Honolulu, Hawaii, July 31, 1997 --- The Hawai`i Supreme Court has declined to shed any light on when it will rule on the state's appeal of the landmark same-sex marriage case.
The high court Tuesday denied requests by both sides that would have made it apparent when it would take up the appeal. The timing is important because Hawai`i voters in November 1998 will be asked whether the state Constitution should be amended to ban same-sex marriage.
The state is appealing last September's ruling by a state judge that a ban on same-sex marriages violates the Hawai`i Constitution's equal protection clause by denying marriages to couples based solely on gender.
Lawyers on both sides of the issue yesterday said the high court's ruling this week raises questions.
"It basically brings some uncertainty into the situation," said Dan Foley, an attorney for the three same-sex couples who challenged the state's marriage laws. Foley had asked that the court make its ruling by the end of the year.
The state opposed Foley's request and asked the high court to hold off making a ruling until after November 1998. That's when Hawai`i residents will vote on whether to change the state Constitution to include a ban on same-sex marriages.
"It leaves open the possibility of confusion, depending upon the timing of the decision," state Attorney General Margery Bronster said yesterday. "If the Supreme Court ruled against the state and legailized same-sex marriages, and then the voters changed the Constitution (to ban them), we could end up having a window of time when same-sex marriage was legal, and what happens to those licenses?"
By Mike Nichols of the Journal Sentinel staff
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Saturday, July 26, 1997 --- If Ald. Paul Henningsen gets his way, the city soon will be extending health insurance and other benefits to the same-sex partners of municipal employees.
A Henningsen proposal introduced Friday is similar to one adopted in Chicago last March. It would require gay partners to file "affidavits of domestic partnership" with the city attesting that they are of the same sex, at least 18 years old and "responsible for each other's common welfare."
In addition, they would have to share a checking account, credit cards or property such as a car. After that, partners would be eligible for the same medical and "funeral leave" benefits available to married heterosexuals.
The downtown alderman said he is pushing the issue because it's the "fair thing to do."
"Why should Chicago be more progressive than us? Atlanta? Denver?" he said, alluding to cities he says have passed similar measures. "This is what is happening."
Not here, retorted others.
"I would have to vote against it," said Ald. Jeff Pawlinski. "I have not seen the file. I would want to look at it and read it, but I don't think that is prudent policy."
Pawlinski added that he does not have a "moral opposition to homosexuals" but doesn't think the proposal is either financially wise or acceptable to the constituents of his south side district.
"I represent my district," he said.
Henningsen is guessing that his proposal would cost the city about $200,000 a year, but he said the final tally would depend upon just how many partners apply.
Of the 8,400 city employees, he guessed that 10% are homosexual. Of those, he added, perhaps one out of 10, or 84, would be both eligible and willing to apply. The number could be as low as 25, he said.
Mark Street, a member of a recently formed Milwaukee group known as the Domestic Partnership Task Force, said he thinks Henningsen's analysis is correct. Other cities and private companies that have offered such benefits have experienced participation of less than 1%, he said.
"If our neighbors to the south can do it," he said, "we can do it."
The argument in Chicago was over much more than money. Critics were quoted in the Chicago papers as saying the ordinance there was "ungodly" and "the doings of the Antichrist." According to the Chicago Tribune, Mayor Richard Daley's religious convictions were questioned after he expressed support. In Milwaukee, Mayor John Norquist was out of town Friday and unavailable for comment, according to his staff.
"The proposal will get a complete review in the near future, but at this point the mayor does not have a reaction to the introduction of this ordinance," said Jeff Fleming, a mayoral aide.
Henningsen said it is difficult to gauge political support for the proposal, and many aldermen Friday sidestepped questions about it.
"It is being done in other cities," said Ald. Marlene Johnson. "It is not my preference of a kind of lifestyle, but I believe in a live-and-let-live philosophy. I don't think we should legislate morality."
Other aldermen said that the state should consider the issue of same-sex marriage before the city takes up Henningsen's proposal.
"I don't believe I would be supporting it," said Ald. Annette Scherbert. She said she was reluctant to comment, "But up to this time the provisions are for spouses. Spouse means married to, and the state of Wisconsin up to this point does not have same-sex marriages."
Ald. Willie Hines said he doesn't think it would be fair to extend benefits to unmarried, same-sex partners and not to unmarried heterosexual partners.
Officials in some large cities, including New York and Los Angeles, have voluntarily extended benefits to heterosexual domestic partners out of fear of being sued for discrimination. That drives up the cost of such legislation dramatically.
The proposal in Milwaukee has been referred to the Finance and Personnel Committee but will not be heard until after the Common Council's August recess.
SAN DIEGO (AP) July 27, 1997 --- Gay men and women marched under brilliant blue skies in a gay pride parade Saturday, quietly grateful that the shadow cast by Andrew Cunanan is moving away from his hometown.
An estimated 100,000 people turned out for the San Diego Lesbian and Gay Pride's 23rd annual festival.
``It's as festive as any other year, if perhaps not a little more so,'' said media coordinator Frank Sabatini, Jr., as a flock of buff, bare-chested angels marched past. ``It felt as if a cloud had been lifted.''
Cunanan grew up in San Diego and lived in the mostly-gay Hillcrest community before embarking on what police said was a cross-county killing spree.
Many people at the parade said they were relieved to learn that Cunanan, a gay gigolo suspected in the deaths of Gianni Versace and four other men, committed suicide Wednesday in Florida. Some had feared he might return to San Diego for the festival to settle old scores.
``Everyone's a little more relaxed,'' said Brad Linville, as he and four other men prepared to board a Jeep. ``But what bothered me more than (Cunanan) coming here was that the media would portray this in a different light.''
Many said they don't want gays and lesbians, or the festival, to be forever linked to Cunanan's memory.
``It was really detracting from the true meaning of the event,'' Brenda Schumacher said of the cross-country manhunt for Cunanan. ``I don't think Cunanan is a reflection of our culture, our values or this community.''
Elderly people stood alongside small children, a man stood in the crowd with a parrot perched on one of his two dogs, while gay couples chatted with straight couples beneath arches of rainbow balloons.
``We're not a disruptive community,'' Sabatini said. ``Flashy, maybe, but not disruptive.''
Honolulu, Hawai`i July 26, 1997 --- With a new Dec. 2 deadline for a Constitutional Convention election, the state has an additional 2 1/2 months to prepare for the worst-case scenario of 500,000 voters.
It also has extra time to inform voters that blank ballots will count as "no" votes, based on a recent state Supreme Court ruling, said Dwayne Yoshina, chief election officer.
But the special election will likely have a lower turnout in which narrow factions may decide whether the state has a convention that would change its Constitutionm said Deputy Attorney General John Dellera.
The outcome may run counter to the state Supreme Court's opinion, which also said the Constitution should not be amended unless by a broad section of the public, he said.
Their comments follow a ruling yesterday by U.S. District Judge David Ezra, who extended the deadline for a new election from mid-September to Dec. 2.
Ezra had ruled July 18 that the 1996 election for a Constitutional Convention was flawed and that the state must hold a new one within 60 days, based on state law.
But he said Yoshina persuaded him that the state couldn't hold an effective election on the controversial issue in 60 days.
Ezra rejected a state request to postpone the election until the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on the state's appeal of a new election.
He also rejected a state option to delay the election until the general election in November 1998.
Dellera had asked for the delay, in part to save an estimated $2 million for a new election and to give the appellate court a chance to rule.
Ezra said postponing the election to 1998 or until the appellate court rules would amount to a "serious and flagrant deprivation of rights."
Mark Bennett, who represented groups supporting the convention, said a fall election could enable the state legislature to proceed with plans to elect delegates and hold a convention by July 1998.
"We're very happy," he said of Ezra's ruling. "It's the fair thing."
Yoshina said he would decide next week the exact date for the election, saying he might not be able to reserve enough polling places on Tuesday, Dec. 2.
But he also said he was grateful fo the additional time, adding: "We're going to try our best to put on a solid election."
The call for a new election stems from a state Supreme Court interpretation of how the state should count blank ballots.
In Ezra's July 18 ruling, he said state voters could not have foreseen that blank votes would have been counted as "no" votes. He also said the practice for 30 years was not to count blank ballots for any purpose.
In the November general election, there were 163,869 votes in favor of a convention and 160,153 votes against, with 45,335 blank or spoiled ballots.
``All the toxicology findings were negative - negative for drugs, negative for HIV, you name it,'' said Senior Master Sgt. Jim Katzaman, an Air Force spokesman. `
Air Force Capt. Craig Button was on a routine training mission when his attack jet veered off course April 2 and crashed near Vail, Colo. Winter conditions on the mountain peak delayed a search until months later.
Katzaman said investigators found nothing to substantiate press reports attributed to unidentified sources that Button may have crashed intentionally because an estranged lover was about to reveal their homosexual affair.
``They turned up absolutely nothing in the background investigation to indicate why Capt. Button would have broke formation and flew off,'' Katzaman said.
Button was stationed at Davis-Monthan Air Force bases near Tucson, Ariz.
Miami, Florida July 23, 1997 11:00 pm. Central UPDATED 5:21 a.m.-- Serial killer
Andrew Cunanan killed himself in Miami Beach. Police officials confirmed at 5:21 a.m.
that the body found on the houseboat was indeed that of Andrew Cunanan. Identification
was made from a thumbprint. The identification was delayed by tear gas in the house and
the fact that an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wood to the head made identification
difficult.
Earlier in the day, a body was found in a house boat at 52nd and Collins Avenue that fits Cunanan's description. The Chief of Police of the City of Miami is on the scene. A .40 caliber pistol was found at the scene, which is the same caliber as the gun Cunanan used. Tests are being conducted to positively determine the identity of the individual. News media is awaiting an official announcement from Washington, D. C. and Miami.
The caretaker of the house boat reported to police that the man believed to be
Cunanan had barricaded himself inside and had taken a shot at the caretaker. With the
murder of Versace only 2.5 miles away, police quickly surrounded the houseboat with
a swat team on the ground and police in boats. After a 5 hour standoff, they fired 6
rounds of tear gas into the house boat and stormed it as shown in the photos left and below.
Police originally told the media that nobody was inside the houseboat, but later said that a body had been found. Swat team members searched nearby boats.
At a press conference held near the boat, the Miami Beach Chief of Police said that a body of a white male had been found who resembled Cunanan, but he refused to say that they had made such an identification. He stated that forensic teams were on the way to conduct tests. Also present were the FBI agent in charge of the Cunanan investigation in Miami and the head of Florida Bureau of Investigation. Media speculated that it must have been Cunanan due to the presence of the police officials and a large number of police officers who had a one block area sealed off.
The owner of the house boat is reported to be a German national who owns a gay nightclub. It is reported by his mother that he has fled to Mexico, due to his association with Cunanan.
Albuquerque Journal, Wednesday, July 23, 1997 --- An Eastern New Mexico University student whose name appeared on an anti-gay "hit list" was attacked by a masked assailant in her home.
One Portales man said the attack has resulted in "locked doors and guns at the ready" in the city's gay community.
"It's an unsettling atmosphere in the gay community here," Steve Doonan, a Portales resident who is acquainted with some of the individuals on the list, said Tuesday, a day after the attack.
"There are locked doors and guns at the ready," said Doonan, who is not connected with the university.
An undetermined number of individuals connected with the university received letters with death threats during the past week, officials said. Fliers with the name Fist of God were found in the liberal arts building on campus.
Sunday night, posters appeared at an off-campus laundromat. Eight names and telephone numbers are on the poster list, purportedly issued by The Fist of God organization. The list is preceded by a warning that says "Take Us Seriously Or We'll Begin Executing One Queer a Week Following This List."
Four women and four men are on the list, Doonan said, and all except the lone student are ENMU faculty members.
"We're taking this very seriously," said District Attorney Randall Harris. "There are threats against people, including bodily injury." Portales police confirmed that the unidentified student was first on the list and that she was attacked Monday afternoon.
"She was attacked by a person hiding behind her front door," Detective Sgt. Allan Farkas said in a telephone interview Tuesday. Farkas confirmed that the assailant, wearing a ski mask and wielding a rope and a knife, jumped out and grabbed the woman when she came in the door.
Farkas said the woman suffered rope burns and a slashed cheek before she managed to escape.
The victim told police she believed her assailant was a woman.
Farkas said the posters appeared in a laundromat near the ENMU campus Sunday night. He said a surveillance camera in the laundromat showed a lone woman putting them up.
"The quality of the film is scratchy at best," he said. "We are trying to enhance the picture with equipment at the university and at Cannon Air Force Base."
Police said they were unable to determine whether the attacker and the person putting up the posters were the same person.
Farkas said the individual appeared to check out the laundromat and make sure no one else was around before putting up the posters. Farkas said the FBI had declined to enter the case. Doug Beldon at the FBI office in Albuquerque said the incidents do not appear a violation of federal law. Civil rights rules, he said, "prevent discrimination in such things as race or housing, not against sexual orientation."
Doonan said he has been unable to contact at least two people on the list of eight. He believes they have gone into hiding.
"I got my information from one of my friends whose name appears on the list," he said. "He was at a meeting called by the university for the police and the people on the list. They know they are targeted by these people, whoever they are."
Doonan e-mailed his information to the Journal.
One poster said "In Florida They Kill Each Other. We're Not So Lucky. But We Can do Something." The wording "The Fist of God -- A Group Dedicated To Killing the Queer Threat. One Mind, One Army, Under One God" and "You Are Invited! Join the Fist! It's Never Been Easier. Just Harass A Queer. Gold Membership? Kill One!!"
A poster saying "Dike (sic) couples polluting our world ... Save our Women" lists 12 names. Six women on it are connected with ENMU, four of them matching the four on the other list of eight. Another poster says "Queer couples polluting our world... Sick!!" It lists the names of six men, all connected with the university, including the four on the list of eight.
Doonan said he recalls no similar incident at ENMU in the past, although there was an uproar about three years ago when a gay student club was formed. The club was still in existence last semester, he said.
WASHINGTON July 22, 1997(AP) --- President Clinton met Tuesday with a dozen gay and lesbian activists, pledging support for two employment concerns: anti-gay bias in the workplace and high-ranking appointments in his administration.
The president spent more than an hour discussing a range of issues from adoptions to homeless gay youth and problems confronting gays and lesbians in rural areas, such as access to AIDS medicine.
Clinton pledged his support for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which bars firing or discriminating against an employee on the basis of sexual orientation.
And he assured the group that he has put forth five nominations of openly gay people for administration jobs that require Senate confirmation.
``Each one of them will take work,'' said Elizabeth Birch, executive director of the gay political advocacy group Human Rights Campaign. ``We have a tough challenge ahead.''
Maria Echaveste, White House director of public liaison, said the president wants gay appointees so that his administration can provide an example of how to reduce anti-gay attitudes in the workplace.
``The more people work with them, the less prejudiced they are,'' Echaveste said. ``That's why appointments are so pivotal.''
There also was discussion of Clinton's upcoming White House conference on hate crimes later this year. The activists said they want the conference to address ``widespread'' violence against gays and would like to include gay youths who often are prone to violence on the streets because of family rejection and homelessness.
``There is agreement that violence against any group is something that must be combatted,'' Echaveste said.
The group expressed concern about the implementation of the Clinton administration's ``don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue'' policy on gays in the military. A study by the Service Members Legal Defense Network showed that gays are being discharged from all branches of the armed forces in greater numbers since the policy was instituted in 1993.
``We made it clear there are a number of instances in which the administration has come down on the wrong side of issues that are important to us, not the least of which is the gays-in-the-military issue,'' said Lorri Jean, executive director of the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center.
The policy bars commanders from asking service members to reveal their sexual orientations, and allows gay troops to serve as long as they refrain from homosexual acts and don't reveal their orientation.
BOSTON GLOBE July 22, 1997 --- Three gay couples will file suit today claiming that the Vermont state constitution entitles them to marriage, making the state the latest front in the national battle for same-sex marriage.
Like Hawaii, where a judge's decision approving gay marriage is currently enjoined pending appeal, Vermont's constitution affords greater equal-protection rights than the federal constitution, and the state's culture is generally tolerant of alternative lifestyles.
``The suit may have better prospects in Vermont than in other states,'' said Sheldon Novick, professor of law at Vermont Law School. ``In Vermont, we're beginning to look at the equal-protection clause as one that affords some positive rights.''
The state Supreme Court ruled last year that Vermont children were entitled not only to equal access to public education, but to schools that are roughly equally funded, Novick said.
That case, in which the court declared that ``equal protection under the laws cannot be limited by 18th century standards,'' could provide precedent for the idea that privileges granted to one group cannot be denied to others, Novick said.
Still, most observers believe, the prospect of gay marriage is likely to stir up conflicting opinions even in the liberal bastion of Vermont, the first state to abolish slavery and one of the first to outlaw hate crimes.
Vermont Attorney General William Sorrell and his predecessors have advised town clerks that state laws sanction only heterosexual marriages, because language specifying ``bride and groom'' indicates that the partners must be of different genders.
Organizers of the suit - two attorneys from Middlebury, assisted by the Boston-based Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders - declined to comment on the specifics of their case, pending a news conference this morning in Burlington.
GLAD civil rights director Mary Bonauto said her group is confident that gay marriage will be approved in Hawaii - which, by virtue of federal law, would make same-sex unions in Hawaii enforceable in states that do not pass special laws refusing to honor them.
``With respect to Hawaii the case is fully on track and we're very optimistic about it,'' she said. Among other states, only in New York have gay couples filed a suit seeking marital rights under the state constitution.
Vermont, however, could represent an even better opportunity for gays to secure marriage rights because of the broad wording of its constitution, legal specialists said.
Article 1 of the Vermont Constitution provides that ``All men are born equally free and independent and have certain natural, inherent and unalienable rights, amongst which are the enjoying and defending life and liberty, acquiring, possessing, and protecting property, and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety.''
Article 7 declares, ``The government is, or ought to be, instituted for the common benefit, protection or security of the people.'' ``This is known as the common-benefit clause,'' said Novick. ``It's generally interpreted that if a benefit is provided to anyone it must be provided for all.''
Advocates for gay couples contend that by denying marriage to gays, states deprive same-sex couples of rights to inherit from their partners, share custody of children and receive financial protections in the event of a break-up.
In response, states have claimed that marriage is a privilege extended to different-sex couples out of faith in tradition and a desire to secure a family unit for the procreation and raising of children. Nonetheless, Vermont courts have recognized non-traditional families in many types of cases, lawyers said.
``The Vermont Supreme Court and other courts have recognized the rights of same-sex couples to adopt children,'' said Novick. ``So there will be quite a lot of precedent'' for gay marriage ``in family-law cases.''
Presidential spokesman Mike McCurry said that, after hearing ``legitimate concerns'' raised by gay activists, his reaction to the ruling should have included that a review under way at the Pentagon analyzing how the law is being implemented.
``In retrospect, I would have pointed that out if I had looked into the issue more,'' McCurry told reporters. ``I had a typically McCurry off-the-cuff reaction.''
Earlier this month in New York, U.S. District Judge Eugene Nickerson ruled that the policy violates free-speech rights of gay service members and subjects them to separate, discriminatory regulations.
Gay activists told the White House that more homosexual service members have been discharged since the policy was adopted by the Clinton administration in 1993.
Last year, 850 gays were discharged from all branches of the armed forces except the Coast Guard, according to Pentagon data compiled by the Service Members Legal Defense Network, an independent legal advocacy group. In 1994, there were 597 discharges.
The Justice Department is appealing Nickerson's decision, and the issue is expected to ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court. There are several cases nationwide challenging the 1993 policy, adopted by the administration as a compromise.
The policy bars commanders from asking service members what their sexual orientations are. It allows gay troops to serve as long as they refrain from homosexual acts and don't reveal their orientation.
When Nickerson issued his ruling, McCurry said ``we continue to believe the policy is a good one'' and was being implemented satisfactorily. McCurry said Monday he had neglected to mention that Defense Secretary William Cohen ``has expressed some concern about the implementation of the law'' and had ordered a review group to study it.
``The bottom line is, the law is still the law,'' McCurry said. ``We must continue the work of effectively administering the law and making sure we do so with the kind of sensitivity that Secretary Cohen has said should apply.''
``The good news here is that Mike McCurry, in thinking a little bit longer about his comments, recognized that ... there are some problems with enforcement of this policy,'' said Winnie Stachelberg, legislative director of the Human Rights Campaign, the country's largest gay political organization.
"We are mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, neighbors and friends who want to live in a society where everyone is valued," said McDonald, a community educator who lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
"We are seeking to create 'safe space' for everyone, and especially in our schools and communities. I hope that Clinton and his Administration will join us in this work," she said.
PFLAG President McDonald is scheduled to meet with Clinton in today's private meeting alongside a dozen gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community activists.
PFLAG, a national family organization currently serving more than 400 communities, has been headed by McDonald since October 1996. She coordinated the group's public educational program, Project Open Mind, during its initial launch in Tulsa, and is the founder of the city's PFLAG chapter.
McDonald is an education consultant, having previously worked in the Tulsa Public Schools developing and coordinating the School Volunteer Program and Partnerships in Education with Business and Industry. Her many honors include being named Tulsa Woman of the Year and Administrator of the Year by Tulsa Classroom Teachers.
She and her husband of 35 years have five children and five grandchildren.
Leaders of PFLAG, which was created almost 20 years ago out of a mother's pain and anger as she watched her gay son be beaten on a television newscast, pledged this past spring at the historic President's Summit for America's Future to provide "safe spaces" for 10,000 more gay, lesbian and bisexual youth and their families by the year 2002. This is in light of the fact that every day 13 Americans between the ages of 15 and 24 commit suicide, and it is estimated that perhaps 30% of these young people are gay or lesbian.
McDonald is available for interviews today and tomorrow after the White House meeting with Clinton.
HONOLULU STAR-BULLETIN, July 19, 1997 --- State chief election officer Dwayne Yoshina doubts it can be done. But he is moving ahead with organizing a full-blown election with all of the state's 328 voter precincts on whether to convene a Constitutional Convention.
Under U.S. district Judge David Ezra's recent ruling, the special election must be held by September 9, which is less than two months away. Yesterday, state attorneys filed a request for a stay to Ezra's order, pending their appeal. A hearing before Ezra was scheduled for Friday.
The state's arguments include a statement by Yoshina, who asserts that it is too costly and logisticaly difficult to hold an election by Sept. 9.
Attorney General Margery Bronster has said if Ezra denies that state's request for a stay, she will try to get the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco to overturn Ezra's decision.
Citizens for a Constitutional Convention and Let the People Decide, which were successful in persuading Ezra to order a new election, have vowed to fight the state's efforts.
"We believe tht under the Constitution, if the special election were delayed until the next general election, it would set the process back two years," said Mark Bennett, an attorney for the pro-convention groups. "We will vigorously oppose the motion. We do not believe it has any merit."
Ezra deemed a new election necessary because voters in last year's balloting did not know that blank and spoiled votes would be counted as "no" votes.
There were 163,869 "yes" votes, 160,153 "no" votes and 45,335 blank and spoiled votes when Hawai`i residents were asked in November if a convention should be held to revise or amend the state Constitution.
Yoshina said: "Right now, I'm running (the election) like it would be a general election because I am of the opinion that we would be sued if it were anything less."
The estimated cost of a new election is $2.1 million, including more than $697,000 for salaries and overtime, Yoshina added.
An election conducted entirely by mail, which the state has never done, would cost about $1.4 million. But that is not an option, Yoshina believes.
"I do not have explicit authority to do that. I don't think it is in the law," Yoshina said. "There's no provision that we can do mail-in." He added: "If I had my druthers, we'll do it in conjunction with the general election (in 1998)."
That would be the least expensive way of getting the issue back on the ballot--costing only about $276,000--and the issue would be another ballot measure for generating election voters, Yoshina said. If a stay is not granted, Yoshina said he will know sometime in August if a regular, walk-in election can be held Sept. 9. He wasn't optomistic that it could, however.
"It's not simple to put on an election as some people might believe. It is a tough job," Yoshina insisted.
He'll have to recruit and train 4,000 election workers in less than 60 days when he ususally has the two-year cycle for that, Yoshina said. He also has to worry about printing ballots, reserving polling places and absentee voting.
To concentrate on the new Con Con election, Yoshina has had to abandon work preparing for next year's elections.
"A lot of that is not transferable," Yoshina said.
Now in limbo is work for new computer software for ballot-counting.
"It is not as simple as loading new software," Yoshina said. "We have to see if it works on the hardware platform. We need to see if the software operates the same way as the previous software.
"We'll just have to use the old version and live with the shortcomings of the old version. The new may be more efficient."
Yoshina's staff was also supposed to work on rules and regulations to comply with the new law requiring more public accessibility to voter registration records. That will have to be put off indefinitely, he said.
*Star-Bulletin reporter Harold Morse contributed in this report.*
MIAMI (AP) July 17, 1997 --- A man fitting the description of serial killer suspect Andrew Cunanan was seen running from a home where a gay doctor was slain Thursday in a neighborhood 15 miles from where Gianni Versace was gunned down.
FBI agents and police assigned to the fashion designer's slaying scrambled to the home near Miami International Airport where the doctor's body was found in his bedroom. But they cautioned that no direct link between Thursday's slaying and Tuesday's point-blank killing of Versace had been found.
``The only thing we have is someone who possibly matches his physical description leaving the scene,'' said Metro-Dade police Sgt. Peter Andreu, adding that a neighbor told investigators that a man seen fleeing the house ``had similar characteristics to Cunanan.''
Investigators who believe Cunanan is still in the area playing a deadly game of cat and mouse put a close watch on Miami's busy airport, seaport and bus terminals to head off an escape, and warned South Florida residents he could be nearby.
``We strongly believe he is still in this area,'' said FBI spokeswoman Anne Figueiras. ``We urge the public to be very cautious. He is armed and dangerous.''
The witness to Thursday's slaying told police he heard a burglar alarm at about 6 a.m. and saw a white man in his late 20s or early 30s, around 5 feet 10 inches tall, with a slim build and dark hair - a description that generally fits that of the 27-year-old Cunanan, who has been accused of preying on wealthy gay men.
The victim was Dr. Silvio Alfonso, 44, a Cuban-born physician who was granted political asylum in the United States in 1991 and worked at the Flamingo Medical Center in neighboring Hialeah.
``Our investigation shows he appears to have a gay lifestyle,'' Metro Dade police spokeswoman Linda O'Brien said of Alfonso. ``The man appears to be gay, but that doesn't mean a tie-in.''
Police have focused an intense search across South Florida since Versace was gunned down outside his oceanfront villa after a morning walk. Experts on serial killers warned the intense international publicity surrounding Cunanan could be fueling his ego and his blood lust.
``I would say he's euphoric at this point. If we don't stop him, he will kill again,'' said Jack Levin, who heads Northeastern University's Program for the Study of Violence and is the author of three books on serial killers.
Described by his mother and police as a gay prostitute, Cunanan is also suspected of four murders in Minnesota, Illinois and New Jersey since April 29. He has been charged in three of those cases, the latest charge coming Thursday in the May 3 slaying of millionaire Chicago developer Lee Miglin, who police say had been stabbed and tortured. While those crimes drew attention, the brazen slaying of Versace put Cunanan in the international spotlight.
Authorities are also studying a blurry videotape from a security camera at the Tides Hotel near Versace's home that showed someone in shorts and a T-shirt running down an alley after the slaying.
An attendant at a parking garage where police found a red Chevrolet truck that Cunanan is suspected of stealing from a New Jersey murder victim said the vehicle had been parked there since June 10.
``We didn't have any reason to think it was stolen or anything. Lots of people leave their cars here when they are on vacation,'' said the attendant, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Police wouldn't talk about reports Cunanan had been seen in the vicinity of the Versace mansion weeks before the shooting, or that friends have said he may be HIV positive.
Rewards of at least $65,000 have been offered for information leading to Cunanan's capture, including $45,000 from the FBI and various Miami-area agencies and separate $10,000 rewards from New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and the Gay and Lesbian Anti-Violence Project.
Versace's family, which prepared Thursday to take his ashes home to Italy, issued a statement saying it was ``profoundly moved by the incredible demonstration of esteem and affection shown by the whole world for Gianni.''
Authorities and gay leaders in San Francisco, New York, West Hollywood and other cities issued pleas for vigilance to the potential danger as the manhunt spread nationwide.
``We've put out fliers in English, Spanish and Chinese,'' said Jennifer Rakowski of San Francisco's Community United Against Violence.
``We are sending a strong message,'' Rakowski said. ``Murderers are not welcome in this community or any other community.''
While police in the Versace case say they don't know what motivates Cunanan, Richard K. Ressler, who has profiled serial killers for the FBI for 15 years, has his own theory.
``The motivation for this is a death wish,'' Ressler said. ``He is suicidal, especially if he's found out he has AIDS. ... What he is really doing is lashing out against the gay community. Now he's taken out an icon of that community.''
Miami Beach, FL July 16, 1997 --- Famed Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace, slain Tuesday on the steps of his lavish South Miami Beach mansion with two shots to the back of the head, probably was targeted by a serial killer who is on the FBI's 10 most-wanted list, authorities say.
Andrew Cunanan was being sought as the leading suspect in the killing of Versace, 50,
who dressed celebrities the world over in his glamorous, sexy designs. His fashion empire, owned
with his sister, is estimated to be worth 900 million dollars.
More than 12 hours after Versace was gunned down, Miami Beach Chief Richard Barreto said police were hunting for Cunanan, 27, who is charged in the slaying of David Madson, a Minnespolis architect and former resident of Barron, WI.
Cunanan also is the prime susgpect in the killings of Jeffrey Trail, a friend from Inneapolis; Lee Miglin, a Chicago businessman; and William Reese, a New Jersey cemetery caretaker.
Cunanan was known to move in gay circles and was a regular at gay bars in San Diego where he appeared to live well without working. Versace was gay and well known in the South Beach area.
Police said Versace was shot by a white man in his mid-20s, dressed in a white or gray shirt and dark shorts and carrying a backpack.
The link to Cunanan was apparently established with the discovery of a 1995 red Chevrolet pickup truck in a parking garage blocks away from the shooting which was stolen from Resse in New Jersey. Although the truck had stolen plates, its identification number was traced to Reese. The vehicle had been the subject of a nationwide manhunt previously.
Since launching his own lable in 1978 at the age of 31, Versace was one of the top designers in the world, head of a Milan-based global empire and a glamorous figure who in flamboyant style dressed -- and befriended -- stars and celebrities such as Elton John, Madonna, Jane Fonda, Prince and Oksana Baiul.
Besides women's and men's clothing, his lines include children's clothing, lingerie, beach wear, accessories and perfume. The Versace name also adorns fabrics, linens and chinaware, and he planned to take his company public next year.
Immediately after Versace was shot, several witnesses followed the gunman as he left his victim bleeding face up on the stairs and walked to a parking garage. At one point, realizing he was being followed, the man turned and pointed a handgun at one pursuer, who dropped to the sidewalk.
At the garage, witnesses say, the killer got into a red Chevy truck, changed clothes, then left on foot. Police found bloody clothes under the truck, which was parked on the top floor of the four-story parking structure.
Versace's shooting stunned Miami Beach residents accustomed to seeing the multi-millionaire designer strolling down Ocean Drive, usually in shorts and flip-flops. In spite of Miami's reputation for violent crime, he apparently never felt the need for bodyguards.
When in town, Versace had a unvarying morning routine - walking to the nearby News Cafe to pick up newspapers and magazines to read on the beach. It was this innocent routine that Versace's killer may have anticipated.
Versace's Mediterranean-style mansion, one of several homes he owns around the world, is the only private residence on the fashionable stretch of Ocean Drive, popularly known as Deco Drive. The estate, created from two aging Art Deco hotels, faces the Atlantic Ocean. It is surrounded by a high wall, and Versace's Renaissance- style crest adorms the ornate entrances to the estate.
Hundreds of people began gathering across Ocean Drive from Versace's palatial home soon after the shooting. No sooner had police removed the yellow tape from the crime scene tan people swarmed onto the steps laying flowers and bonquets in his memory.
See More In Depth Articles on Versace Murder in FEATURES.
DALLAS, TX Fort Worth Star-Telegram, July 16, 1997-- If three Dallas educators have their way, a ramshackle brick building in a strip mall near Love Field will become home in September to the state's first private high school for gay and lesbian teen-agers.
Thus far, they have no students, only a leased 4,000 square-foot building that is being renovated. The risks, the three acknowledge, are intimidating.
But optimism -- born of a desire to help teens who have found traditional high schools hostile -- springs eternal, says Becky Thompson, director of the Walt Whitman Community School slated to open Sept. 2. "These are still the kids on the outs, the ones that are being picked on at school," Thompson said, citing a 1984 New York study that found that 28 percent of gay and lesbian students drop out of high school because of harassment.
Thompson, a former teacher and counselor at the Walden Preparatory School in Addison, Texas, conceived of the gay and lesbian school in May with Pamala Stone, a Grapevine, Texas, native who was director of Walden. Both resigned in May to pursue new options.
"This population is a population that was underserved in terms of education," Stone said. "There wasn't anything special happening for these kids."
Stone will serve as assistant director, and another teacher, Wally Linebarger, will head the fine arts department.
The purpose of the Walt Whitman Community School, named after the 19th-century poet, "is to create an atmosphere of tolerance, an acceptance of sexuality confusion and opportunities for personal growth so that each individual student can become a fully functioning and healthy member of society," according to its mission statement.
The school, which will charge $7,000 annual tuition, will offer language arts, math, natural science, social studies and electives in either fine arts or human development. The school's policy statement says it will admit any student, regardless of sexual orientation.
Classes will be Monday through Thursday, and on Friday students will make up missed days, participate in community service projects or internships, or receive tutoring.
"I most definitely want us to be a high school like any other, with a few differences," said Thompson, a 45-year-old transplant from Indiana who came to Texas in 1982 seeking "better weather."
The differences include a curriculum that will offer far more health education and arts training than other high schools, as well as self-defense instruction.
As enrollment grows, Thompson said, she hopes to hire three more teachers to help with math and science classes. Walt Whitman will apply for accreditation after the requisite three -year operational term, she said.
Dallas gays and lesbians cheered the development of such a school. "I feel the city has been kind of a little behind on services to this population," said Harold Boot, program director for the Cathedral of Hope, a church of predominantly gay and lesbian worshipers.
"I think it's going to be an uphill kind of struggle for them, but there's definitely a need. The kids are definitely being harassed. I'm glad that there are some people willing to take the risk." The church owns the small Dallas strip center, which also houses a convenience store and two restaurants. Cathedral of Hope is leasing the space to the school at "a very discounted rate," Boot said.
Beginning Sept. 15, when the school day ends, the building will be home to the Hope Youth Community Center, where gay , lesbian , bisexual and transgender young people can hang out with friends, socialize, study, play pool and talk, he said.
"I personally think that once the school opens, you're going to see a lot of support from the community, financially, for scholarship money," Boot said.
Former City Councilman Chris Luna, an outspoken member of Dallas' gay community, said he has mixed feelings about the school, adding that "in terms of an alternative, I think it's great."
"I think part of the educational process is to be mainstream," Luna said yesterday. "The flip side is that a lot of gay and lesbian youth get harassed and have to drop out, so if this will keep them in school this is good."
Other schools for gay and lesbian students operate in New York City, Toronto and Los Angeles as partnerships between private groups and local school districts, said Randall Cole, a spokesman for the Hetrick-Martin Institute, an advocacy organization for lesbian , gay and bisexual youth ages 13 to 21.
The Hetrick-Martin Institute operates the 80-student Harvey Milk School in the East Village for grades 9-12 in conjunction with the New York City Board of Education.
The San Francisco Unified School District offers programs in all middle and high schools geared toward gay , lesbian and bisexual teens, as well as students with gay parents, district spokeswoman Gail Kaufman said.
Thompson said Walt Whitman will be the nation's first private high school for gay and lesbian teens.
Stone said none of the three educators was interested in trying to persuade Dallas school officials to help with the project.
"Public schools realize that they cannot provide the best possible situation for every single kid," she said. Thompson is assembling a board of directors to comply with the rules for setting up a nonprofit corporation. The board will consist of Thompson and Stone, a lawyer, a businessperson, a teacher and a parent. Linebarger, 45, termed the venture, "exciting, but scary as hell."
"In Dallas, we are the center of the Baptist convention, you know," Linebarger said. "I was like, `Oh my God, do you realize what we're doing? The media is going to get a hold of this,'" he recalled telling Thompson.
"We could have pickets the first day of school. The potential is there."
WASHINGTON July 15, 1997(Reuter) --- The Internal Revenue Service has admitted it was wrong to demand that a support group for young gays show it discouraged ``homosexual attitudes and propensities,'' a gay rights group said Tuesday.
The Gay and Lesbian Adolescent Support System (GLASS), of Greensboro, N.C., had received the demand in a letter from the IRS after the group applied for tax-exempt status as an educational and social welfare group.
But the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund in New York stepped in and wrote the IRS, with Lambda lawyer David Buckel saying the IRS had no business inquiring about ``homosexual attitudes'' any more than it had business asking about ''heterosexual attitudes.''
The IRS said he was right.
``We agree with Mr. Buckel that the methodology used to communicate a viewpoint or position to others should be the focus rather than the viewpoint itself,'' the IRS said in a July 9 letter.
The IRS promised to take ``a fresh look'' at the application for tax exempt status and said the case would be ``quickly resolved.''
The founder and president of GLASS, Gary Palmer, said he was gratified by the news.
``I was not expecting anything this rapid,'' he said. ``Too me it's incredible. It's very encouraging to see that happen.''
Last autumn, the Washington IRS wrote GLASS a five-page letter asking the group to ``detail the procedures and safeguards in place to assure that counselors and participants do not encourage or facilitate homosexual practices or encourage the development of homosexual attitudes and propensities by minor individuals attending your program.''
Lambda, which provides civil rights representation for gay and lesbian causes, said in its letter that GLASS was ``a well-run, grassroots support group that helps young people besieged by anti-gay bigotry.''
Buckel said the IRS decision was in line with the views of President Clinton, who has asked America's communities to counter anti-gay hate crimes and turn out as volunteers to help others.
By Linda Hosek, Star-Bulletin
HONOLULU STAR-BULLETIN, Honolulu, Hawai`i, July 10, 1997 --- Saying the 1996 vote for a constitutional convention was fundamentally flawed, U.S. District Judge David Ezra this morning ordered a new election to occur within 60 days.
Ezra said state voters could not have foreseen that blank votes would have been counted as "no" votes.
He said that although the state Supreme Court ruled in March that blank votes had to register as "no" votes, the practice for 30 years was not to count blank ballots for any purpose.
Ezra said voters were provided with incorrect information by election officials and that even the chief elections officer acknowledged that he could have not known what his vote could have meant before the election.
"This election amounted to one that was fundamentally flawed and unfair under the federal Constitution," he said. "Voters were deprived of an opportunity to understand what their votes would mean."
Ezra rejected certifying the election as passed, saying it would impose the same unfairness and would violate the state Supreme Court's interpretation of the state Constitution.
"It is now the law of the state and must be respected," he said. "It is also imminently correct and true."
Deputy Attorney General John Dellera denied comment, saying he would have to read the written opinion.
The state had argued that the Con Con election was a state issue and that the federal Constitution doesn't provide remedies.
Mark Bennett, an attorney for Let the People Decide, Citizens for a Constitutional Convention and several individuals, said he was pleased.
He also said he believed Ezra's ruling could survive an appeal, saying, "The judge was so clearly correct that there was a federal constitutional violation."
Estimates for a new election range from $6 million to $12 million.
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) July 9, 1997 - Larry Kramer, playwright and in-your-face AIDS activist, is in Yale University's face now.
The 1957 graduate is accusing the Ivy League school of homophobia for rejecting his multimillion-dollar offer to endow a professorship in gay studies.
Kramer, who helped create the Gay Men's Health Crisis support organization in 1981 and founded the confrontational AIDS activist group ACT UP in 1987, said he gave Yale about a dozen proposals and all were dismissed. ``I have no question in my mind that they were rejected because of extreme homophobia,'' Kramer, 62, said in a telephone interview from his home in New York. ``There's no question that Yale is not a friendly place for gay professors or teachers.''
In a letter to Kramer, Provost Alison Richard said gay and lesbian studies is too narrow a field for a permanent professorship. Yale also said that there is a freeze on faculty hiring and that the university could not add a professorship without cutting one elsewhere.
Richard, an anthropologist who studies lemurs in Madagascar, did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday.
Kramer, who is HIV positive, first approached Yale nine months ago while he was making up his will, and met with Richard several times. Now he has withdrawn the offer and said he might set up an independent foundation. As a writer, Kramer is best known for his novel ``Faggots'' and his play ``The Normal Heart.'' In 1970, he was nominated for an Oscar for his screenplay adaptation of D.H. Lawrence's ``Women in Love.''
One of his other creations, ACT UP, or the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power, has become known for headline-grabbing exploits, such as an interruption of trading on the New York Stock Exchange floor in 1989. The group shocked Dan Rather on network television in 1991 when members broke into the studio of ``CBS Evening News'' and one managed to leap in front of a camera at the beginning of the broadcast. At St. Patrick's Cathedral in 1989, members of ACT UP and other groups chained themselves to pews and shouted during Mass.
Kramer said an academic discipline in gay studies would focus on contributions in history, sociology, politics and culture, as well as on aspects of sexual identity.
He would not disclose how much money he offered to Yale but said that it was in the millions and that it would have endowed one or two full professorships. Endowed professorships at Yale cost $2 million. Two years ago, Yale spurned a $20 million offer from Texas billionaire Lee M. Bass, who wanted to create a program in traditional Western thought. The university said Bass' demand to approve faculty appointments would have impinged on academic freedom.
Universities across the country have encountered similar issues as alumni who are members of minority groups gain in wealth. ``If you are willing to teach African-American history or women's studies, why are you not willing to teach gay studies?'' Kramer asked. ``As we grow more and more visible, we want to use our money to teach about us.''
Kramer said he wanted to help gay students feel more comfortable than he did when he was at Yale. In 1953, during his freshman year, he attempted suicide with pills.
``I tried to kill myself because, as far as I was concerned, I was the only gay kid on the face of the earth,'' he said.
Homosexual students have some campus resources at Yale, including a Lesbian and Gay Studies Center opened in 1987.
Kramer called the center ``a hole in the wall'' and complained that most existing courses in gay studies at Yale are taught by non-tenured or visiting professors.
``What I did demand was that what I left be permanent, so I wouldn't have to worry it wouldn't be there after I died,'' he said. ``Whether it be a tenured professorship or a building, I wanted it to be in the form of something that was going to stay.''
LOS ANGELES, JULY 5, 1997--- Danny Pintauro, formerly Jonathan Bower of television's hit sitcom Who's the Boss? comes out of the closet in the July 7th issue of The National Enquirer. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) congratulates Mr. Pintauro for his courageous decision, and applauds the Enquirer for its fair and accurate article.
The Enquirer article relates the 21-year-old actor's "coming out" experience, including how he told his parents and his Who's the Boss? co-stars Judith Light and Tony Danza that he was gay. "I couldn't deny it anymore. It was just the right time to come out," he tells the Enquirer. The article includes a sidebar on the "coming out" process by GLAAD's Entertainment Media Director Chastity Bono.
"The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community is indebted to people like Danny Pintauro who demonstrate the courage to 'come out'," said Joan M. Garry, GLAAD's Executive Director. "He should be proud in the knowledge that by telling his story he is a role model for gay youth who may be struggling with their own sexual orientation," Garry added.
GLAAD is heartened by the Enquirer's decision to approach GLAAD with regard to Pintauro's story, demonstrating a new effort to reflect the realities of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. We hope that this is indicative of future stories that will deal completely and fairly with the lives of our community.
"This article is the most sensitive, accurate story dealing with sexual orientation GLAAD has ever seen in the Enquirer," said Chastity Bono. "We applaud Danny for his decision, and encourage the Enquirer to continue to work with the community and GLAAD to build on this important first step."
GLAAD promotes fair, accurate and inclusive representation as a means of challenging discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity.
(NEW YORK, July 2, 1997)--- Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund demanded today that the Internal Revenue Service withdraw its anti-gay response to a request for non-profit tax status by the Gay and Lesbian Adolescent Support System (GLASS) in Greensboro, North Carolina. Lambda also asked the IRS to promptly grant GLASS federal tax-exemption.
"GLASS is a well-run, grassroots support group that helps young people besieged by anti-gay bigotry. The IRS response to this pillar of the Greensboro community is shockingly discriminatory," said Lambda Staff Attorney David Buckel, who made Lambda's demand in a letter to the tax agency on Wednesday.
After GLASS asked for tax-exempt status under the Internal Revenue Code's section 501(c)(3), the IRS sent the group a letter last fall that hinged approval on the following: "Please describe in detail the procedures and safeguards in place to assure that counsellors (sic) and participants do not encourage or facilitate homosexual practices or encourage the development of homosexual attitudes and propensities by minor individuals attending your programs."
Buckel said, "GLASS's very purpose is to raise the self-esteem of youth who face harassment and violence because they are gay, bisexual, or perceived to be so. As a non-profit, charitable, and educational organization that helps secure the future for youth, GLASS is entitled to tax exemption." He continued, "The IRS should be as worried about 'homosexual attitudes' as about 'heterosexual attitudes,' namely not at all."
Lambda Managing Attorney Ruth Harlow said, "The IRS also needs to guarantee an application process free of discriminatory requests for information. This powerful federal agency is supposed to enforce the tax code, not police people's attitudes or sexual orientation. The IRS had better refocus on its proper role and ensure that it gives fair treatment to all applicants, including lesbian and gay organizations."
She noted, "President Clinton himself has called for strengthening America's communities by boosting volunteer efforts and countering anti-gay hate crimes, exactly what GLASS aims to do. This worthwhile community safety net should not be subjected to offensive scrutiny by the federal government."
GLASS was formed to meet the needs of young people facing anti-gay bigotry and abuse by providing support groups, educational materials, and counseling referrals. It is staffed entirely by volunteers and has served about 120 youth between the ages of 15 and 21 since it started in 1994.
In Atlanta, Jane Morrison, Managing Attorney for Lambda's new Southern Regional Office, said, "The IRS seems to be hindering development of important, grassroots, lesbian and gay organizations that parents as well as young gay people desperately want. Even as support for lesbians and gay people grows in this part of the country, there still is great need for organizations like GLASS." Morrison added, "One North Carolina mother has driven her son 40 miles to this group, and even a social services agency in Greensboro's neighboring Rockingham County has called on GLASS for help."
Buckel, who was co-counsel in Jamie Nabozny's $900,000 victory against anti-gay abuse in his Wisconsin schools, also said, "Parents are asking for these groups because they realize that gay youth benefit from support. The tragic statistics high rates of dropping out of school and even teenage suicide prove the need for youth groups to help counter anti-gay prejudice and raise self-esteem."
Noting that the IRS inexplicably bumped the GLASS application from a local Atlanta office to its national headquarters in Washington, D.C., Buckel said the letter received by GLASS echoes anti-gay IRS responses from as early as the 1970s and suggests that anti-gay zealotry persists in the agency.
"Ironically, Congress is now investigating IRS treatment of right-wing groups. Lambda is concerned that the agency routinely discriminates against the growing number of lesbian and gay youth groups throughout the country," Buckel said.
By Walter Wright, Advertiser Staff Writer
HONOLULU ADVERTISER, July 8, 1997 --- A federal judge appears ready to order the state to hold a constitutional convention in 1998, or at least to hold another election on whether such a convention should be convened.
U.S. District Judge David Ezra indicated yesterday he thinks it was unfair for the state to tell Hawai`i voters that blank ballots wouldn't count on the 1996 constitutional convention measure, then later count blank ballots as "no" votes.
The change, Ezra said, is the result of a Hawai`i Supreme Court ruling after the election that reversed earlier pronouncements ont he balloting by election officials.
Ezra is hearing filed by Honolulu lawyer Mark Bennett, two other individuals and two groups called Citizens for a Constitutional Convention and Let the People Decide. They contend that the measure calling for a convention was approved by the voters last year.
Asked if a convention should be held, voters on Election Day, 1996 returned 163,869 "yes" votes--3,716 more than the "no" votes. But voters also deposited 45,245 ballots that were blank on the question.
The state at first held that the measure had passed and a convention would be held. But the state AFL-CIO sued to block that interpretation. In a unanimous opinion, the Supreme Court ruled on March 24 that a majority of voters did not choose to hold a constitutional convention. The court directed the state's chief election, Dwayne Yoshina, to certify a result indicating that "the constitutional question was rejected." Ezra said yesterday he wouldn't quarrel with the state justices' right to interpret Hawai`i law--even if they made a "startling" reversal of most previous policy and practice.
But he said the law can't be reinterpreted and enforced retroactively to take away voting rights conferred by the U.S. Constitution--such as the right to know in advance how one's vote will be counted.
Ezra said he would rule in writting by Friday whether the state court interpretation violates rights of Hawai`i voters under the U.S. Constitution.
If Ezra finds in favor of Citizens for a Constitutional Convention, he could then: Order that a constitutional convention be held in 1998, on grounds that the measure actually passed by a majority, if blank ballots are left out of the tally as originally promised and practiced by elections officials. Or order a new election on the question of whether the state should hold a convention, as it may every 10 years, to consider proposing possible amendments to teh state Constitution. (Such proposals would then go on the ballot for voters to approve or reject.)
If an election is ordered, the plaintiffs want a special one held within 60 days.
Ezra yesterday also cleared away three barriers the state tried to erect in his path.
He ruled that federal court is an appropriate forum for the case, rejecting the state's argument that federal authorities have no jurisdiction over a state matter.
Second, Ezra said the citizens and groups that took the matter into federal court have the right to bring action.
Finally, he said, the federal court is not barred by the 11th Amendment from exercising its jurisdiction, and in fact "would be in violation of its duties if it did not do so."
(The 11th Amendment says federal courts can't hear claims brought by citizens against a state, but the 14th Amendment and subsequent law carved out an exception to assure that states don't deprive anyone of civil rights.)
Labor leader Gary Rodrigues, in court yesterday as head of the AFL-CIO Hawai`i, said organized labor opposes a $12 million convention as wasteful and unnecessary because legislators also can propose constitutional amendments.
Bennett said a constitutional convention was "the last best hope of this state" for people to implement their will on major issues of public importance.
Monday July 7, 1997, Copyright 1997 / The Times Mirror Co. --- Starting Tuesday, $8 and a visit to a notary will bring same-sex couples in Hawaii a degree of legitimacy unprecedented in this country.
With a state certificate declaring them "reciprocal beneficiaries," they will qualify for dozens of legal rights and benefits typically reserved for the married, ranging from the ability to sign up for family medical insurance to filing a domestic violence complaint.
Approved by the Hawaii Legislature earlier this year, the beneficiaries law is the most dramatic and far-reaching example of a steadily building national trend.
While same-sex marriage remains a highly controversial possibility, domestic partner benefits of one sort or another are becoming an everyday reality for more and more gay couples.
A recent survey by the accounting firm KPMG Peat Marwick indicates that nearly a quarter of employers nationwide with more than 5,000 workers provide health benefits to nontraditional partners, often straight as well as gay .
In a landmark move that took effect last month, the city of San Francisco is requiring its contractors to offer domestic partner coverage to their employees.
Measures related to domestic partner issues have been introduced in more than a half-dozen state legislatures, including California's, where the Assembly last month approved a bill dealing with the availability of health insurance.
Ironically, the furor over same-sex marriage has boosted the effort to gain formal recognition for gay couples outside of marriage--both by highlighting their lack of legal rights and by casting domestic partner ship in a comparatively less radical light.
"In effect, the controversy over marriage aids and pushes the domestic partner movement as well," said Richard Jennings, executive director of Hollywood Supports, an advocacy group that lobbies for such policies. "Domestic partnership is starting to look like the conservative alternative."
Not to social conservatives, who find domestic partnership rights as distasteful as same-sex marriage. They have filed lawsuits to block domestic partner policies in the public sector. They have fired off angry letters to private corporations and, in the recent case of the Southern Baptist Convention protesting the Walt Disney Co.'s insurance benefits for same-sex partners and other "gay friendly" policies, launched a boycott.
Give nontraditional couples rights and benefits, conservatives argue, and you erode the importance of marriage as an institution.
"This is a probing attack on traditional cultural assumptions that marriage is unique in our society," said Benjamin W. Bull, senior counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice, which represents a firm suing to overturn the San Francisco ordinance. "The whole domestic partner issue is the battleground on which the war of cultural values is going to be fought in the next decade."
In the realm of public opinion, domestic partnership is not nearly as contentious as same-sex marriage.
A recent Field poll, for instance, showed that while more than half the California public disapproves of same-sex marriages, a larger majority, 67%, favor granting domestic partners legal rights such as hospital visitation, medical power of attorney and conservatorship.
By a 59% to 35% margin, Californians also approve of giving domestic partners family leave, pension and heath insurance coverage and death benefits.
"The public is still not ready to accept same-sex marriage," said Mervin Field, the poll's associate director. "But they're ready to give family rights to domestic partners . [The public feels] the idea of two gays living together and committing themselves to each other and devoting years to that is something that should be recognized and favored."
In Hawaii, it was the threat of same-sex marriage that prodded the Legislature into adopting the most comprehensive package of rights and benefits ever accorded nontraditional couples in the United States.
By crafting the reciprocal beneficiaries law, marriage opponents won support for another bill, passed at the same time, intended to short-circuit a state court case, now on appeal, that could legalize same-sex marriage in Hawaii within the next two years.
The companion bill places on the November 1998 state ballot a constitutional amendment that would give the Legislature the power to restrict marriage to opposite-sex couples.
The beneficiaries law "is a reaction to the same-sex marriage case," said Hawaii attorney Dan Foley, who represents three gay couples suing the state for marriage rights. "We don't accept this act as a substitute to marriage. It's still separate and unequal. But we think it's a positive step."
The legislation, which takes effect Tuesday, confers about 60 benefits and privileges involving inheritance, insurance coverage, joint property and victims' rights.
Once registered with the state, couples will be able to jointly apply for disaster relief loans and auto insurance. The partner of a state employee will be eligible for survivor retirement benefits.
If one partner dies in an auto accident, the survivor will be able to sue for wrongful death. If one assaults the other, the victim can file a domestic violence complaint. And if one partner becomes mentally incompetent, the other will be able to sign commitment papers.
Private employers that offer family health coverage to married workers must also offer the same to reciprocal beneficiaries, who can be any two adults legally barred from marrying and who are otherwise not married. They simply have to fill out a notarized declaration and pay an $8 fee to obtain a state certificate.
A widow and her son, or for that matter two heterosexuals of the same gender , could register under the program--a fact that has prompted Hawaii's governor to suggest that the law's eligibility may need to be narrowed.
Elsewhere, domestic partner policies are not nearly so encompassing. Private and public employers typically provide health insurance coverage and family and bereavement leave. Survivor retirement benefits are sometimes included. Some companies restrict the benefits to family and bereavement leave.
Business analysts say initial concerns about the cost of adding domestic partner coverage have largely fallen by the wayside, as participation rates have been lower than expected.
If the coverage is available to same-sex couples only, less than 1% of a company work force usually enrolls, increasing medical costs slightly. If enrollment is open to unmarried heterosexual couples as well, up to 3% of the work force may sign up, raising medical costs about 1.5%, said Ilse de Veer of William Mercer Inc., an international benefits consulting firm.
In Los Angeles, where health coverage was extended to the unmarried partners of both straight and gay employees in 1993, only 450 of the city's 34,000 workers have signed up, benefits manager Henry Hurd said. Of those, 80% are heterosexual.
Businesses attribute the low enrollment rates to several factors: Both partners in unmarried couples usually work and thus often have their own individual insurance. The federal government taxes workers on the value of the benefits. And for gay employees, there are concerns that if they sign up, they are effectively outing themselves.
Still, de Veer said domestic partner benefits "help recruit people who might not need the benefits because of the message it sends."
The impetus to expand corporate benefits often comes from within, from gay employee groups that have grown in number and visibility in recent years. But companies also cite a competitive factor, saying the policies can help recruit and retain workers, a particular concern in today's tight labor market.
Although the Southern Baptist boycott of Disney was in part sparked by the entertainment giant's 1995 adoption of benefits for same-sex partners, such high-profile protests are the exception.
"It's typically something that raises discussion for a short time and then it dies out," said Dorothy Weaver of Hewitt Associates, a benefits and compensation consulting firm that estimates about 500 private and public employers nationwide offer such coverage. Neither Weaver nor de Veer were aware of any company that has dropped domestic partner benefits after adopting them.
When Coors Brewing Co. in Golden, Colo., extended health benefits to same-sex couples two years ago, communications manager Joe Fuentes said, there was a brief, minor flap internally and externally "that just went away."
"We had a few letters from people saying, 'We can't believe you're doing this,' " recalled Fuentes. "Our position has always been that it's not a moral statement. It's an employee benefit, and we've always maintained a leadership role in employee benefits."
In the two months since the Chevron Corp. announced it would become the first major oil company to offer domestic partner benefits, spokeswoman Alison Jones said, the company has "gotten lots of reaction, both positive and negative."
Based in San Francisco, Chevron was nudged by the city's contractor ordinance, Jones said, but had been "tracking domestic partner benefits for several years with the thought that some day we would do this."
Most prevalent in government, academia and such industries as high-tech and entertainment, the benefits are spreading into other quarters.
Among those that have or are adopting the policies are American Express, Apple Computer, Bank of America, Southern California Gas Co., IBM, the Los Angeles Unified School District and the state of New York. The policies are more controversial in the public sector, where lawsuits have been filed against various cities challenging their authority to grant the benefits.
Minneapolis was forced to drop them two years ago after a state appeals court ruled that Minnesota law did not recognize same-sex partners as spouses. Similar suits are pending in Chicago, Atlanta and Denver. Voters in Austin, Texas, repealed a domestic partner ordinance several years ago.
Two lawsuits have been filed against San Francisco's ordinance, one by Bull's organization and one by airlines that use the San Francisco airport. They argue the city has no right to issue mandates to the airline industry, which is regulated by the federal government.
Although the challenges revolve around dry legal issues, they usually spring from a deep philosophical opposition to formal recognition of couples outside of heterosexual marriage.
"What [gay -rights advocates] really want is whatever an individual chooses as a partnership. . . . The government and society has to recognize it and protect it legally," said Virginia attorney Jordan Lorence, who is involved in the Chicago suit. "That to me is a recipe for chaos."
A conservative Christian group in Arizona, the Alliance Defense Fund, is funding his work and supporting several of the other city challenges, Lorence said.
On the state legislative front, there has been an increase in pro-domestic partnership proposals, but not a rush to enact them. Of four such bills introduced in California this session, only one has moved forward.
The Assembly-approved measure would require health insurance companies to offer employers the option of providing domestic partner coverage to their workers. But most major insurance carriers in the state already do that.
Among the stalled bills is a statewide registry proposal, similar to legislation vetoed by Gov. Pete Wilson in 1994, that would grant domestic partners limited rights such as hospital visitation and conservatorship. Gay rights proponent Assemblywoman Sheila Kuehl (D-Santa Monica) is nonetheless optimistic.
"The notion of domestic partnership seems more and more familiar and, frankly, more acceptable as local governments and corporations adopt it. I predict in the next couple of years we will see state legislatures going this way."
"I don't see it plateauing," she said of the domestic partnership movement, "unless gay marriage is made legal."
WASHINGTON July 3, 1997(AP) --- The Justice Department will appeal a federal judge's ruling that the military's ``don't ask, don't tell'' policy violates gays' rights to equal participation in national defense.
``Yes, it will,'' Attorney General Janet Reno said today when asked by reporters whether the department would appeal. She did not elaborate. The White House said today President Clinton would not abandon the policy. ``We continue to believe the policy is a good one,'' said presidential spokesman Mike McCurry.
On Wednesday in New York, U.S. District Judge Eugene Nickerson ruled that a military ``called on to fight for the principles of equality and free speech embodied in the United States Constitution should embrace those principals in its own ranks.''
The issue is widely expected to be decided eventually by the Supreme Court. Several cases around the nation are challenging the ``don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue'' policy adopted in 1993 by the Clinton administration as a compromise.
The policy lets gays serve as long as they keep their sexual orientation to themselves and do not engage in homosexual acts. Otherwise, they can be honorably discharged. In addition, commanders may not ask a service member his or her sexual orientation.
In 1995, Nickerson became the first federal judge to strike down the policy - ruling that it violated the free-speech rights of gay and lesbian troops. But last year, a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Nickerson failed to address the section of the policy banning homosexual acts and ordered him to review his decision. The issue of free speech was ``incidental and wholly subservient to the restriction on acts,'' the appeals court said.
Nickerson again concluded the policy violates gays' free-speech rights. But this time, he also ruled they were denied equal treatment guaranteed under the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment because the policy subjects only gays to separate, discriminatory regulations.
The judge found that for the policy ``to single out gay and lesbian members denies them, without legitimate reason, the right to openly participate as equals in the defense of the nation.''
The American Civil Liberties Union and the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, which brought a lawsuit on behalf of two active duty and four reservist plaintiffs, said the decision, if upheld, would eliminate a cruel set of double standards applied to gay and lesbian troops.
U.S. Judge Eugene Nickerson of the Eastern District of New York rejected both the conduct and speech portions of the law, ruling that they violate the Constitution's equal protection guarantee and serve no purpose but to placate the fears of some heterosexual troops.
Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union, which jointly brought the case, Able v. U.S.A., praised the ruling as a breakthrough toward ending the government's discriminatory treatment of lesbians and gay men in the military.
"We are now one step closer to having this archaic law overturned once and for all," said Matt Coles, director of the ACLU's Lesbian and Gay Rights Project. "This case is about the most basic American value: equal treatment, one set of rules for everybody. The entire law, both its conduct rules and speech rules, violate that principle."
Lambda Legal Director Beatrice Dohrn said, "This is the first court to strip away all of the military's euphemistic justifications. Judge Nickerson explains that the military's cloaking its discrimination in gay-only-conduct rules cannot shield it from the Constitution. Any law based on prejudice is unconstitutional. The decision gives us strong ammunition for the inevitable appeal."
Following argument in his Brooklyn courtroom November 18, Judge Nickerson issued a 48-page ruling, saying, "It is hard to imagine why the mere holding of hands off base and in private is dangerous to the mission of the Armed Forces if done by homosexuals but not if done by a heterosexual."
Nickerson also sharply rebuked the government's argument that the law is needed to maintain military readiness, saying the government had made "an outright confession that unit cohesion' is a euphemism to catering to the prejudices to the heterosexuals."
The ruling today was prompted by a federal appeals court decision last July that sent the case back to Judge Nickerson for further action. Although Nickerson ruled in March 1995 that the law's restrictions on speech were unconstitutional, the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals held the validity of the entire scheme depended on the "conduct" portion of the ban and directed Nickerson to reexamine the law on those grounds.
The "conduct" portion of the ban sets up special rules for lesbian and gay service members, requiring them to remain celibate and refrain from any affectionate behavior. Similar rules do not exist regarding heterosexual conduct. Under the "statements" portion, gay troops are prohibited from saying anything that may reveal their sexual orientation.
While other cases have been winding their way up the courts, Able is the only case that presents a direct challenge to both portions of the ban. Two "statements" cases are currently pending before the Ninth Circuit: Holmes v. Perry and Watson v. Perry.
In February, the Ninth Circuit upheld the military's ban in Philips v. Perry (an individual "conduct" case). Two other "statements" cases -- Richenberg v. Perry in the Eighth Circuit and Thomasson v. Perry in the Fourth Circuit -- have also resulted in decisions upholding the policy. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of a Fourth Circuit ruling last October.
While today's decision will be studied by other courts, its impact will be felt first by the six lesbian and gay plaintiffs in the case, who could have faced discharge proceedings because of their involvement in the suit. Such proceeding were barred by Nickerson's ruling.
Lambda's Dohrn said, "Thanks to the courage of the six service members in this case, a very simple argument has prevailed: The government must use the same rules for lesbian and gay service members as for non-gay service members. The nation's major employer is not exempt from the Constitution."
"The military's ban on gay troops will eventually fall," added the ACLU's Coles. "Like most fair-minded Americans, this ruling understands that it doesn't make sense to discharge able- bodied service members simply for their sexual orientation. Once again, the public and the courts are ahead of our elected officials in embracing this simple fact."
HELENA, Mont. July 2, 1997 (AP) - The Montana Supreme Court threw out a 24-year-old ban on homosexual sex Wednesday, concluding government has no business meddling in the sexual activity of consenting adults.
Although no one has been prosecuted under the law, a 1993 lawsuit by six homosexuals claimed that gays and lesbians live in fear of being charged with a crime and that takes a emotional and psychological toll.
District Judge Jeffrey Sherlock of Helena agreed in February 1996, and the the Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected all of the state's arguments on appeal.
Five other states - Arkansas, Kansas, Maryland, Missouri and Oklahoma - still outlaw gay sex, said Linda Mangel, an attorney for the Northwest Women's Law Center in Seattle.
The Montana law violates the right to privacy guaranteed in the state's Constitution, the court said.
While society may not approve of gay sex, ``there are certain rights so fundamental that will not be denied to a minority no matter how despised by society,'' Justice James Nelson wrote for the court.
Critics said the decision will undermine traditional families and promote the spread of AIDS.
The court rejected any connection between the law and AIDS. The law was enacted almost 10 years before the first AIDS case was reported in Montana, and the presence of the ban has not stopped the disease from becoming the sixth-leading cause of death among middle-aged Montanans, the court said.
New York, NY JUNE 26, 1997--- The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) today applauded the Supreme Court's decision to preserve free speech on the Internet by finding the Communications Decency Act (CDA) in violation of the First Amendment to the Constitution. Many feared that the CDA would limit the rights of Internet users to freely discuss and explore issues around sexual orientation.
The Communications Decency Act, which was passed as part of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, prohibited "patently offensive" or "indecent" content on the Internet. Last June, a three judge panel ruled the CDA unconstitutional, at which point the Department of Justice appealed the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
"The Supreme Court's decision is a victory for all those who believe that the Internet is a vital source of both information and community for Americans," said Joan M. Garry, Executive Director of GLAAD. "For the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, the Internet has been particularly important, both in advancing our visibility and as a political, cultural and social tool. The Court's determination of the CDA as unconstitutional is one which rejects silencing vibrant Internet communities, and in the best traditions of free speech, allows for a diversity of voices on what is a still evolving media form."
Writing for the majority, Justice John Paul Stevens said, "The CDA is a content-based regulation of speech. The vagueness of such regulation raises special First Amendment concerns because of its obvious chilling effect on free speech." Loren Javier, Interactive Media Director for GLAAD, commented: "Justice Stevens sums up the ambiguous and vague language of the Communications Decency Act quite well. The law would have had dramatic effects on a medium where the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community thrive. If small minded bigots were making decisions based on hate regarding 'indecency' on the Internet, many lesbian and gay sites, including GLAAD's, might have perished."
GLAAD is the nation's lesbian and gay news bureau and the only national lesbian and gay media watchdog organization. GLAAD promotes fair, accurate, and inclusive representation as a means of challenging discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity.
Hattoy said two Whitewater prosecutors and an FBI agent probing payments to fallen presidential friend Webster Hubbell questioned Hattoy for two hours in April about whether he attended any fund-raisers or helped Hubbell's wife get a job at Interior.
Hattoy is White House liaison for the Interior Department and a gay activist who spoke movingly of living with AIDS at the 1992 Democratic convention.
Early in the interview, investigators switched gears and asked Hattoy about his former job in the White House personnel office, he said.
``All of a sudden they said, `By the way, one of your jobs was to hire homosexuals in the highest positions in government,''' Hattoy said. ``They said, ```Do you think you were successful?'''
Hattoy said the ``question was way off the subject. I was appalled. It chilled me.
``I told them I was very successful, that gays were at the State Department, the Commerce Department, the Interior Department and I think I saw a few coming into the building,'' he said.
Debbie Gershman, a spokeswoman for Whitewater Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr, declined comment Wednesday.
Prosecutors found themselves in the midst of an uproar Wednesday about their tactics after reports about them questioning Arkansas troopers about President Clinton's personal life and whether he had extramarital affairs.
New York City, NY June 24, 1997 --- AIDS activists from ACT UP/NY have just been arrested following their seizure of the investor relations office of Glaxo Wellcome on Park Avenue to protest the pharmaceutical giant's criminally inadequate AIDS drug development and expanded access programs. The takeover by a group of ACT UP members began this morning at 9:15 a.m. Seven demonstrators have been arrested.
Demonstrators are angry at Glaxo's plan for an expanded access program for a new drug "1592" to begin in July for 2,500 people worldwide. It is widely believed a minimum of 10,000 people in the United States alone need immediate access to this potentially life-saving drug. Demonstrators demanded a written commitment from top company officials to immediately launch an expanded access program open to ALL in need for abacavir (1592) and the new protease inhibitor (141 W94). Activists also demanded the company adequately test the drugs in pregnant and non-pregnant women. Scientists have found differences between men and women in dosing of a significant number of drugs. Company officials refused to meet the demands of the demonstrators.
Glaxo Wellcome is becoming a target of many AIDS organiations worldwide. The Canadian group, AIDS Action NOW, demonstrated Thursday, June 19th in Toronto at a Glaxo plant that just opened, demanding a larger expanded access program for "1592". The San Francisco board of supervisors is slated to vote on a resolution calling on Glaxo to provide "1592" for all people with AIDS in San Francisco who need it. In addition, a growing number of AIDS organziations have called for a boycott against Glaxo. Groups as far away as Israel and Argentina have signed on to th eboycott. Even the new White House AIDS czar Sanduy Thurman is attempting to negotiate with Glaxo for larger supplies of "1592."
Glaxo Wellcome has been a major manufacturer of AIDS drugs since the early days of the epidemic. Activists charge that they have been price-gouging from the beginning. The new drug "1592", already proven strnger than its predecessors AZT and Epivir (3TC), will replace both drugs. According to Bill Bahlman of ACT UP/New York, "Glaxo Wellcome's slow development of '1592' is due to the pharmaceutical giant's desire to squeeze the very last profit dollars out of its cash cows AZT and 3TC until their patents run out." Thus far, Glaxo has reaped an astonishing $2.54 billion in sales of AZT. And while sales of AZT and 3TC skyrocketed in 1996, Glaxo slapped a 3% price increase on these overpriced drugs last fall. They now retail for nearly $3,800 and $3,100 per year respectively. Activists also demand th ecompany drastically lower these prices immediately.
June 23, 1997 - Statement of the President of the United States.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Warm greetings to all those participating in the 1997 Gay and Lesbian Pride Celebration.
Throughout America's history, we have overcome tremendous challenges by drawing strength from our great diversity. We must never believe that our diversity is a weakness. The talents, contributions, and goodwill of people from so many different back- grounds have enriched our national life and have enabled us to fulfill our common hopes and dreams. As we stand at the dawn of a new century, we all must rededicate ourselves to reaching the vital goals of accep- tance and inclusion. America's continued success will depend on our ability to understand, appreciate, and care for one another.
We're not there yet, and that is why our efforts to end discrimi- nation against lesbians and gay men are so important. Like each of you, I remain dedicated to ending discrimination and preserving the civil rights of every citizen in our society. We have begun to wage an all-out campaign against hate crimes in America -- crimes that are often viciously directed at gay men and lesbians. I have also endorsed and fought for civil rights legislation that would protect gay and lesbian Americans from discrimination. The Employment Non- Discrimination Act now being considered in Congress would put an end to discrimination against gay men and lesbians in the workplace -- discrimination that is currently legal in 39 states. These efforts reflect our belief in the right of every American to be judged on his or her merits and abilities, and to be allowed to contribute to society without facing discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. And they reflect our ongoing fight against bigotry and intolerance in our country and in our hearts.
My Administration's record of inclusiveness is a strong one, but it is a record to build on. I am proud of the many openly gay men and lesbians who serve with distinction in my Administration, and their impact will continue to be significant in the years ahead.
I pledge to you that I will continue striving to foster compassion and understanding, working not simply to tolerate our differences, but to celebrate them.
Best wishes for a memorable celebration.
\s\ Bill Clinton
Results of a poll released today reveal that only 29 percent of the people surveyed have joined the church's boycott of Disney movies, theme parks and products because they feel the company has moved away from wholesome family entertainment.
Earlier this week, the church declared war on Disney, a company that has long supported the rights of its gay employees. But the Newsweek poll, which will be published in the magazine's June 30 issue, shows few Americans agree with the church's beliefs.
Two-thirds of the 753 adults surveyed say the presence of gay couples at Disney theme parks doesn't reduce the enjoyment of heterosexual visitors.
The poll reveals that despite all the hype surrounding comedienne Ellen DeGeneres' coming out as gay earlier this year, public attitudes toward gay rights have changed little in the last year.
There is overwhelming support for equal rights for gays when it comes to job opportunities and housing and the poll indicates the majority of the public believes gay partnerships should be legally recognized in matters such as inheritance rights and health or social security benefits.
Less than half of the people polled, however, said they approve of adoption rights for gay spouses while only one-third believe in legally sanctioned gay marriages.
LOS ANGELES (AP) June 22, 1997 --- Southern Baptist ministers headed to the nation's pulpits with a mission on Sunday, the first Sabbath since leaders of the 15-million-member church urged the faithful to boycott Disney.
Some planned to promote the boycott called for last week at a national church convention because Disney provides health benefits to partners of homosexual employees.
Others lacking the same conviction planned to ignore the boycott in sermons, while some ministers remained unsure what to do.
``I've got folks at my church that work for Disney stores here in the mall. That's going to pose a difficult problem,'' said the Rev. Ray Ivey of the Cherokee Hills Baptist Church in Oklahoma City. He didn't plan to address the boycott immediately, but might in a future sermon.
The Southern Baptist Convention voted Wednesday to boycott Disney and all of its subsidiaries, including movies, theme parks and TV outlets - the Disney Channel, ESPN, A&E and Lifetime on cable and the ABC network, which aired the sitcom ``Ellen'' in which Ellen DeGeneres came out as a lesbian earlier this year.
Among the group's other objections: ``Gay Days'' at Disney theme parks, and its subsidiary movie studios putting out films with violence and sex, such as ``Pulp Fiction'' and ``Kids.''
A Newsweek poll for its June 30 issue found that 28 percent of those surveyed agree that Disney has moved too far away from wholesome family entertainment. Twenty-nine percent of 753 adults questioned by telephone said they'd support a Disney boycott.
Forty percent said the ``Ellen'' coming-out episode was a bad thing since it seemed to promote gay lifestyles, while almost as many - 35 percent - said it was good because it promoted a positive image for homosexuals.
And almost two-thirds said the presence of homosexual couples at the theme parks doesn't reduce the enjoyment of families and other park visitors. The poll's margin of error was 4 percentage points. The leader of the First Baptist Church in the late Walt Disney's hometown of Marceline, Mo., endorsed the boycott wholeheartedly.
``Disney, typically a family organization, is wrong in its actions,'' the Rev. Delmar McCollum said. ``Sometimes people's strings can only be touched by money. I support the boycott, not out of hate, but out of a sense of right and wrong.''
The Rev. Mack Thompson, pastor of the Ridge Road Baptist Church in Raleigh, N.C., says he won't mention the boycott in his Sunday sermon.
``Basically, we ignore those sorts of things,'' Thompson said. ``Most of the Baptist pastors I've talked to here are not paying attention to it. There are certainly some moral issues that need to be addressed, but I don't think this is the way to do it. It sends a bad message to a company that has done a lot of good things for families.''
The Rev. Mike Gray of the Southeast Baptist Church in Salt Lake City plans to read the boycott resolution from the pulpit on Sunday ``but with the understanding that Southern Baptist churches are each autonomous.''
Joining the Disney boycott remains a personal decision. ``We're not trying to declare a new sin for Baptists,'' Gray said.
Don Bramlett, a member of of the First Baptist Church of Lakewood, agreed with the church's objections to Disney's benefits plan, but that's as far as it goes.
``I disagree with Disney's policy on gay and lesbian employees,'' Bramlett said. ``But I would not necessarily boycott Disneyland and I plan on going to see `Hercules.' I saw `Con Air,' and I loved it.''
BATON ROUGE, LA 06/20/97 --- The Anti-Gay marriage bill, which created much controversy in the present session of the Louisiana Legislature, was quietly withdrawn from the files of The Louisiana Senate today.
The bill, authored by Sen. Phil Short, R-Convington, was to amend the "Individual Dignity" section of the Louisiana Constitution to say that marriages performed validly between persons of the same sex would be illegal in Louisiana.
"I now can breathe freely," said Brian Hartig, lobbyist and executive director of Louisiana Electorate of Gays And Lesbians (LEGAL), a statewide, non-profit lobbying organization. Hartig, who, along with several state and local groups, lobbied against the measure, watched the bill debated twice during the session.
"Nearly ever day of this legislative session I've had to sit in that Senate chamber waiting for that bill to be brought back up -- sometimes until 12 midnite," said Hartig. "I knew that it was when the attack was least expected that it would be mounted. But that third attack never came."
When the constitutional amendment was first voted on in April in the Senate it failed to acquire the necessary two-thirds support necessary for passage. Debate on the issue lasted more than an hour as scriptural quotes flew and moderate voices reasoned that such a law was already on the books.
Opposition to the bill came from senators who were also concerned that the success of such a constitutional amendment would bring about "gay-bashing" in the year-and-a-half long interim between the time the bill was adopted and the time it was voted on by the public.
"The bill was nothing but a hateful, spiteful piece of the Christian Coalition's activist agenda," Hartig said. "It's an issue that they're currently forcing onto the backs of the lesbian and gay community to raise the big bucks. There was no other reason."
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, June 19, 1997 --- Oak Park [Illinois] may pride itself on being progressive, but if a public hearing Wednesday night was any indication, the [Chicago] suburb is just as divided as ever over the quesiton of whether to officially recognize gay couples.
More than 110 residents filled the city's council chambers to debate the creation of a registry for same-sex couples, a move proponents said would deal a symbolic blow to discrimination against gays.
Opponents argued it would undermine family values, send children the wrong message, and set a dangerous precedent when it comes to the scope of government. One resident, Soo Ai Kudo, said she had read studies suggesting a link between gay relationships and a higher risk of sexual abuse.
Another, James Stevens, worried that Oak Park runs the risk of attracting so many gay couples "that it could overwhelm this community."
"None of you have any control over the sexual orientation of your children," James Kelly, a gay resident, told opponents at the meeting. "What child would dare to come out to parents who demonstrate such animosity?"
The meeting was held by the Oak Park Community Relations Commission, a 15-member advisory panel expected to make a recommendation to the Oak Park Village Board later this summer.
The registry would not be a substitute for marriage, which is not recognized for single-sex couples in Illinois. It simply would give gay couples a certificate issued by the village. It would carry no legal significance.
Communities across the country are confronting the issue of how to address the concerns of gays. Chicago recently approved for city employees a domestic-partner ordinance that offers benefits to same-sex couples.
A couple wishing to register in Oak Park would have to have lived together for at least six months before applying, agree to be "jointly responsible for the necessities of life," not be married to anyone else and be at least 18.
Oak Park already offers medical and other benefits to same-sex partners of village employees. That step was approved after a controversial 1994 meeting at which the trustees narrowly defeated the registry.
Proponents of the registry say the commmunity's mood on the subject has changed.
Gay residents "are concerned about good schools and libraries, they support the arts, they support the churches," said Dwight Stewart, a local pastor. "With that kind of commitment, why should they be denied the opportunit to participate in the life of Oak Park?"
Several residents Wednesday night wanted the issue put to a referendum.
"Today, a minority interest group is trying to force [its] will on me." said Lawrence Bryant, a resident against the registry. "All I'm asking is for an opportunity to voice my opinion -- by vote or by referendum."
``No,'' the president said simply when asked Thursday if he would abide by his denomination's sanction against the entertainment powerhouse.
A reporter tossed the question to Clinton as he headed into a one-on-one meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto at the Summit of Eight conference.
The Southern Baptist Convention voted Wednesday to boycott Disney and all of its subsidiaries - including television stations ABC, ESPN, A&E and Lifetime - because of objections to the company's gay-friendly workplace policies and its marketing of films containing violent and sexual matters.
The Southern Baptists formally urged all 15 million members of the Protestant denomination to banish Disney from their lives. But Clinton, who has been a lifelong Southern Baptist, has made clear in the past that he does not agree with the convention's stance on gay rights or abortion.
``He has in the past said that there are times, from time to time, when he departs from positions that his denomination takes, respectfully, as a matter of conscience,'' said White House spokesman Mike McCurry.
DALLAS (AP) June 17, 1997 --- The Southern Baptists voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to boycott all things Disney, including ABC, condemning as immoral and ``gay-friendly'' everything from the company's same-sex employee benefits to TV's ``Ellen.''
The resolution, passed on a show of hands by the Southern Baptist Convention's 12,000 delegates, urges the 15 million members of the nation's largest Protestant denomination to take action against Disney's ``anti-Christian and anti-family direction.''
While the measure is not binding on churches, it asks members ``to take the stewardship of their time, money and resources so seriously that they refrain from patronizing the Disney Co. and any of its related entities.''
Many Southern Baptists object to Disney's policy of giving health benefits to same-sex partners of employees and allowing ``Gay Days'' at its theme parks, and the release by Disney subsidiaries of movies with violence and sex, such as ``Pulp Fiction'' and ``Kids.''
Convention spokesman Herb Hollinger said the last straw was the episode of the ABC sitcom ``Ellen'' in which Ellen Degeneres' character revealed she is a lesbian.
``Walt Disney would never have approved this, and I think it's just a slap in his face and to his family that they're taking this viewpoint,'' said delegate Katera McMillan of Rogers, Ark. ``I'm hoping that Southern Baptists stand united in this, and I believe it can make a difference.''
In addition to Walt Disney World and Disneyland and the company's TV, movie and music divisions, Disney also owns a chain of Disney merchandise stores and the Mighty Ducks hockey team and has a stake in the Anaheim Angels baseball team. It has holdings in everything from cable networks to newspapers and even Broadway shows.
Some Baptists acknowledged that the entertainment conglomerate is so pervasive, it will be difficult to banish Disney from their lives.
Ms. McMillan said the boycott actually may be tougher on her kids.
``They do want to see the different Disney shows and all that sort of thing. But you just have to do what's right and it's not about what's easy,'' she said.
Disney said in a statement: ``We are proud that the Disney brand creates more family entertainment of every kind than anyone else in the world. We plan to continue our leadership role and, in fact, we will increase production of family entertainment.''
In trading Wednesday on a declining New York Stock Market, Disney fell $1.50, or almost 2 percent, to close at $82.50 a share.
The Southern Baptists last June gave Disney a year to change its ways. Since then, church leaders said, Disney has ignored their complaints.
``Will a Southern Baptist boycott change the Disney company? I don't know. But it will change us,'' Lisa Kinney, a delegate from Largo, Fla., said to a standing ovation. ``It will affirm to us and the world that we love Jesus more than we love our entertainment.''
David M. Smith, a strategist for the Human Rights Campaign, a Washington-based gay rights organization, said the resolution puts Southern Baptists at odds with most religious Americans.
``Unlike the Southern Baptist Convention, most people of faith recognize that they can disagree over whether or not homosexuality is right and still agree that discrimination against gay people is wrong,'' Smith said.
``Gunderson proved conventional wisdom wrong. Sometimes conventional wisdom isn't true,'' Tammy Baldwin said.
Voters in his 3rd Congressional District ``didn't have a problem with it'' because he represented them on a variety of issues, she said.
Baldwin, 35, has been in the state Assembly since 1993. She is among several Madison-based Democrats considering their party's nomination in 1998 for the 2nd Congressional District seat that Republican Scott Klug said he will vacate.
Two other possible candidates are Rick Phelps, former Dane County executive administrator, and state Sen. Joseph Wineke of Verona.
Attending the Democratic state convention Saturday in Lake Geneva, Baldwin said she does not worry about opponents and strategists as she considers a move from the Legislature to the House.
``I will tell you I wouldn't take the risk of leaving the best job I've ever had in my entire life if I hadn't thought through this to conclude I can win, whatever the field,'' she said.
``My decision was made completely independent of who else may be in the field,'' she said.
WASHINGTON (AP) June 16, 1997 --- Rep. Barney Frank said Monday he intends to introduce a bill in Congress decriminalizing sex among consenting members of the military.
``I do not think that adult members of the military ought to be criminally penalized for sexual activity of a private, consenting nature,'' said Frank, D-Mass.
``That doesn't mean all of it would be morally approvable,'' he said. ``It does mean that criminal prosecution is a wholly inappropriate way of dealing with these kind of consenting acts.''
Frank's bill, called the Anti-Hypocrisy Act, would end criminal prosecution for consensual sex. Fraternization or sexual misconduct that undermines ``good order and discipline,'' however, would still be subject to disciplinary action.
Frank, who is homosexual, said the bill would help gay members of the military. It would repeal sections of the Uniform Code of Military Justice ``which specifically criminalize private, consenting sex described as sodomy, which can be both heterosexual or homosexual,'' he said.
Gay service members have been threatened with criminal prosecution if they don't reveal the identities of other homosexuals despite the Clinton administration's ``don't ask, don't tell'' policy on gays in the military.
``You wouldn't have this coercive tool that is being misused,'' Frank said. ``That shouldn't happen. The Pentagon acknowledges to me that that's a violation of the policy. That's a witch hunt.''
Frank said the bill was inspired by the cases of 1st Lt. Kelly Flinn, who resigned rather than face court-martial for adultery, disobeying an order and lying to her commander, and of Air Force Gen. Joseph Ralston, who withdrew from consideration as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff because of an extramarital affair a decade ago.
Seattle Gay News June 13, 1997 --- Lesbian and gay activists in Portland are beginning a discussion to launch their own anti-job discrimination initiative in the style of Washington's Initiative 677 says Jean Harris, Executive Director of Basic Rights Oregon.
Harris told the SGN that Basic Rights Oregon and the state's gay lobbying group, Right to Pride, are going to wait and see if the federal Employment Nondiscrimination Act (ENDA) will pass through Congress and whether or not the Oregon Legislature will pass a bill to outlaw gay marriages this session.
If ENDA fails or if same-sex legislation goes to the ballot in Oregon, Harris said gay activists in Portland are prepared to call a series of public meetings to invite community input for a proactive ballot measure to protect gays on the job. The current Oregon Legislature ends on July 1.
Should Oregon gays decide to launch an initiative, they will have to collect 67,000 signatures and turn them in by July of 1998. Harris is confident that the signatures will come, she said, pointing out that recent polling data across the country shows that voters favor on the job protections for sexual minorities. In Oregon polling, those favoring such protections tally as high as 79 percent Harris said.
Like gays and lesbians in our state, Oregon's gay population is growing weary of trying to get a gay rights bill passed through their legislature. "The first time that a gay rights bill was introduced to the Oregon State Legislature was in 1973," Harris said. "That was 24 years ago! We've been trying to get this legislation passed for 24 years under both Democratic and Republican controlled legislatures. It's just not a priority to them.
Something else more important always seems to come up." "I've been doing politics for 25 years and I feel that there is no better time than now to launch our own initiative. Washington (state) has been a great influence for us to do this. You guys have shown tremendous strength and leadership and I'm really proud of you.
"Now is the time for us to move," she said. "People have said that civil rights should not be placed on the ballot but this time I feel is an exception. There's always going to be someone saying, 'Don't do it' and I think that's bull. If Rosa Parks had chosen to never sit at the front of the bus, where would the civil rights movement be today?"
In addition to the roadblocks in the legislature, Oregon sexual minorities are facing an upcoming battle with the Oregon Citizens Alliance, which is now collecting signatures for its own ballot measure to legally define what constitutes a family. "We're calling it the Anti-Gay Smorgasbord," Harris quipped. The OCA initiative intends to enforce a number of regressive controls such as which books are allowed in Oregon libraries, to deny domestic partnership benefits to those who don't fit the OCA's definition of family, to prevent the state from recognizing those who choose surgery to alter their gender and to prevent the state from offering workplace protections for lesbians and gays.
"I say lets go proactive and slam-dunk the OCA," Harris said. "Let's give them their walking papers and be victorious with our own initiative. I believe we can do it."
WASHINGTON (AP) June 10, 1997 ---- Having failed in the Senate by just one vote last year, proponents of legislation to ban workplace discrimination against homosexuals offered the bill again Tuesday.
A bipartisan group of lawmakers, most of them from New England, said sexual orientation deserves the same protection from discrimination as race, religion, gender, national origin, age and disability.
The bill ``is based on a fundamental principle most of us share: Americans should be judged at work because of their performance at work,'' said Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., a lead sponsor.
Buoying proponents' hopes this Congress is the fact that Sen. Max Cleland, D-Ga., a disabled veteran, has signed the legislation. Cleland succeeded Sam Nunn, who voted against the measure last fall.
In addition, sponsors made several changes to the legislation to address concerns made by opponents. For example, the bill would prevent the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission from collecting data on the sexual orientation of workers and from requiring quotas or preferential treatment for homosexuals, and specifically would exclude religious organizations from its provisions.
Nevertheless, the Family Research Council, a Washington-based conservative research and educational organization, planned a lobbying campaign to oppose the measure.
``It will outlaw Christianity, Orthodox Judaism and every belief that says homosexuality is wrong,'' said Robert Knight, the council's director of cultural studies. ``It will expand government power and give a massive weapon to gay activist lawyers to harass employers all over America.''
The bill reached the Senate floor last September at the same time that lawmakers were passing legislation outlawing the federal recognition of same-sex marriages. The one-vote margin by which it failed surprised both supporters and opponents of the anti-discrimination bill.
This time around, Sen. Jim Jeffords, R-Vt., the chief Republican sponsor in the Senate, has yet to schedule a date for considering the bill in the Labor Committee, which he chairs. And there are no assurances that the House, which did not take up the legislation in the last session, will do so this year.
Washington, DC---June 10, 1997--- The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) today announced its support for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 1997 (ENDA). Introduced in Congress today, the bill would prohibit employment discrimination based solely on an individual's sexual orientation. President Clinton has once again given his support to the measure. The legislation would provide meaningful and effective remedies for such discrimination, similar to those under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. A similar version of the legislation was defeated last year in the Senate by a vote of 50-49.
The following statement is attributable to Kerry Lobel, executive director of NGLTF:
"NGLTF joins our civil rights allies in supporting ENDA, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 1997. The message of ENDA is clear and straightforward. Discrimination is wrong. We look forward to the day when gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people no longer have to fear the loss of their jobs on the basis of their sexual orientation. When that day comes, our society will have taken another step forward in assuring justice and equality for all of its citizens.
Across the country, state and local legislators are forging a trail on employment and other civil rights bills banning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Just this year New Hampshire and Maine adopted laws banning employment discrimination against gays and lesbians.
They join nine other states (WI, MA, CT, HI, CA, NJ, VT, MN, RI) and the District of Columbia which previously adopted such laws. This means that nearly one out of four people in the country live where discrimination based on sexual orientation is outlawed. In fact, all but California's anti-discrimination law extend the ban on discrimination to housing and public accommodations.
We thank the 180 Members of Congress who are ENDA cosponsors for their leadership in the quest for social justice. We urge other Senators and Representatives to do the same and join the increasing number of supporters for workplace fairness."
ATLANTA (AP) June 9, 1997 - Federal investigators said today they are almost certain bombings at an abortion clinic and a gay nightclub are linked, and that there is an increasing chance of a connection to the Olympic Park attack.
Investigators held a news conference to ask for more public assistance in all three cases.
They released detailed composite sketches of two men believed to have been seen outside the abortion clinic, along with a new photo showing a hazy figure sitting on the Centennial Olympic Park bench where that bomb was placed.
And they displayed a handwritten letter claiming responsibility for the Jan. 16 clinic blast and the Feb. 21 nightclub bombing, showing its blocky printing style. The letter's text had been released earlier.
``I think it would be fair to say we're all but positive the last two (bombings) are linked and we have increasing confidence that the Centennial Park bombing is part of this,'' said Jack Kiloran, special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms in Atlanta.
Investigators acknowledged there are significant differences between the Olympic bomb that exploded July 27 and the two later bombings. Black powder was used in the Olympic bomb, while the others used dynamite.
The clinic and nightclub bombings each contained a second bomb authorities believe was intended to kill and injure law enforcement officers sent to the scene.
``There is a significant difference,'' Kiloran said. ``However, there's also the fact that in one city in the short span of eight months, we've had three anti-personnel bombs about which it could be argued that law enforcement was at least a secondary target for each one.''
The sketches were both of white males identified as having been seen near the abortion clinic the night before the attack and the morning the bombs exploded. One man appeared to be 30 to 45 years old. The other man had a full beard.
The letter, purportedly written by a shadowy anti-abortion group called the Army of God, was sent to news organizations in late February.
The letter, containing misspellings and grammatical errors, refers to homosexuals as ``sodomites'' and ``preverts'' and to ``the ungodly communist regime in New York and your ... bureaucratic lackey's in Washington.''
It denounces the government, abortion and homosexuality, and ends with the phrase ``Death to the New World