Newsgroups: bit.listserv.gaynet
Date:         Mon, 13 Apr 1992 11:17:02 -0400
From:         gaynet@ATHENA.MIT.EDU
Subject:      GayNet Digest Volume 5 Issue 277

In this issue:
                 looking for queer-positive film titles
               Gay rights in Australia (some recent news)
                         18% under-represented?
                NGLTF/Vaid 4/5/92 ProChoice Rally Speech
                    GayNet Digest Volume 5 Issue 266
                         Closets and Coming Out

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----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date:    Mon, 13 Apr 1992 0:37:01 -0400 (EDT)
From: NICKELSRJ@RASCAL.GUILFORD.EDU
Subject: looking for queer-positive film titles

Hi folks!  This is rj, down in north carolina (jesseland), and my campus group
is getting ready for next year.  The Union will have a very queer-positive
film director next year, and would like to co-sponsor a couple movies with us
in 92-93.  So, I'm looking for some queer-positive film titles.  Let me list
what I've got so far, and if you have others (or know of a running list), drop
me a note at my personal address:  nickelsrj@rascal.guilford.edu

So far, I've got:
		Torch Song Trilogy
		Desert Hearts
		Longtime Companion
		Kiss of the Spiderwoman
		Mass Appeal
		La Cage Aux Folles
		Entre Nous
		The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant
		In a Year of Thirteen Moons
		Zazie
		Law of Desire
		The Four Adventures of Reinette and Mirabelle (lesbian?)
		My Own Private Idaho
		Paris is Burning
		Tongues Untied (well, it's kind of a film)

If you know any more off-hand, please let me know asap.
thanks,
--rj

------------------------------

From: John Donald Collier <jcollier@ariel.ucs.unimelb.EDU.AU>
Subject: Gay rights in Australia (some recent news)
Date: Mon, 13 Apr 92 15:55:40 EST

Three states in Australia, New South Wales, Queensland and South
Australia, have laws preventing discrimination on the basis sexual
orientation. In addition, the Federal Government is in principle
committed to the prevention of discrimination on the basis of sexual
orientation through international agreements signed through the
International Labour Organisation, though the outcome of current cases
involving Government offices remains to be seen. There is a move by the
Government to overthrow discrimination by the armed forces (which are
specifically excluded from the ILO agreement), but military people are
resisting the move.

Recently some cases have been reported in Victoria in which the sexual
harassment laws have been successfully applied to harassment of gay
people in the workplace, on the grounds that the laws are gender
specific. Unfortunately, these laws apply only to harassment, not to
discrimination in general, and we still need further protection in
Victoria. There is some protection under the Commissioner for Equal
Opportunity, but it is incomplete. The outcome of individual cases is
not assured. A man has complained that he was treated less favourably
than women because he has sex with men (the argument presumably being
that women are not treated unfairly just because they have sex with
men). This is a novel argument, and the outcome has not yet been
decided. If it is decided in our favour, it could well establish equal
rights without the need of special legislation. Moira Raynor, the
Commissioner, appears to be sympathetic to our cause, but her specific
actions and decisions will count more than her words. Even so, she can
only do so much.

On another issue, following accusations by Australian of the Year Dr.
Fred Hollows that gay people had "hijacked" the AIDS agenda, gay groups
have called for increased funding for AIDS prevention among gay men.
They point out that 33% goes to intravenous drug users, 14% goes to the
general community and only 9% goes to the gay community. This is despite
the fact that 90% of the known cases of HIV infection are gay men. The
chairman of the Inter-Government Committee on AIDS said that intravenous
allotment was high because of the cost of the needle exchange program.
He also praised Australia's success in containing the virus largely to
the gay community, claiming that Australia had gone a long way towards
getting the funding priorities right. [I probably don't need to comment
on possible negative interpretations of this satisfaction. Nonetheless,
it is worth noting that new cases in the gay community are way down.
Health care of AIDS sufferers is generally quite good, although it can
be improved.]

A third issue in the papers here recently involves Bishop Owen Dowling
of the Anglican Church, a widower for several years and leader of the
fight within the Church to ordain women ministers. Dowling has been
accused of soliciting sex from an off-duty policeman at a park near
Bendigo. His name was reported in newspapers and on TV before charges
had been laid, raising concerns about the integrity of the media.
Another concern is the indiscretion of the police officer in mentioning
the incident to a cadet reporter. The officer is still on duty, but is
under care from a police psychologist. Dowling is very ill, and has made
himself unavailable to even his closest friends. He has had much support
from both friends and enemies.


-
John Collier 			Email: jcollier@ariel.ucs.unimelb.edu.au
HPS -- U. of Melbourne		  	Fax:   61+3 344 7959
Parkville, Victoria, AUSTRALIA 3052

------------------------------

From: shelmrei@NMSU.Edu
Date: Mon, 13 Apr 92 01:33:59 MDT
Subject: 18% under-represented?

Maybe I'm missing something, but it appears to me that 18% staff and
12% volunteers from Lesbian and bisexual women gives them an OVER
representation.  Of course, we have no accurate studies, but what
there are seem to show the number of gay women as somewhat less than
the 10%, perhaps as low as 5%.  The case becomes even clearer if you
look at incidence rates rather than general population figures.
Lesbian women have about the lowest rate of incidence of AIDS of any
population subsection.  Their interest in AIDS should be about nil if
self-interest were the only reason for involvement.

On a related point (one which I think has already been made), I don't
think that gay men tend to be insensitive and superficial because
they're gay, but mostly because they're men.  Inequality takes a toll
on the oppressors as well as the oppressed.

		Steve Helmreich (shelmrei@nmsu.edu)

------------------------------

From: Ron.DeVrou@p819.f70.n109.z1.fidonet.org (Ron DeVrou)
Date: Sun, 12 Apr 1992 23:55:43 -0500
Subject: NGLTF/Vaid 4/5/92 ProChoice Rally Speech

Now-Reproductive Freedom March April 5, 1992
Speech given  by
Urvashi Vaid
Executive Director
National Gay & Lesbian Task Force

	On behalf of the staff, Board and tens of thousands of card carrying members of
the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, I want to welcome you to Washington DC
which these days we affectionately call the vortex of evil.

	I am proud to be an out, avowed, proud lesbian standing before you today --
because my presence acknowledges one historically hidden fact.  The fact that
lesbians and gay men have been marching, lobbying, and fighting for reproductive
freedom and  choice for decades.  We have been in the leadership, the staffs,
Boards, the rank-and-file, the voting bloc that supports choice and reproductive
freedom, and we are here today in full force.

	I want every lesbian, gay or bisexual person who can hear me right now to raise
your hands.  Keep them up!  I want everyone who has a family member, friend or
someone they love who is gay or lesbian to raise your hand keep them up.  Now I
want every one who believes in equal justice under the law, in the human dignity
and humanity of gay and lesbian people to raise your hand.

	All right!  Let's give ourselves a hand and shout out loud that we are
pro-choice and we will never be silent again.

	This quilt of mutual support and political power that we make is the real
reason we are here today -- Marching for reproductive freedom.

	Reproductive freedom means not only the right to an abortion -- which we all
here support, but it means that control over reproductive and sexual choices
rests with individuals and not the government.

 	Reproductive freedom means the rights of gay and lesbian people to be parents
without restriction and discriminatory regulation.  It means the right to
contraception and to not have children if you choose.  It means freedom from the
regulation of our sexuality by the state and an end to stupid and outdated
sodomy laws.

	Fundamentally the issue we march for here today  --  is not an issues of choice
-- it is an issue of power.

	George Bernard Shaw wrote, "Power does not corrupt men, however, fools if they
get into position of power, corrupt power."

	We have a lot of fools in power today and we have a lot of corruption.

	It is a corruption of power to seek control over women's wombs, to seek to
enforce one form of sexuality on all people.

	It is a corruption of power to assert that the government has any role to play
in the private, individual, sexual and reproductive lives of its people.

	It is nothing short of foolish to silence doctors from counseling their
patients about abortion -- while at the same time gagging doctors trying to do
AIDS research by not giving them enough money to conduct the research that will
save millions of lives.

	It is a foolish power indeed that resides in the White House and caves into
every mean-spirited and bigoted uttering of the neanderthals on the far Right,
while ignoring the voices of sanity and freedom that we represent.

	Perhaps nowhere is the effect of fools in positions of power more apparent than
 in the Supreme Court, where unqualified, sexist, henchman of the new world
order corrupt the U.S. Constitution -- with their biased and idiotic
interpretations.

	Well, I vow today before you that all of us in the gay and lesbian liberation
movement will not rest, will not stop, until we overthrow this corrupt and
bankrupt oligarchy of fools in power.  In this election year, we can -- and we
will -- and we must -- sweep out of office anyone who cannot support freedom for
women, freedom and equality for people of color, freedom and equality for
lesbians and gay men, and freedom and equality for all the people of this
country.

	Let us remember when times look bleak, that when we are united and in alliance,
we are not the minority, but together, we are the majority.

	Let us remember when horrible decisions are returned by judges who sold their
souls and independence for their jobs -- that the courts can be corrupted to
legitimate illegitimate power.

	And when times are bleak, let us remember that across the divisions of gender,
sexual orientation, race, class, geography, marital status, we came together
today in a statement about what real uncorrupt power, the power of moral courage
and truth, looks like.

	Thank you.

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 13 Apr 1992 04:12 EDT
From: SA_SHAH@ACAD.FANDM.EDU
Subject: Re: GayNet Digest Volume 5 Issue 266

------------------------------

Date: Mon, 13 Apr 1992 04:34 EDT
From: SA_SHAH@ACAD.FANDM.EDU
Subject: Closets and Coming Out

I am trying to gather some information about closeted men and women and
the coming out process. This survey is designed for gay and lesbians
who are currently attending colleges and universities and who either
consider themselves homosexual (not bisexual) or are struggling with
their current identities.
	Please send all responses directly to me at sa_shah@fandm.bitnet

1. How do you define a) coming out b) the closet c) homophobia
2. At what age did you become aware of your sexual preference/orientation?
3. Please choose only one of the following and elaborate:
a) I may be a homosexual
b) I probably am a homosexual
c) I am a homosexual
d) As a homosexual, I find a strong sense of incongruency between my
attitudes towards homosexuality and society's disapproval of such
an identity.
e)  I see the homosexual self-identity as only a part of my being and
not the only identity.
4. Before your "coming out", did you have any previuos homsexual
experiences? Were they incestuous, seductious or just experimental ?
5. How long ohave you been or were you in the closet?
6. If you are open about your sexuality, what have been some of
the benefits of coming out?
7. What have been some of what you consider to be 'negative' consequences?
8. Are you out to
a) Just a few close friends
b) Your parents
c) some Faculty/Staff/Administrators
d) Most of the people that you come in contact with
e) other - please elaborate
9. Do you think being in the closet interfered with other aspects of
your personality?
10. How has (or did) being in the closet interfer with your social,
academic, and extracurricular involvement?
11. Based on your experiences, how do you think individuals in the
closet can be helped?
12. Do you consider your institution to be a 'safe space' for
homosexual students? Please elaborate.
13. Comments: Any experiences you want to share will be greatly
appreciated. The names of people in my report will be changed.
Please don't send ANY responses to gaynet unless you are having trouble
sending e-mail to me. My address is sa_shah@fandm.bitnet

Afzal Shah
Franklin and Marshall College
Lancaster, PA 17604-3220
(717) 295-9535

------------------------------

End of GayNet Digest
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