HIGH GEAR/SEPTEMBER 1977

ODDS&ENDS

According to Lesbian Connection, if you're gay and need a doctor in Portland, Oregon, you're in trouble. Over 80% of the Portland area phsicians. would not accept a gay person as a patient, according to a Multnomah County Medical Society survey.........

On October 1, 1977, the new Model Penal Code goes into effect in Indiana. The new code contains no provisions against sexual acts in private between consenting adults. In other words, on and after October 1, what people do in their bedrooms (or prison cells) will be their own business.....

GayLife reports that a resolution in favor of gay rights laws covering Jobs, housing, and .public accomodations was killed

August 10 in Chicago by the American Bar Association's Assembly when a motion to table it was passed by a 163-110 vote.....

The text of the proposed Gay Rights Resolution follows: Resolved, That the American Bar Association deplores discrimination against homosexuals in employment, housing. and public accomodations, and urges the enactment of legislation prohibiting such discrimination at the federal, state, and local levels......

In an ABC television interview, Liv Ullman said, "I'm a mother, too, and what I want most to save my child from is the Anita Bryants of the world, the people who teach our children intolerance, who teach our

children that some people are more normal than others." She added, "We haven't seen for many, many years someone who discriminates against a group of people in our society becoming a hero. That's why I retch.".......

The Canada House of Commons has recently passed a new Immigration Act, which eliminates the former provisions that made it illegal for gay people to immigrate to Canada. Candian gay activists termed the new act the first legislative victory for gay rights in Canada......

Pro-gay Mayor George Moscone, Sheriff Richard Hongisto, and District Attorney Joe Freitas All won votes of confidence by the San Francisco electorate as an effort to cut their terms in half was overwhelmingly defeated at the polls (Gay Community News).......

A New Times/CBS News poll on job discrimination shows that, by a 61 to 20% margin, the American Public feels it is wrong to deny a qualified person a job simply because he or she is a homosexual. By a 50 to 35% margin, those surveyed also supported laws to prohibit discrimination against gay people............

GCN reports that 80 to 100 gay people armed with whistles and fly swatters invaded a fashionable east side New York City "straight" bar. The purpose of the "raid" was to demand the removal of a wooden sign which was hung from a large fire ax in the center of the bar that read

"FAIRY SWATTER." After all paying customers had left, the owner agreed to take down the sign......

According to the Advocate, Amtrak, the nation's passenger rall service, has compiled a "blacklist" of up to 85 of its acknowledged and suspected gay employees. According to one gay employee who took his case to the District of Columbla's Human Rights Commssion, the company was using a list to deny promotion to gay workers........

Members of the International Union of Gay Athletes (UGA) have demanded that changes be made in ABC-TV's new situation comedy, SOAP. Leaders of the IUGA have charged that a major gay character is portrayed as a "limp-wristed fruitcake" and is both "false and typical.".........

stereo-

Winner of the Gay Book Award for 1977 is Famillar Faces, Hidden Lives: The Story of Homosexual Men in America Today by the late Howard Brown, M.D., former health sevices commissioner of New York City. The book was given the award by the Task Force on Gay Liberation of the American Library Association during the ALA annual conference in Detroit........

The Body Politic reports that Cepacol, Coricidin, and Chloroseptic throat lozenges are of some use in preventing oral gonorrhea. These antibacterial lozenges act to make the mouth "Just a little too hostile" for the

Compiled by Anthony Scafaro

gonococcus germ. Author Merv, Walker recommends sucking a lozenge Immediately after oral

sex......

According to a poll released in late July, Anita Bryant was voted "America's greatest American" by teenage beauty pageant contestants. Jerry Lewis and Bob Hope were run ners-up in the Miss National Teenager contest poll........

A CENTRAL OHIO LESBIAN SUMMER

Although this summer was intended to be restful, serene and non-active, CENTRAL OHIO LESBIANS has managed to stay quite busy. We thought that our summer commitments would end after the OHIO INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S YEAR conf. June 11-12. The last days of preparation prior to IWY as well as the two days themselves proved to be action-packed. Some of the events at IWY were exciting. The Lesbian rights resolution was unanimously approved by the Sexual Prefer. ence workshop and World of the Individual. Also Lesbians were visible at the conference in unprecedented numbers. By Sunday Lesbians and feminists had joined to counteract antiERA and anti-abortion forces, and with Lesbian support 11 feminist delegates were elected to attend the national IWY meeting in Houston in November. We were disappointed that no openly Lesbian delegates were appointed and that due to lack of time the Lesbian resolutions were not presented at the plenary session on Sunday, but in terms of Lesbian visibility and

strength we feel that it was a positive weekend.

There have been several actions resulting from IWY. Since 45 out of 56 delegates elected are anti-ERA or anti-abortion, a federal civil law suit has been initiated in Cincinnati protesting the non-representation of Ohio's IWY delegates to the national conference. C.O.L. has submitted a letter stating that C.O.L. represented by Marilyn Bufton has agreed to be a plaintiff in the suite. Progress on the court case will be forthcoming.

Another result of IWY in Columbus is a renewed cooperation and recognition between some Lesbian and Feminist activists as both groups realize that without mutual support neither groups concerns will be dealt with adequately. A coal. ition-building effort is underway in Columbus. At several Lesbian post IWY meetings various methods of achieving coalition were discussed. It was eventually decided that a WOMEN'S COMMUNITY CALENDAR would be a useful first step in coalescing the two communities by enhancing communication,

fostering better understanding among groups and avoiding scheduling conflicts. C.O.L. has assumed the task of compiling and printing the Columbus WOMEN'S COMMUNITY CALENDAR for the Feminist/Lesbian community, and will provide information about calendar vacancies upon request. A prototype of the calendar has been designed for September distribution. C.O.L. requests that information about events be submitted no later than the 15th of the preceeding month. Tentative events for the following months are also requested.

C.O.L. has continued to be active in the OHIO GAY RIGHTS COALITION during the summer. Two meetings have been held in Columbus and Kent. The following projects are underway: (1) a statewide communication network organized by counties and coordinated by Del/C.O.L., (2) an educational/ informational pamphlet being drafted by Cleveland, and (3) strategies for public education and media utilization. The next OGRC meeting is Sept. 11, 1977 in Cin-

GPU News says that a society named Lambda Institute has been formed in Barcelona, Spain. The new organization, which comes at a time when Spain is moving toward democratic institutions and relaxing its discriminations toward gays, offers services to gay men and women....

Minneapolis gays, according to GPU News, have taken advertisements in Miami newspapers urging Dade County gays to come to their city. The ads invite gay refugees to move to the Twin Cities, where city ordinances protect the rights of gays. Anita Bryant has listed Minneapolis among several target cities where she plans to continue her anti-gay fight..........

Police in San Francisco say they are "fairly certain" that they know who is responsible for 14 homosexual slayings. However, the man has not yet been charged because three survivors of his knife attacks, including a "wellknown entertainer" and a diplomat, "won't come out of the closet" and testify against him.......

cinnati at 12 noon.

Members of C.O.L. also participated in several rallies this summer, namely a gay rights demonstration in Cleveland June 25 and the anti-KKK rally in Columbus July 4th.

As of two weeks ago plans are underway for a new umbrella organization which will encompass all Columbus gay organizations in an attempt to improve communication, lessen duplication of projects/tasks; and encourage broad-based community support for all gay events. Initial endeavors of this group will include a Columbus gay community newsletter and calendar. and possibly a September fund-raiser picnic.

Looking back over the months, this was certainly not a "peaceful" summer. Projects are underway that you can be involved in or you can carry out your own ideas. Come to C.O.L.'s first fall meeting Mon, day, September 12 at 7:30 at 127 E. Woodruff (Women's Action Collective house).

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The Miss Gay Ohio pageant will be held in Cleveland in November this year. It will be a three-bar affair with the event being held at The 620, Twiggy's and The Shaker Club

Cleveland Jewish News reports that there are now 12 gay synagogues in the world, from Tel Aviv to Washington, D.C., according to an article in the United Synagogue Review...

Central Ohio Lesbians has. announced the formation of a communications network that will encourage more women to participate and feel included in gay community events be they social, political or educational. You can write the C.O.L. at P.O.. Box 8393, Columbus, OH 43201

According to the Associated Press, The Minnesota Supreme Court has ruled that it is unlawful for the state welfare dept. to flatly deny: welfare payments to cover sex-change operations. The court ruled that payment of such benefits must be decided on a case-by-case basis and must be provided if they are judged to be "medically necessary.".....

The Unitarian Universalist Association has recently passed a resolution on gay. human ” rights that says that human rights is not an issue on which, by vote, the majority should be able to deny rights to a minority. It calls on all UU's to use their efforts in stopping such biased persecution and intolerance for the gay minority ....

National Gay Task Force reports that the Wichita, Kansas, City Commission passed a gayrights bill on Sept. 6, 1977 by a 3 to 2 vote. The bill prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual or affectional preference and marital status in the areas of employment, housing and public accommodations. Wichita.is the 37th U.S. .community to pass some form of gay-rights legislation, and the fourth to do so this year.....

G.E.A.R. BOARD

The Board of Trustees of the GEAR Foundation will hold its regular monthly meeting at 7:30 pm. on Tuesday, September 20. 1977 at the Gay Community Center of Cleveland, 2795 Euclid Heights Blvd. third floor.

All Interested persons are welcome.