15
iU U ìC JA n n e w s
The arbitrator’s ruling could be overturned if
either the state House or Senate decides by a
two-thirds vote that the funds are not available.
Such a vote is considered unlikely because
Connecticut currently enjoys a budget surplus of
approximately $240 million.
M A S S A C H U S ET T S
16-year-old Moroccan high school girl was
attacked last month allegedly by six teen
agers who believed
she was a lesbian.
T he victim was seen
holding hands with
another girl, a tradi
tion in Morocco.
Three students
from Boston High
School have been
arraigned in the
case, reports T he
Boston Globe. One,
17-year-old Nyke-
sha Gant, was charged with four felonies,
including attempted rape and civil rights viola
tions. The charges carry a combined maximum
sentence of 30 years in prison.
Two 15-year-old girls could be indicted and
tried as youthful offenders, which would allow
the judge to impose adult sentences if they are
convicted.
During the attack— which began on a Mass
achusetts Bay Transit Authority train and con
tinued on a platform— the suspects fondled the
girl, tried to tear off her pants, held her arms
apart and tried to molest her at gunpoint, Suf
folk County prosecuters told the G lobe.
According to prosecutor Gerald P. Stewart,
Moroccan girls have been harassed before at
school. In December, girls were taunted for
holding hands.
Hundreds of students, teachers and adminis
trators at Boston High School signed a petition
expressing concern about the incident and say
ing the school values diversity.
A
NATIONAL
eople who have low levels of HIV in their
blood appear to be less likely to transmit the
vims to their heterosexual partners, according to
results of a study conducted in Africa.
P
Dr. Thomas Quinn of Johns Hopkins U ni
versity reported the study’s results at the Sev
enth Conference on Retroviruses and Oppor
tunistic Infections, which was held in San Fran
cisco early this month.
According to a Feb. 3 Reuters report, the
authors of the study caution that their findings
may not be applicable to people in the United
States, who may have low levels of vims in the
blood due to dmg treatment. The African study
subjects were not taking anti-HIV drugs.
The study of 415 heterosexual couples in the
Rakai district of Uganda included 228 couples
with HIV-positive men and 187 couples with
HIV-positive women. Over a 30-month period,
HIV was transmitted from partner to partner in
22 percent of couples. Researchers found that
the average viral load was significantly higher
among those who transmitted the vims to their
partners.
W hen viral load was less than 1,500 copies of
vims per milliliter of blood, HIV transmission
did not occur. The transmission rate was highest
in those aged 15 to 19, and it was increased in
uncircumcised men. No new cases of HIV infec
tion were seen among circumcised men.
Overall, the findings suggest that lowering
viral load may reduce the risk of heterosexual
HIV transmission. There may be differences,
however, in the rates of transmission among
patients with low viral loads as a result of dmg
therapy. Antiviral treatment may lower vims
levels only in the blood while elevated levels
persist in other parts of the body.
VERM ONT
A
key committee of the state House of Rep
resentatives voted Feb. 9 in favor of devel
oping a comprehensive
domestic partnership
system for gay and les
bian couples instead of
broadening marriage
statutes.
According to The
Associated Press, the
House Judiciary Com-
\ 3^
mittee’s vote was 8-3.
**
“It is clear to me
that the will of the committee is to initiate and
work on a civil rights bill,” Chairman Thomas
Little said.
The committee did not vote on an actual
bill. The decision was whether members should
write a bill addressing domestic partnerships or
expanding the legal definition of marriage.
The Legislature has been grappling with how
to respond to a state Supreme Court mling that
gay and lesbian couples are being unconstitu
tionally denied the rights and benefits that
accompany legal marriage.
The court said the Legislature could rectify
the inequality by expanding marriage or creat
ing a parallel domestic partnership system.
According to the AP, the Judiciary Commit
tee has held two public hearings attended by a
total of more than 5,000 people and has heard
testimony from religious and legal experts.
Rep. William Lippert, D-Hinesburg, the only
openly gay member of the committee and the
Legislature, said he believes broadening mar
riage statutes to include gay men and lesbians
would be a major step toward dismantling dis
crimination.
“I trust whatever next step we take collec
tively, we take in a continual step to dismantle
institutional discrimination,” Lippert said.
■ Com piled by KRISTINE CHATWOOD, a Portland
resident and longtime Just Out contributor.
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