Date: Mon, 5 Aug 1996 10:00:16 -0700 From: glaad@glaad.org (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) Subject: GLAADlines 08.05.96 GLAADLINES contact: Don Romesburg (415) 861-2244 romesburg@glaad.org http://www. glaad.org FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: AUGUST 5, 1996 News, Tips, and Breaking Stories about the Gay & Lesbian Community REPUBLICAN CONGRESSMAN COMES OUT: Representative Jim Kolbe (R ) of Arizona's 5th District came out on August 1, facing mounting pressure from lesbian and gay journalists and activists. Since the House passage of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), a renewed trend in gay media has emerged which encourages gay politicians to come out of the closet. A July 21 airing of the "Gay Show" on New York's WBAI-FM, reported that Kolbe and another Republican Congressman, Jim McCreary of Louisiana, were closeted gays. On July 26, a collective of organizations and individuals, including the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force placed "A Call to Conscience," a full-page ad in the Washington Blade, a D.C. gay newspaper. Without naming names, the ad called upon closeted gays and lesbians in Congress to "end your silence and defend your community in this time of unprecedented hostility." Additionally, Kolbe discovered that the Advocate, a national lesbian and gay maghazine, would be runnng a story on him in its August 20 issue. "I'm not bitter about this," Kolbe said in an interview with Arizona Daily Star. "I'm the same person I was yesterday, and I'll legislate just the same way. This should be as irrelevant as the fact that I am blue-eyed, right-handed and balding." Kolbe still stands by his vote in favor of DOMA. For more information, contact Alan Klein (GLAAD) at (212) 807-1700, ext. 11 or e-mail at klein@glaad.org. LESBIAN AND GAY VOICES AT THE GOP CONVENTION: On August 8, LGBT VOICES '96 (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Voters Organized in Coalition for the Elections), a San Diego-based grassroots coalition of over 20 groups including GLAAD, the Human Rights Campaign, NGLTF and LLEGO (National Latino Lesbian and Gay Organization), will open the Lesbian & Gay Media Center to conduct briefings on gay- and AIDS-related activities related to the Republican National Convention. The Center, located at 327 4th Avenue directly across from the convention center, will coordinate political actions, educational forums and media advocacy and awareness before and during the Convention. For more information contact Brenda Schumacher and Tony Valenzuela (VOICES '96 Co-Chairs) at (619) 296-1179 or e-mail at LGBTVOICES@aol.com. After August 5, contact the Voices Media Center directly at (619) 595-7949. THE OTHER REPUBLICAN CONVENTION: The Log Cabin Republicans, the national lesbian and gay Republican organization, will gather in San Diego August 9-11 for their own national convention. The organization has been embroiled in controversy in recent months when it attempted to donate funds to Presidential candidtae Bob Dole and other GOP candidates' campaigns to have them sumarily rejected. Openly gay U.S. Representative Steve Gunderson (R-Wis.) and his life partner, Rob Morris, will give the keynote address. For more information contact David Greer, Communications Director (Log Cabin Republicans) at (202) 347-5306. GENDER ON AGENDA AT FEMALE-TO-MALE CONFERENCE: Seattle will host the Second Annual International Female-to-Male (FTM) Conference August 9-11. Organizers anticipate nearly 500 participants to attend from around the world. "A goal of this conference is to continue organizing the FTM community to bring our ideas, views and experiences to the transgendered rights movement, as well as the broader queer movement," said Kaz Susat, conference Outreach Coordinator. "Gender-baiting has been a tool used against the lesbian and gay movement. Fighting gender-baiting by supporting transgendered rights disarms our common enemies and lays the basis for genuine queer unity." For more information contact Kaz Susat (FTM Conference Committee) at (206) 689-6216 or e-mail at FTMConfer@aol.com. To report events that merit media coverage, or news stories breaking in your area, please contact us. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) is the nation's lesbian & gay news bureau and the only national lesbian & gay multimedia watchdog organization. GLAAD promotes fair, accurate, and inclusive representation as a means of challenging discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity. 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