2 0 J u s t ou t ’ aprii 6. 2001
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From left, U .S . Rep. C onnie M orelia, R -M d .; U .S . Sen. Edward Kennedy, D -M ass.; 17-year-
old Sara Ellzey of Pennsylvania; and U .S . Sens. Gordon Sm ith, R -O re ., and Jo h n C onyers Jr.,
D -M ich., answer reporters' questions
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inding that “reports o f death
threats, assaults and verbal gay
hashing continue almost unabated,”
Servicemembers Legal Defense N et
work released Conduct Unbecoming, its
seventh annual report on “don’t ask,
don’t tell, don’t pursue, don’t
harass.”
Citing a total of 871 inci
dents of anti-gay harassment,
it again called on the Penta
gon to issue its promised
orders to the services to revise
regulations and training to curb
harassment. The group urged
Defense
Secretary
Donald
Rumsfeld to implement the 13-
point Anti-Harassment Action
Plan published by a working group
in July 2000.
T he Pentagon adopted the
plan’s recommendations hut has
F
VERY LIM ITED TIM E SAVING OPPORTUNITY!
INVENTORY
REDUCTION
.S. Sens. G ordon Sm ith, R -O re., and
Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., reintroduced
legislation March 27 to extend existing federal
hate crimes laws to include gender, disability and
sexual orientation. T h e Local Law Enforcement
Enhancement A ct, formerly the Hate Crimes
Prevention A ct, had a record number o f original
co-sponsors— 51 in the Senate and 180 in the
House— at the time o f the announcement.
In June 2000, the Senate voted 57-42—
including 13 Republicans— to pass the act. O n
Sept. 13, the House voted 232-192— including
41 Republicans— to pass a motion to instruct
conferees to keep the hate crimes measure in the
Defense Department spending hill. Despite bipar
tisan support in the House and Senate, the G O P
leadership successfully stripped out hate crimes
legislation while the hill was in conference.
If passed, the bill would amend the 32-year-old
federal hate crimes statute— which covers race,
religion, color and national origin— to include real
or perceived gender, sexual orientation and disabil
ity. It would serve as a tool to help law enforcement
by allowing federal assistance, when necessary, in
the investigation and prosecution of hate crimes.
The measure has broad support from notable
law enforcement agencies and state and local lead
ers, including 22 state attorneys general, the Police
Foundation, the International Association of
Chiefs of Police and the National Sheriffs’ Associ
ation. A September 2000 Gallup poll showed 72
percent of U.S. citizens agree that hate crime laws
should cover lesbian and gay people.
Hours: M on.-S at 10-6, Sunday 12-5
failed to implement them. T he plan included,
among other things, increased rank-appropriate
training for all military personnel.
T he Pentagon developed the plan in the wake
of its own inspector general’s survey of 75,000
servicemembers, which found that 80 percent of
men and women in unifonn had heard derogato
ry, anti-gay remarks during the past year. O f those,
37 percent said they had witnessed or experienced
targeted incidents o f anti-gay harassment.
“T he Pentagon’s failure to move aggressively to
implement the Anti-Harassment Action Plan is
inexcusable,” said C . Dixon Oshum, Servicemem
bers Legal Defense Network executive director.
“T he Pentagon itself hits said anti-gay harassment
undermines good order, discipline and morale. By
tolerating continued harassment, ridicule and
assault of men and women in unifonn, the Penta
gon is working against what it knows to he in the
best interest o f our armed forces.”
Media LLC recently announced its
pending acquisition o f the Washington
Blade and the N ew York Blade News, two of the
nation’s premier lesbian and gay newspapers,
making it the world’s largest gay newspaper group.
“We are honored and excited to steward these
respected institutions," president William Way-
bourn said. “We hope to build upon their historic
community roles while bringing new energy to
their operations and expanding their capabilities."
Founded in 1997, Window Media publishes the
Atlanta-based Southern Voice, the nation’s largest
gay and lesbian newspaper
with editions covering Geor
gia, the M id-South, New
Orleans and the Gulf G»ast;
the Houston Voice; Eclipse, a
night life guide for gay At-
lanta, New Orle ans and
Texas; and SO V O maga
zine, a glossy quarterly
publication
exploring
fashion, entertainment
and human-interest top
ics in gay Atlanta. The
company’s existing pub
lications reach a com
bined weekly reader-
ship of more than 200,000.
N ot everyone is pleased
about the merger, though. W in
dow Media has become the tar
get o f a cybercampaign spear
headed by Greg Herren, Lam b -
da B ook Report editor,
doesn’t believe claims that the newly