC, that discriminate
against gay and lesbian students.
According to a story in the Orange County
Register, a similar bill was defeated last year in
the Republican-controlled Assembly, but with
the Democrats back in power, this time the bill is
expected to pass. Lobbyists and legislators are
scrambling for gubernatorial support, but so far,
Gov. Pete Wilson has not taken a position on the
bill. In six years as chief executive, Wilson has
both supported and opposed sexual-minority-
rights issues.
Kuehl, a former civil rights attorney who
cofounded the California Women’s Law Center,
believes passage of this bill is an important first
step in turning around the high dropout and sui
cide rates among queer youth. Major opponents
of the proposed law include Assemblyman Steve
Baldwin (R-La Mesa), who predicted that it would
unleash a “cultural war.”
S.F. bends on domestic
partner ordinance
The City of San Francisco and the Roman
Catholic Church have made peace regarding a
new ordinance requiring that all city contractors
provide domestic partner benefits. San Francisco
Archbishop William Levada had requested an
exemption for Catholic Charities, a 90-year-old
nonprofit social service organization run by the
diocese that receives 40 percent—$5.6 million—
of its budget from the city. Levada said he be
lieves the law is unconstitutional and said he
would sue the city if officials did not waive the
ordinance for church-affiliated groups.
According to a story in the New York Times,
Mayor Willie Brown and the San Francisco Board
of Supervisors had said they would not make any
exemptions in the ordinance, which affects more
than 8,000 private companies, nonprofit agencies
and city governments that contract with the city.
However, The Associated Press reported Feb.
11 that a minor change in language agreed to by
both sides—and pending the endorsement of the
city attorney—lets the church avoid officially
sanctioning domestic partnerships and other non-
traditional living arrangements. The compromise
would permit employees of any organization do
ing business with the city to designate a second
person in their household—be it a spouse, sibling,
unmarried partner, platonic roommate, etc.— as
eligible to receive “spousal-equivalent benefits.”
Meanwhile, AP reports that United Airlines
has reached compromise with the city on the same
issue. City officials had said they would not
approve the airline’s $13.4 million, 25-year lease
at the San Francisco International Airport until it
promised to comply with the ordinance. The deal
with United allows the company 20 months to
develop a spousal benefits program.
American Airlines runs
afoul of S.F. supervisors
Flight attendants working for American Air
lines have filed a complaint against their em
ployer with the Human Rights Commission of
San Francisco and are seeking an undisclosed
financial settlement, according to the San Fran
cisco Examiner. The complaint, filed last year,
alleges a pattern of homophobic acts and attitudes
that violate city ordinances; the list of grievances
includes claims of workplace bias based on HIV
status and sexual orientation, surveillance and
targeted harassment of gay and lesbian employ
ees. If the commission finds the airline at fault, it
could recommend that the San Francisco Board of
Supervisors revoke or modify the airline’s con
tract with the city.
proposal for lease of a site at San Francisco
International Airport because American has not
agreed to comply with the new domestic partners
benefits ordinance.
American has provided sensitivity training on
gay and lesbian issues for its employees and travel
industry professionals— and has stepped up mar
keting to the lesbian and gay community—since
it attracted international scrutiny in 1993 during a
suit brought by a man with AIDS who had been
ejected from one of its planes.
Negotiations between the attendants and the
airline were planned for February.
Lesbian engaged in
custody battle dies
Mary Ward of Pensacola, Fla., the lesbian
plaintiff in an ongoing court battle to regain
custody of her daughter, died Jan. 21 of a heart
attack, reports The Associated Press.
In August 1995, Circuit Judge Joseph Tarbuck
gave custody of Ward’s daughter to the girl’s
father, who had served eight years in prison for
shooting his first wife to death in 1974 during a
custody dispute involving another child. In his
ruling, Tarbuck said he wanted to give 12-year-
old Cassey Ward the chance to live in “a non
lesbian world.”
Ward’s death puts an end to the case, which
had been stalled in appellate court for the past
several months. Other courts across the country
have issued a variety of rulings on the custody of
children of lesbian or gay parents, but experts say
this case was important because of the marked
contrast between the mother and father.
In a footnote to the story, Allan Terl, a retired
Fort Lauderdale lawyer and sexual-minority-rights
activist, says he has filed a complaint against
Judge Tarbuck with the Florida Judicial Qualifi
cations Commission. CitingTarbuck’s comments
about Mary Ward’s lesbianism at the 1995 cus
tody hearing, Terl contends that Tarbuck violated
a judicial canon against bias or prejudice based on
sexual orientation. Terl says he had prepared the
complaint last year, but told reporters he waited to
file it because he was afraid Ward’s case would be
returned to Tarbuck’s jurisdiction and that the
complaint might aggravate his apparent prejudice
against her.
Fair housing victory in
Washington state
The City Council of Lacey has amended its
fair housing legislation to include lesbians and
gay men among the people protected from dis
crimination. The Jan. 23 decision makes Lacey
one of a handful cities in Washington outside
King County, where Seattle is located, to extend
such civil rights protection to homosexuals.
Rich FTouts, president of a 31 -unit homeowners
association in Lacey, considers the council’s ac-