From: [email-masked] (Thomas W. Holt Jr.)
Date: Fri, 15 Jul 1994 12:20:41 GMT

[From Barbra Streisand's 7/13/94 concert from Madison Sq. Garden, her last
NYC performance.]  This speech precedes her last song, "Somewhere" from West
Side Story, which idealizes about a place where love, understanding and
harmony rule.  Although the story, and hence the song, is ostensibly about
race relations, I can't help but think that the writers had homophobia in
mind as well.  After all, both Stephen Sondheim and the late Leonard
Berstein are/were gay.

"... There are so many people here tonight.  Just imagine how boring life
would be if we were all the same.  My idea of a perfect world is one in
which we really appreciated each other's differences:  Short, tall;
Democrat, Republican; black, white; gay, straight -- A world in which all of
us are equal, but DEFINITELY NOT THE SAME!  Right?"  [crowd roars]

============

As a gift to NYC, Barbra Streisand broadcasted her last song on the big
screen in NYC's TIme Square.  Organizers expected up to 20,000 people to
stand in the street to watch her for probably no more than 10 minutes.  I
think it's great for all those people to hear "gay, straight" listed among
other examples of diversity.