Date: Tue, 1 Apr 1997 15:49:34 -0700 From: Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Subject: GLAADLines 04.01.97 GLAADLINES contact: Don Romesburg (415) 861-2244 romesburg@glaad.org http://www.glaad.org FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 1, 1997 News, Tips and Breaking Stories about the Gay & Lesbian Community ABC STANDS BY ELLEN: ABC vows to stand by sitcom star Ellen DeGeneres and the history-making April 30 "coming out" Ellen episode, marking the first time a lead character of a television show is openly gay or lesbian. "We are very excited and Ellen did a wonderful show," said ABC entertainment chief Jamie Tarses. An ABC spokeswoman confirmed that the episode is fully sponsored, despite a calls by anti-gay groups for sponcers to withdraw. GLAAD will host "Come Out With Ellen" parties to both mark this watershed event and encourage lesbian, gay and bisexual people to leave their closets behind. "This episode marks a historic turning point in television history, and GLAAD supports and applauds ABC and Touchstone for making the show possible," said GLAAD Entertainment Media Director Chastity Bono. For more information contact Alan Klein (GLAAD National Communications Director) at (212) 807-1700 or visit the GLAAD's official "Come Out With Ellen" Web site at www.glaad.org. STUCK IN THE CLOSET BEFORE HEAVEN'S GATE: In understanding the Heaven's Gate cult mass suicide, greater attention is being focused on the dangers of a society which discriminates and oppresses based on one's sexual orientation. According to numerous reports, cult leader Marshall Applewhite struggled with his sexual identity and as a result even checked himself into a psychiatric hospital in the early 1970s in an attempt to exercise his same-sex attractions. "Society's intolerance for sexual diversity certainly had some impact on Applewhite as a troubled individual and may have exacerbated his adoption of these bizarre ideas," said Janja Lalich, a specialist in psychological influences and cults, "but this is not about sexuality." She noted that while the closet and his inability to change his sexual orientation likely played a role, "it has to be more than just that. Not everybody in crisis becomes a cult leader." For more information contact Janja Lalich (Cult Recovery Information Center) at (510) 522-1556. CALIFORNIA MOVES TOWARD BAN ON ANTI-GAY BIAS IN SCHOOLS: Legislation banning discrimination against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students in California public school passed the Assembly's Higher Education Committee on March 25. Introduced by California Legislature's first openly gay Assemblywoman Sheila Kuehl (D-Santa Monica), the bill opened one of the first fractious debates of the 1997 legislative session with opponents attacking the measure. Though committee members heard graphic testimony about taunts and threats against gay and lesbian students, harsh commentary also came from Lou Sheldon, head of the anti-gay hate group Traditional Values Coalition, who use the session as a forum for spreading the groups homophobic rhetoric. For more information contact Sheila Kuehl (Assembly Speaker Pro Tem) at (916) 445-4956. MIT GUARANTEES GAY STUDENTS FINANCIAL AID DENIED BY ROTC: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) will make forgivable need-based loans available to ROTC scholarship students who are investigated and disenrolled based on their status as a gay man or lesbian. MIT, which boasts an anti-discrimination policy that bars bias based on sexual identity and receives $336 million in government research grants which would be jeopardized if ROTC was banned, created this new policy to make the ROTC program "more inclusive and better aligned" with MIT values. According to Kirk Childress, Staff Attorney of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN), MIT's move has shown their commitment to fairness and says it's a "shame" that the government has put them in this position. "The 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy puts people in the position of having to deceive." Childress underscores the need for policies such as MIT's in light of the case of Clayce Rodamer. Rodamer was honorably discharged from the Army after telling his Fort Bliss commanding officer that he was gay, but then was pursued by the Army for collection of nearly $175,000 for his education at West Point when he was unable to fulfill his required five-year stint in the Army due to his discharge. For more information, contact Kirk Childress (SLDN) at (202) 328-3244. HAWAII REJECTS CON CON: Leaping what many see as the last roadblock to legalization of same-sex marriage, a Hawaii judge determined that on Election Day 1996 voters did not elect to have a Constitutional Convention (ConCon) in order to discuss key legislative issues, including same-sex marriages. Anti-gay opponents of same-sex marriage hoped that a ConCon would result in a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage, but a large quantity of blank ballots now officially count as "no" votes according to a unanimous ruling by a panel of five justices. According to Tom Ramsey of the Marriage Project-Hawai'i, equal marriage rights advocates are very encouraged by this latest development. "We're very happy there will be no ConCon," Ramsey said that a ConCon "would have opened an arena for constitutional mischief which we did not need." For more information, contact Tom Ramsey (Marriage Project-Hawai'i) at (808) 944-6742 or email ramsey@math.hawaii.edu. 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. To subscribe contact Don Romesburg at (415) 861-2244 or at romesburg@glaad.org. "GLAAD" and "Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation" are trademarks of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, Inc. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) glaad@glaad.org TO REPORT DEFAMATION IN THE MEDIA - Call GLAAD's Alertline at 1.800.GAY.MEDIA or go to the GLAAD Web Site at www.glaad.org and report through our Alertline Online. TO JOIN GLAAD AND RECEIVE GLAAD's DISPATCH AND QUARTERLY IMAGES MAGAZINE, call 1.800.GAY.MEDIA or join on the Web today at www.glaad.org/glaad/join/join-about.html TO SUBSCRIBE TO GLAAD-Net, GLAAD's electronic mailing list, send e-mail to majordomo@vector.casti.com with the message "Subscribe GLAAD-Net" TO UNSUBSCRIBE, send e-mail to majordomo@vector.casti.com with the message "Unsubscribe GLAAD-Net" GLAAD is the nation's lesbian and gay news bureau and the only national lesbian and gay multimedia watchdog organization. GLAAD promotes fair, accurate and inclusive representation as a means of challenging discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "GLAAD" and "Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation" are registered trademarks of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, Inc.