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You've got hate mail

Steve and Jean Case's $8.35 million donation to a school affiliated with an anti-gay ministry prompts a call for a boycott of AOL.

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By Katharine Mieszkowski

When Jerry Van Nostrand, 47, got an America Online account in 1995, he was married to the mother of his kids. Five years later, he's out of the closet and now spends an average of three hours a day on AOL in a chat room called "Ask Gay Guy Anything."

"Our mission is to be there for people like I was five years ago, who are scared to death, but have some pretty basic questions," says Van Nostrand, who credits the support and information he received from other AOL members with helping him come out as a gay man.

You might expect to find this systems manager for a Boston hospital trumpeting the joys of America Online to anyone who will listen -- after all, the community there helped him change his life.

Instead, he's calling for a boycott of the service.

Van Nostrand's National Gay Cancel AOL Day campaign calls on gay and lesbian AOL members to dump their accounts en masse as of Jan. 1. The boycott is a response to news about AOL chairman Steve Case's philanthropy that has some gay and lesbian AOLers wondering if part of their monthly service fees are trickling down to fund the work of a notorious anti-gay ministry. How sick would the irony be if all that free-to-be-whoever-you-are chatting, e-mail and instant messaging were financially benefiting a bigoted, homophobic arm of the religious right? But it's not quite that simple.

The controversy began with the Oct. 16 announcement that over a year ago Steve Case and his wife, Jean Case, formerly a public relations officer for AOL, donated $8.35 million to her alma mater, the Westminster Academy, a religious school in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. It was seemingly the most innocuous of gifts, earmarked for a new high school building, student scholarships and the creation of a technology center. But Westminster Academy is affiliated with the fundamentalist Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church, as the "statement of faith" on the school's Web site attests: "Westminster Academy is a parochial school, an agency of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church. Primarily, it is committed to the education of the children of this Church and strives to implement a curriculum that reflects the variety of needs of these children, one that is based upon and is faithful to the Holy Scriptures as interpreted in the Westminster Confession of Faith and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms."

Coral Ridge Ministries is best known among gays and lesbians as the proponent of an "ex-gay" agenda. The premise of the ex-gay mission is that homosexuals can be converted to heterosexuality or -- if that doesn't work out -- celibacy. Such "ex-gay" conversion therapy is not just one more queer political issue; it's a heated and emotional subject that cuts to the heart of gay and lesbian identity; it's a threat to people's very sense of who they are. And Coral Ridge Ministries is one of the most visible promoters of such queer "conversion": The Rev. D. James Kennedy spreads the word regularly on the bully pulpit of the church's nationally syndicated radio and TV program "Coral Ridge Hour." Among the church's tactics: launching a $500,000 national newspaper campaign promoting ex-gay ministries, and renting airplanes to fly anti-gay banners over Disneyland on "Gay Days."

Steve Case, you've got hate mail. The backlash against the Cases' gift to the school has been swift on such Web sites as Gay.com, which first broke the story. The gay and lesbian rights group Human Rights Campaign has also denounced the gift. Executive director Elizabeth Birch chastised the Cases in a letter: "We find it unfathomable how your family could reward a school inexorably linked to teachings that say gay and lesbian Americans are not worthy of dignity, respect and full citizenship."

But the Cases aren't backing down.

Clinton Hangs Tough on Hate Law

SUMMARY: The President isn't too lame a duck to keep quacking for a federal bias crimes law, banking that legislators anxious to get home for their campaigns will give in.

In his final weeks as President, Bill Clinton (D) is hanging tough in the struggle to enact hate crimes legislation covering anti-gay assaults. On October 26 he included in a written threat to veto the Commerce-Justice-State (CJS) appropriations bill -- a major spending measure key to the running of the government -- that he wanted to see it include "hate crime legislation that would cover crimes motivated by bias on the basis of a victim's gender, disability or sexual orientation." This gave new heart to the measure's advocates, including lesbian Congressmember Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), who told the Associated Press that, "Frankly, it strengthens our hand." All Congressmembers and one-third of Senators are up for re-election on November 7 and they're eager to go home to campaign, giving the "lam! e ! duck" President a little leverage.

Previously the language of what has been known as the Hate Crimes Prevention Act (HCPA) had been attached by the Senate to the main spending bill for the Department of Defense, and the House had approved an "instruction" to its House-Senate conference committee members to retain that rider. However the committee dumped it on October 5 by a vote of 11 - 9 as Republican leaders said it bore no relation to the military. HCPA does relate directly to the Department of Justice, and in fact it was the CJS bill the Senate attached a similar rider to in 1999, only to see it dropped in conference.

In the President's letter to House and Senate leaders, the hate crimes provision was the third of five specific items he demanded be included in the CJS bill, following the Latino and Immigrant Fairness Act and tobacco litigation by the Department of Justice. This may be an indicator of its value as a bargaining chip in negotiations with the legislature. Of the HCPA he wrote, "This bill also fails to include hate crimes legislation that would cover crimes motivated on the basis of a victim's gender, disability or sexual orientation. Both the House and Senate have had bipartisan votes indicating their support for strong hate crimes legislation and it should become law this year."

Clinton also issued a blanket condemnation of a number of "damaging riders" that "would reward special interests at the expense of the public" and denounced the attachment of the "deeply flawed" CJS to the "otherwise signable" annual appropriations measure for Washington, DC. He concluded with a call for bipartisan cooperation.

Vt. Lawmakers Ousted Over Gay Law

Vermont voters had their first chance to weigh in on the civil unions law - and they sent a mixed message.

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By ROSS SNEYD, Associated Press Writer MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP)

Five Republican state legislators who supported the law granting gay couples many of the rights and benefits of marriage were defeated in their primaries Tuesday. One Democrat who opposed the law was also ousted.

Four Republicans and one Democrat who were targeted for defeat because they backed the law survived their primaries. Another lawmaker who was challenged for opposing the law was re-elected.

It was the first opportunity voters have had to register their views since the Legislature earlier this year enacted the closest thing in America to gay marriage. The results reflected the deep split in Vermont over the law.

"I voted the straight Democratic ticket, primarily because I'm in favor of civil unions and the Republican Party is on a kick about trying to turn it back," said Ed O'Neil, a builder from Newfane.

One of the chief authors of the bill, House Judiciary Committee chairman Thomas Little, a Republican, beat back a challenge.

Granting marriage benefits to gay couples "is probably something that's going to take a generation to resolve," Little said.

Two of the biggest casualties among the law's supporters were Marion Milne, who represents six conservative towns, and John Edwards, who serves on the Judiciary Committee and represents a couple of small towns on the Canadian border. Both had been targeted by opponents of civil unions.

Milne said that she knew when she cast her vote that it might lead to her defeat but that she did the right thing.

Altogether, more than a dozen Statehouse primary races were expected to turn almost exclusively on a legislator's vote for or against civil unions. Most of those races involved GOP incumbents who backed the law.

Signs imploring voters to "Take Back Vermont" by ousting those who voted for civil unions have dotted the Vermont landscape.

PROCTER & GAMBLE RECONSIDERS DECISION TO DROP LAURA TV SHOW

StopDrLaura Issues National Call to Action

Washington, DC - After meeting with some of America's largest, and most rabid, anti-gay organizations, Procter & Gamble announced yesterday that it was reconsidering its decision to drop the Dr. Laura TV show, according to today's Hollywood Reporter.

P&G met with a who's-who of anti-gay activists: the American Family Association, Concerned Women for America, Coral Ridge Ministries, the Family Research Council, and Focus on the Family. While the article referred to these groups as "national Christian groups", a look at their own words about gay people is illuminating:

- "...one of the primary goals of the homosexual rights movement is to abolish all age of consent laws and to eventually recognize pedophiles as the 'prophets' of a new sexual order." - Family Research Council.

- "Among homosexual lifestyle and sexual practices are included: "sex with boys...eating and/or rubbing themselves with the feces of their partners...urinating on or in their partners...sadomasochism...bondage...sex with animals." - American Family Association.

- "I am still in awe of the power it seems radical homosexuals have in our country," she [CWA president Carmen Pate] says. "But it challenges me. If this small group of people-first the homosexual community, now the pedophile community-is out there changing minds, then it should take just a small number of moral people to turn this whole process around." - Concerned Women for America.

Please take a minute to contact P&G one more time and thank them profusely for standing up for equal rights for all Americans - urge them not to advertise on the Dr. Laura show. Their principled stand is historic - and we should not abandon our friends. And make sure you tell them that you're telling all your friends how wonderful they are, and then MAKE SURE YOU DO FORWARD THIS ARTICLE TO YOUR FRIENDS.

P&G Contact Info: (And make sure you're VERY nice to them)
Phone US: (800) 331-3774
Phone US: (513) 983-1100
Canada Phone Only: (800) 668-0150
lafley.ag@pg.com (he's the new CEO, Alan Lafley)
Just in case this email address is disconnected as well, use their web site to send a message too: www.pg.com

Gay, trans bills advance in California

A bill that would grant workers family leave to care for their domestic partners has passed the California legislature and has been sent to Gov. Gray Davis for his signature, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The bill also extends leave to care for siblings, adult children, and grandparents for whom an employee is responible. Sen. Tom Hayden, who sponsored the bill, said the measure is necessary to prevent “misrepresentation to get the necessary time off or being denied leave altogether.” Davis has not indicated whether he will sign the bill. Another measure, passed 41–30 by the assembly on Thursday, would amend state law to ban bias based on a person’s perceived gender. Opponents of the bill say that the measure would force businesses to allow cross-dressers in the workplace.

More Trouble for Ms. Laura

In case you haven't been paying attention you should probably be aware that there is a woman on radio who calls herself "Dr. Laura." She does hold a Ph.D., but the "Dr." is a tad misleading in that her doctorate is in physiology and her radio advice show originated in the form of quickie therapy. It's since degenerated into even more quick judgments and Ms. Laura's preaching of what she believes are the rules by which everybody should live.

Amongst her opinions are included many regarding gays and lesbians - their capabilities as parents, the origin of their orientation and in general their mental health status.

Her ignorance, on the above and other topics, notwitstanding she is extremely popular and recently inked a deal with Paramount to do a televised version of her radio show.

She's become such a mouth we even have an entire section and poll dedicated to her on this site.

Catch up quickly, because there is more and new.

Over the past couple of weeks I've had the opportunity to wander into a couple of bookstores and noticed a rather garish display for two of Ms. Laura's newest books. One for children is called, "But I Waaannt It!" and said story is a dialogue between a parent and child wherein the child is being a tad bratty. The child, of course, ends up learning a valuable lesson. Rah hip. (In Ms. Laura's previous "children's" book the child was told they were loved unconditionally. Considering Ms. Laura's thoughts and feelings regarding gays and lesbians we wonder just how unconditional that love truly would be from her...)

The book for which she is under fire however is aimed at the adult market. Entitled "Parenthood by Proxy" Ms. Laura continues her tirade that "children have to come first." It's not a bad idea, just taken a bit to the extreme by the kindly Ms. Laura.

That's another topic for another site however.

Here we're more concerned with the aspects of the book that deal with gays and lesbians. She condemns what she calls the "gay lifestyle" as "sexual deviancy," and blasts the so-called "gay agenda" for "undermining" the definition of family, and decries the existence of (oh really ... where?) same-sex marriage.

I'm not quite sure how these ignorant attacks fit into a parenting book, but Ms. Laura found a way. (Perhaps this is her passive-aggressive reaction to the many challenges she faces when she makes false statements regarding gays and lesbians. Although, I do have to note that there is little passive about either Ms. Laura or her virulent attacks.)

The book's introduction makes Ms. Laura's agenda rather clear:

"The agenda of homosexual activists has moved past the demand for tolerance and respect to demanding acceptance of homosexuality as healthy, normal and equivalent in every way to heterosexuality. Necessary to advancing this agenda is undermining the significance of the traditional definition of family as husband, wife, and children."

Paramount has promised that Ms. Laura's show "will not create a climate of hate and intolerance for gays" but it's looking more and more unlikely.

I believe that every ignorant cretin has the right to speak their piece --- but when does enough become enough?

I'm almost getting to the point of borrowing from the U.S. Supreme Court a bit and saying, "I can't define it, but I sure recognize it when I see it..."

...And I'm getting darn close to seeing it with Ms. Laura.

Congratulations to Marjorie

Congratulations are in order to our very own Rainbow Women Hostess - Marjorie Silva, who against some very tough competition (including Jenny, my sister Denise and I) LOL was crowned MS. RUSSIAN RIVER 2000. She kicked all of our butts right off the stage. There were even a couple of girls showing T&A just to try and win the crown. Because of that they ended up 1st and 2nd runners up. However as Shann Carr (who hosted the event) even mentioned before crowning Marjorie. T&A may impress the judges but it was NOT enough to top our very classy Lady Marjorie. To be the first of the Millennium to be bestowed this prestigious title is quite an honor and we were all very excited for her. There was an article in the Russian River paper about this event. I am still trying to get my hands on it and I will scan it and put it on the website. Also I will put the pictures up as soon as I catch up on the club pictures.
WAY TO GO MARJORIE!

Stonewall named a national historic site

The Stonewall bar in New York City's Greenwich Village, which gave rise to the modern gay and lesbian liberation movement, has been selected as a national historic landmark, the U.S. Interior Department announced Thursday. The bar where riots erupted in 1969 after a police raid was among 16 properties, including George Washington's boyhood home and a Frank Lloyd Wright house in Oak Park, Ill., that received new landmark recognition. Interior Department spokesman John Wright said the federal designation is a key preliminary step toward preserving and protecting the properties against demolition or development. "Our diverse national heritage is locked in the very walls and grounds of these historic structures and will be preserved for future generations to learn from and enjoy," said Interior secretary Bruce Babbitt, as reported by the Chicago Tribune. The Stonewall joins a group of just 2,200 locations given official landmark status out of 67,000 sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Walls 2 scores big numbers

If These Walls Could Talk 2 grabbed the highest ratings for an original HBO movie in three years in its Sunday night premiere, according to Daily Variety. The movie, focusing on three tales about lesbian life, drew 5.3 million viewers, 77% higher than the time slot's usual figures. Walls 2, starring Ellen DeGeneres, Sharon Stone, Vanessa Redgrave, Chloë Sevigny, and Michelle Williams, was the fourth most watched program on cable for the week beginning February 28. Its success, Variety says, has guaranteed a third installment of the series, which will focus on women's issues, possibly domestic abuse.

If These Walls Could Talk 2

Part One: 1961

The house is occupied by an older lesbian couple of fifty years. When Abby (Marian Seldes) suffers a stroke and is hospitalized, her lifelong companion Edith (Vanessa Redgrave) must deal with the delicate ambiguity their relationship places her in. Refused after-hour visiting privileges and overlooked by the nurses with news of the woman's death, Edith is ultimately denied a final viewing and a last chance to say goodbye, all because she is "not family."

She must now face distant relatives who are too blind to acknowledge the relationship she has treasured for so many years with their deceased aunt. At a moment when she desperately wants to hold onto the past, Edith is forced to erase all evidence of their relationship. Abby's nephew (Paul Giamatti) and his wife (Elizabeth Perkins) arrive from out-of-state with an agenda to sell the house, which is not mentioned in the will, and dispose of their aunt's personal possessions.

Part Two: 1972

The house is now home to a foursome of gay, feminist, college co-eds, Linda (Michelle Williams), Karen (Nia Long), Jeanne (Natasha Lyonne) and Michelle (Amy Carlson). When they arrive one afternoon at their weekly women's group meeting on campus, they find they have been ousted from the collective for wanting to promote an all-female dance. It seems their lesbian agenda is getting in the way of the real issue at hand: feminism.

Stopping on the way home at the only lesbian bar in the area, the girls are confronted with a very butch scene and notice Amy (Chloe Sevigny), who is wearing a masculine suit and tie. Linda is intrigued by Amy, much to the chagrin of her roommates, who equate butch lesbians with men and believe they flaunt their masculinity because they're ashamed of being women. Linda opts to stay at the bar after the others leave and eventually spends a very passionate night with Amy. This budding relationship becomes a source of consternation and animosity among the four friends, putting Linda in awkward social situations and causing an uneasiness for everyone when her new lover is around.

Though unable to fight her attraction to Amy, Linda is unable to comprehend Amy's penchant for acting and dressing like a man. Nor does she understand that by being butch, Amy is being true to herself. It becomes clear that Linda is not ready to go public with their relationship.

Linda discovers that she and her friends have been so focused on being oppressed by men that they don't see the hypocrisy of their reasoning. They fervently want to be treated as equals, both as lesbians and women, but have trouble accepting alternative lifestyles practiced by their own sisters.

Part Three: 2000

The new century finds the house occupied by a loving, committed thirtysomething lesbian couple. All Fran (Sharon Stone) and Kal (Ellen DeGeneres) want in the world is to raise a baby together. After plans fall through to have their gay male friends father the child, Fran and Kal turn to sperm banks. Their search for the perfect father becomes a crazy journey through the internet, offering them a wide selection of donors, categorized by ethnicity, occupation, religion, physical attributes, etc. The sperm bank's client relations director (Regina King) assures the couple about the purity of the donors and the accuracy of their profiles.

Fran discovers she's ovulating and, after finally selecting a donor, Kal speeds to the sperm bank to pick up "the baby." As luck would have it, Fran inadvertently melts the turkey baster in an attempt to sterilize it....the first of repeated and futile attempts to get pregnant. Finally, they decide to let a doctor (Kathy Najimy) to handle the insemination procedure. Despite the frustration and set-backs, Kal and Fran know how lucky they are to have each other. They share the hope that when their baby grows up, it won't face discrimination in a world oriented to mom and dad, not mom and mom.

The Industry Standard: Investors Flock to Gay and Lesbian Portals

Gay and lesbian portals are attracting venture capital and advertising in record amounts, as investors realise the potential of such a huge market, according to a report in The Industry Standard.

Gays and lesbians use the Internet more often and for longer than any other demographic group. They also tend to have higher disposable incomes and purchase more goods and services online than any other group.

According to Computer Economics, this demographic is set to increase dramatically in size over the next five years. Gay and lesbian Internet users currently account for 6.7 million of all users in the US and 9.2 million of global users. This will increase to 11 million in the US and 17.1 million globally by 2005.

The dominant gay and lesbian portals are PlanetOut and Gay.com. While Gay.com's strength lies in its chat facilities, which keeps users online for longer, PlanetOut has content-sharing deals with major mainstream portals such as AOL, Yahoo, MSN, Lycos and Snap and draws hundreds of thousands of visitors to its site in this way.
For more click here.
February 14 news click here.

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Last Updated: Fbruary 5, 2001