api J la. 2003
m rm ^new s
23
CO LDW eLL
B A N K E R □
tion in dealing with health care providers.
Fewer than half of queer adults disclose their
sexual orientation to their health provider,
according to a December 2002 survey. T he poll
also indicated gay, lesbian, bi and trans people
are less likely to have health insurance than
their straight counterparts.
“People who work in public health depart
m ents are very dedicated to improving the
health of all persons, and they know it makes
sense for people to be treated equally,” said Ken
Haller, Gay and Lesbian Medical Association
president. “For certain legislators to pull back
these protections is at very least questionable
and, at most, blatantly discriminatory, not to
m ention just bad medicine.”
NEW YORK
M
att Foreman, Empire S tate Pride A genda
executive director, was nam ed A pril 4 as
executive director of the N ational G ay and
Lesbian Task Force. T h e longtim e activist will
take the helm from Lorri L. Jean after h er c o n
tract expires in May and after they have
worked together for two weeks to facilitate a
sm ooth transition.
"We interviewed a diverse pool of very
strong candidates and felt M att was exactly
what the task force needed. W e’re thrilled h e’ll
he joining us,” said Margaret Burd, NGLTF
hoard co-chairw om an. “H e is a dynam ic
activist, a proven manager and an effective
fund-raiser who is supremely dedicated to our
cause and has enjoyed extraordinary success
working on behalf o f G LBT people.”
Foreman lives w ith his partner of 13 years,
Francisco De Leon, in M anhattan.
COLORADO
f he House passed an am endm ent April 1 to
I repeal discrimination protections in Medic
aid and emergency medical care from state law.
S enate Bill 88 cam e up for consideration
as part of dn annual review o f state regula
tions. If passed, it would repeal a rule p ro
hibiting discrim ination based on age, sex,
religion, race, sexual o rien tatio n , political
belief, physical diagnosis, handicap o r dis
ability in M edicaid and em ergency medical
services. T h e am endm ent now goes to th e
state S enate for debate.
T he bill would be particularly dangerous for
members of the sexual minorities community,
who often have to face barriers of discrimina
Sharon Smith
Diane W hipple
he Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education
Network has demanded clarification of com
ments published April 7 from the U.S. education
secretary suggesting that public schools should
incorporate Christian values. The statements
appeared in an article titled “Rod Paige: America’s
Education Evangelist” in The Baptist Press, the
news service of the Southern Baptist Convention.
According to GLSEN executive director
Kevin Jennings, Paige’s comments appear not
only in direct conflict with core U.S. principles
separating church and state but are offensive to
the administrators, educators and students of
diverse religious faiths who fill U.S. public
schools.
,
“The language of religious values— particular
ly ‘Christian values’— has often been misused to
isolate or denigrate lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender people,” he said. "For Secretary Paige
to suggest that the tenets of any particular religion
have a place in public education is an exceeding
ly dangerous breach of the constitutional separa
tion of church and state and of tremendous con
cern for safe schools advocates who seek to protect
LGBT students and staff from harassment, vio
lence and discrimination in schools.”
In the article, Paige asserted that Christian
schools and universities are growing as a result
of a "strong value system” th at is lacking in pub
lic schools where “there are so many kids with
different kinds of values.” He offered his prayers
to those who disagree with his position that reli
gion has a place in U.S. public schools.
Bob Chase, N ational Education Association
past president and GLSEN board member,
expressed deep concern, noting: “As the highest
education official in this nation, he must learn
to see diversity as an incredibly rich resource for
thought and ideas. T he values of hard work,
respect and responsibility— values taught every
day in America’s public schools— transcend any
singular set of religious beliefs.”
ere is an update on the state’s pro-gay
legislation:
• Assembly Bill 205 successfully passed its
first com m ittee hearing April 1. It would pro
vide registered domestic partners and their
families nearly all the rights and responsibilities
available to married couples under state law,
including child custody and child support
obligations, com m unity property, m utual
responsibility for debt and the ability to make
funeral arrangements.
W itnesses speaking on behalf of the bill
included Lydia Ramos, who movingly shared
the horrifying circumstances she faced after
th e death of her partner last year, including a
court battle for custody of her daughter. Also
present were Sharon Sm ith, who fought for
the right to sue for wrongful death after her
partner, Diane W hipple, was killed in an in
famous San Francisco dog-mauling case, as
well as Keith Bradkowski, who experienced
numerous legal problems after his partner was
killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
T he bill passed on a party-line vote. Every
Democrat on the com m ittee voted in favor of
it, w ith th e exception of H annah-B eth Jackson
of Santa Barbara, who abstained.
• T h e Judiciary C o m m ittee approved
Assembly Bill 17 by a 10-2 vote April 1. It
would prohibit state agencies from contracting
with businesses that discriminate in providing
benefits to their employees with spouses or
domestic partners. T he bill will be heard in the
Appropriations C om m ittee next m onth.
To address the concerns of religious-based
organizations, the measure includes a provision
allowing employers to provide equal benefits
without asking employees’ marital or domestic
partnership status. For employers who have reli
gious objections to domestic partnership, bene
fits can be provided to “a legally domiciled
member of the employee’s household.”
• The Hum an Services C om m ittee passed
Assembly Bill 458 on a party-line vote of 4-2
April 8. It would protect foster youth, foster
parents, other foster household members and
foster agency staff from discriminatory treat
m ent and harassment based on sexual orienta
tion, gender identity and HIV/AIDS status. In
addition, it requires foster parents and other
caregivers to receive training on the n o n
discrimination requirements. It now will go to
the Appropriations Com m ittee.
• The Appropriations Com m ittee passed a
historic civil rights measure April 2 that would
prohibit housing and workplace discrimination
based on gender stereotyping. Assembly
Bill 196 now goes to the floor for a vote.
T h e legislation needed 13 votes to pass the
co m m ittee. A ll eig h t R epublicans voted
against it, and 17 Democrats voted for it, w ith
one Democrat, Lou C orrea of S an ta A na,
voting no. j n
VIRGINIA
V
“F or Your P alm S p rin g s
P lace in th e Sun”
431 South Palm Canyon
Palm Springs, CA 92262
CALIFORNIA
irginia Tech’s board of visitors reversed itself
at a meeting April 6 and restored sexual ori
entation to the university’s nondis
crimination policy.
The board voted March 10 to
remove sexual orientation be
cause, it said, federal and state laws
offer no protections based on sexu
al orientation. The move generat
ed tremendous outcry from stu
dents and civil rights groups.
T he board dropped sexual
o rien tatio n from th e school’s
nondiscrim ination policy in an
attem pt to ward off potential
lawsuits, according to The Colle
giate Times, the school’s newspa
per. However, a university
spokesman
suggested
the
Former N E A chief Bob Chase expressed deep concern about changes were based more on per
Education Secretary Rod Paige’s assertion that religion has a sonal political agendas of board
members than legal fact.
place in U .S. public schools
EADIE ADAMS REALTY
Bus: (760) 778-5500
Fax: (760) 323-7832
Cell/Pgr:- (760) 774-0685
E-mail: ccsvs@aol.com
NATIONAL
T
M att Foreman Ls taking the reins at the
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
A t least 383 colleges and universities across
the nation have written nondiscrim ination
policies covering sexual orientation, including
11 in Virginia.
H
Compiled by News Editor JlM R ado STA, who
can be reached at jim@justout.com.
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