Date: Mon, 28 Nov 1994 09:54:51 -0500 (GMT-0500) From: "Thomas W. Holt Jr." Subject: HRCF CHALLENGES CATHOLIC LEAGUE (fwd) ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 23 Nov 1994 17:44:46 -0500 From: HRCFCOMM@aol.com To: Multiple recipients of list GLB-NEWS Subject: HRCF CHALLENGES CATHOLIC LEAGUE ***************************************************************** PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE THE HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN FUND The Nation's Largest Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Political Group ***************************************************************** To contact the HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN FUND, please call us at (202)628-4160, fax us at (202) 347-5323 or write to us at PO Box 1396 Washington, DC 20013. WE CANNOT RESPOND TO E-MAIL. ***************************************************************** FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN FUND CHALLENGES CATHOLIC LEAGUE CONDOM ADS WASHINGTON, DC (November 23, 1994) The Human Rights Campaign Fund has joined the National Minority AIDS Council, the Whitman Walker Clinic and other organization in challenges an anti-condom advertising campaign currently underway in Washington, D.C. The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, a national radical right organization, has purchased ad space on D.C. area Metro buses to discourage condom use. The ads read "Facts About Condoms. Some Break. Some Leak. Some Are Damaged. We put warning labels on cigarettes. We put warning labels on beer. So why not on condoms?" "If the Catholic League's ads succeed in discouraging condom use among people at risk of HIV and AIDS, people will die," said Tim McFeeley, Executive Director of the Campaign Fund. "This is a cynical disinformation campaign that has nothing to do with saving lives." According to the Centers for Disease Control, condoms rarely break or leak, and when they do it is usually related to error in usage or storage, rather than quality. In a recently released fact sheet, the CDC notes that "condoms are required to undergo demanding tests, including tests for holes, before they are sold. If any holes are found, the condoms are discarded. Laboratory studies show that intact latex condoms provide a continuous barrier to micro-organisms as well as sperm." Condoms are carefully regulated during manufacturing by the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Before packaging, every condom is electronically tested for defects, such as holes or areas of thinning. "Every reputable study ever done on condoms has concluded that when used consistently and properly, they are highly effective in preventing the transmission of HIV," notes McFeeley. "The Catholic League is using a distortion of science to promote their own narrow ideology. They would rather see people die than benefit from the protection available with the consistent and correct use of condoms." - 30 - 1101 14th Street, NW Suite 200 Washington, DC 20005 phone:(202)628-4160 fax:(202) 347-5323