febmary 2.2001 * ¡m at Mat] j 7
rTÎ77TT7ÎTI news
“It is gratifying
that the Army has
decided to drop the
case,” said May, who
has been hailed as
an exemplary offi
cer. “I have always
served my country
with honor, integri
ty and loyalty, and it
hurt me deeply that
the Army would try
to fire me— not for
Steve May
anything I did...but for who I am and for doing
my legislators job. I didn’t ask to go back into the
Army, but when called, 1 reported for duty and did
my job there. My sexual orientation and my state
ments about my sexual orientation have never
interfered with my performance as an officer.”
In recent evaluations, superiors stated
that May had “unlimited potential,” even
after the disclosure o f his sexual orientation.
In addition, fellow soldiers testified at his
administrative discharge hearing in Septem
ber that his removal would hurt his unit’s
cohesion and morale.
FLO R ID A
F
ocus on the Family filed a lawsuit Jan. 12
against the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Author
ity for refusing to run an ad promoting an “ex-
gay” conference last year in
Tampa. The Human Rights
Campaign swiftly came to the
defense of county officials,
saying they acted wisely in
refusing to compromise public
health by running an ad tout
ing a product that uniformly
is condemned by every
respected medical and men
tal health organization in
the United States.
“This is not an issue of
free speech but one of pub
lic health,” said Wayne
Besen, H RC associate com
munications director. “Pinellas
County should not be in
timidated into running ex
gay ads any more than it
should be strong-armed into running ads touting
asbestos, cigarettes or other harmful products.”
According to a Focus press release, the law
suit resulted when the right-wing organization
was prevented from advertising its conference
held last February at Tampa’s Bell Shoals Baptist
Church. The words “Love Won Out: Address
ing, Understanding and Preventing Homosexu
ality” were printed on the posters. The Pinellas
Suncoast Transit Authority, which routinely
places similar advertisements for other organiza
tions, refused to place these posters, claiming
they were controversial and violated a policy
against ads with “political content.”
“Focus officials are not credible when they
say their ads and activities are not political,”
Besen said. “So-called ex-gays have been used
extensively in lobbying efforts to thwart hate
crimes legislation and to keep discrimination
against gay people legal.”
TE X A S
emocratic state Rep. Debra Danburg has
introduced a bill in the Texas Legislature
to remove the state’s sodomy law, which per
tains only to same-sex partners. She said her
bill is in line with the June 8 ruling by a three-
judge panel in response to Lawrence and G ar
ner vs. Texas.
T he panel agreed with the plaintiffs, two
men who were arrested in 1998 for consensual
sodomy, that the law was unconstitutional and
violated the Equal Rights Amendment of the
D
“Beauty of
Darkness”
Texas C onstitution. T h e case is pending
before the 14th Court of Appeals with no
scheduled date.
The Republican Party of Texas has opposed
removal of the law and has blocked Danburg’s
previous six attempts to do so. Dianne Hardy-
Garcia, Lesbian/Gay Rights Lobby of Texas
executive director, said she is optimistic about
the bill this time because five of the nine crimi
nal jurisprudence committee members have
expressed support.
Repealing the sodomy law is something her
group has worked on for some time, she said.
“Because of the recent court case, we have more
attention on the sodomy law and another way
to fight for the bill.”
Hardy-Garcia
said she has heard
that several conser
vative legislators are
looking for a way to
keep the sodomy
law
by
getting
around the court’s
decision that it is
unfair
treatm ent.
Sh e said there is „
~
,
talk to introduce a
v
b
bill expanding the sodomy law to apply also to
opposite-sex couples.
Connie
Imboden
February
lst-24th,
2001
____
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CA LIFO R N IA
reaking new ground in the ongo
ing struggle against anti-gay
harassment and violence in rural
schools nationwide, the American
C ivil Liberties U nion filed an
expanded federal lawsuit Jan. 24
against a school district in Califor
nia’s Central Valley, seeking to elim
inate a hostile, homophobic climate
and enact systematic reform-
T h e lawsuit, filed in U .S. Dis
trict Court on behalf of for
mer high school student
George Loomis and the Gay
Straight A lliance Network,
charges that because of their
actual or perceived sexual ori
entation, students are har
assed
by
administrators,
teachers and classmates. T h e Visalia Unified
Sch ool District’s response, the lawsuit says, is
to get gay kids off campus by placing them in
inappropriate special education programs.
T h e lawsuit claims the hostile environ
ment this creates is unlawful under the U .S.
C on stitu tion and C alifornia state law.
Because kids and their families often are left
to fend for their safety, usually alone, A C LU
Lesbian and Gay Rights Project director Matt
Coles said the lawsuit highlights a national
problem.
“This case isn’t just about
Visalia,” he said. “It’s about a na
tionwide epidemic in rural schools,
where young people
face unspeak
able har
assment
and vio
lence because
of who they
are." j [ 7 )
Com piled by
C opy Editor
J im R adosta ,
who can be
reached at jim@
justout.com .
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