[from GLAAD] We were pleased that PBS recently aired the film "Longtime Companion" (and without cuts) -- thanks mostly to the perserverance of the heroic executive producer of "American Playhouse," Lindsay Law -- but one shot programming isn't enough. Last July PBS aired a pilot for "Out in America," which the producers hoped would be developed as an ongoing series dealing with issues affecting the lesbian and gay community and gay-straight tensions. It's time to lobby PBS to fund future installments. Write: Jennifer Lawson Executive Vice President for Programming, PBS 1320 Braddock Place Alexandria VA 22314 Also, write the man who oversees much of PBS' funding: Donald Marbury Director, TV Program Fund Corporation for Public Broadcasting 901 E Street NW Washington DC 20004 [from GLAAD] Some good news from TV land: Last season "Roseanne" introduced two gay characters: Roseanne's boss, Leon Carp (Martin Mull) and his lover, Jerry. In October, Leon came out to Roseanne's husband, Dan (John Goodman) and his friends during a poer game; the show was the highest rated prime time show for that week, seen by millions of viewers. Congratulate the show for continuing the storyline and ask for more shows with Leon and Jerry. Write: Marcy Carcey & Tom Werner Executive Producers Roseanne Carsey-Werner Company 4024 Radford Avenue Los Angeles CA 91604 "Roc," a new show on Fox about a working-class black family, was both pro-gay and pro-family. Roc's uncle Russell (Richard Roundtree, of "Shaft" fame) returned home, told his family he was gay and got married to his white lover in the family's living room. His relatives embraced him, and even his crotchety older brother Andrew (Roc's dad) came around, realizing Russell had to do what was right for him. Send praise and ask that Russell appear regularly. Write: Mert Rich & Brian Pollack Executive Producers Roc Raleigh Studios 5300 Melrose Ave. Office Bldg. East, 4th Floor Hollywood CA 90038 Finally, on a recent episode of "Dear John" macho Kirk learned his wife left him for a woman. "I didn't decide to turn gay," she tells him. "One day I met Donna, and I just started getting these feelings that I'd never gotten for any guy. I was falling in love." To thank "Dear John" for this welcomed lesbian portrayal and for an entirely plausible account of how some of us first realize that we're gay, write: Ed Weinberger Executive Producer Dear John c/o Paramount Television 5555 Melrose Avenue Hollywood CA 90038 The September Scholastic Update, a magazine aimed at high school students, ran a cover story titled "The Changing American Family." The article included a look at a gay couple and their child, including a warm family photo. Specifically, the piece allowed Jake, 14, to speak about life with his father, Will Dixon-Gray, and his father's partner, Gregor Benko. The magazine is sure to hear from angry homophobes asserting that young readers were "exposed to the promotion of a sinful lifestyle." To balance these views and support Scholastic's inclusion of a gay family, write: Lee Kravitz Editorial Director, Scholastic Update 351 Garver Road, PO Box 2700 Monroe OH 45050 [from GLAAD] Reader's Digest, which sells 28 million copies monthly, may be the most anti-gay general circulation magazine in America. Here are two recent examples of the magazine's viewpoint: In September "That's Outrageous" -- a column purporting to "spotlight absurdities in our society" with the aim of "eliminating them" -- featured an item condemning the Centers for Disease Control for funding safer-sex education programs sponsored by "a homosexual group called the National Association of Black and White Men Together." Said the item by arch-homophobe Call Thomas, "This bolsters homosexual efforts to give their sexual behavior the same kind of legal approval that minority groups have..." It was unclear which offended Reader's Digest more -- the fact that taxpayer money went to a gay group, or the fat that the money was used to teach gay men how to avoid contracting AIDS. The editors seem unaware that it is both more compassionate and more economical to spend $800,000 to prevent a disease than millions to treat it. GLAAD received no repsponse from our letter of protest. Then the October issue excerpted a virulently anti-gay article by John Leo titled "Has Anti-Catholicism Become Respectable?" (originally titled "The Gay Tide of Catholic Bashing" when it ran in U.S News & World Report). Turning reality on its head, the piece blamed gay activists for a "hate campaign." Gays were said to "repeatedly" disrupt religious ceremonies and harass parishioners. The press was lambasted for refusing to report this "foot-stomping bigotry toward Catholics." No mention was made of actions by the Catholic Church against our lives and liberties, such as strong-arm tactics by the Catholic heirarchy to stop employment and housing protections for gay people and to ban government supported safer-sex education. Nor was it said that most lesbians and gays OPPOSE disrupting religious services. Ask the self-proclaimed "World's Most Widely Read Magazine" whether it plans to remedy the distorted picture of gays presented in its pages. Write: Kenneth Y. Tomlinson Editor-in-Chief Reader's Digest Pleasantville NY 10570 >From the Action Alerts column in the November 1991 issue of Socialism and Sexuality, the quarterly newsletter of the Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual Commission of the Democratic Socialists of America. You may reproduce this information freely pro- vided you credit the source. Subscriptions to S+S are $8 per year payable to Chicago DSA, 1608 N. Milwaukee #403, Chicago, IL 60647. ============================================================ Robinson has asked the international lesbian, gay, and bisexual community to send letters of support for these three bills to Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6, Canada and to Canadian Justice Minister Kim Campbell, House of Commons, Ottawa, Ont. K1A 0A6, Canada. Robinson recently predicted that by the end of the year, Canada would begin to allow lesbian, gay, and bisexual people to serve in the Canadian military. --> Russian Activists Still Fighting Article 121 Lesbian and gay activists in Russia are still working to rescind Russian Penal Code Article 121.1, which criminalizes sex between two men and imposes a five-year jail sentence on men who are caught. They are asking Russian Presi- dent Boris Yeltsin to cease enforcement of Article 121.1 and are calling for the Russian Parliament to abolish the law. Send your letters in support of this move to Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Moscow, Russia. --> Queer Nation Targets Cheney The Washington, DC chapter of Queer Nation has called for a barrage of letters to reach Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney during the week following Veterans' Day (November 11). They want the letters to call for a repeal of Department of Defense regulations which forbid gay, bisexual, and lesbian people from serving in the U.S. military. Queer Nation suggests that you include a chestnut with your letter. This symbolic move refers to an interview earlier this year in which Cheney called the military's anti-gay policy "an old chestnut" but refused to admit that it should be repealed. Send your letters to Secretary Dick Cheney, Department of Defense, The Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301-1000. Be sure to send copies (with or without chestnuts) to President George Bush, The White House, 1600 Pennsyl- vania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20500, and to your Senators at the U.S. Senate, Washington, DC 20510, and to your Representative at the U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, DC 20515. Your letter might remind Cheney that studies commissioned by the Pentagon have concluded that openly lesbian, gay, and bisexual people are neither significant security risks nor unfit to serve in the military. You might also remind Cheney that several NATO countries permit gay, lesbian, and bisexual people to serve in their armed services, and that Canada is widely expected to follow suit very shortly (see "Gay and Lesbian Rights in Canada", above).