Subject: press release
From: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 19 Aug 1996 22:01:57 -0400

Network of Lesbian and Gay Democratic Clubs and Organizations

PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Release									August 19, 1996
Contact: Eric Bauman									(818) 780-4590

LOG CABIN REPUBLICANS ENDORSE DOLE
Gay Democrats Urge Republicans to Reject Self-Defeating Action

San Diego - Log Cabin Republicans finally endorsed GOP presidential candidate
Bob Dole this past week, despite Dole's newly minted, homophobic, campaign
platform. The endorsement comes in spite of the fact that Dole refused to
take money from Log Cabin and clearly stated that Log Cabin's agenda was at
100 percent odds with his own,  Network of Lesbian and Gay Democratic Clubs
and Organizations Co-Chair Eric Bauman said "this must be the ultimate act of
political self-humiliation and denial, and this action shows that Log Cabin
leaders will spare no embarrassment to try and ingratiate themselves with the
Republican establishment."

While the Republican convention was staged to suggest to TV viewers that the
Republican Party is a "Big Tent," the newly adopted Republican platform
clearly shows that there is no room for lesbians and gay men in that tent.
The newly adopted Republican platform , speaking of equal rights laws, says
"We reject those laws to cover sexual preference." It goes on to say, "We
oppose Bill Clinton's assault on the culture and traditions of the Armed
Forces, especially his attempt to lift the ban on homosexuals in the
military. We affirm that homosexuality is incompatible with military
service." 

Lesbian and gay Democrats from around the country call on lesbian and gay
Republicans to reject the Log Cabin endorsement and to join us in supporting
the first President in our Nation's 220 year history to include lesbians and
gays in his vision of America.

Network co-chair Eric Bauman said "While Bill Clinton has made his mistakes,
he continues to publicly advocate for equal rights for lesbians and gays, to
oppose discrimination in employment and housing, to oppose right-wing ballot
measures designed to exclude gay people from equal protection laws, to
include openly gay people in his Administration and reelection team, and to
fight for the funds necessary to combat AIDS." 

Recently President Clinton said "Those who would seek to legalize
discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation are gravely mistaken about
the values that make our nation strong....this is not an issue of special
rights." At the first-ever White House conference on AIDS the President spoke
bluntly and said "We simply cannot let our fears outweigh our common sense or
compassion....we can't let our bigotry or our homophobia blind us to our
obligations."

Contrast those statements with a March letter Bob Dole sent to the Washington
Times, in the letter Dole said "I oppose the special-interest gay agenda that
runs from gays in the military and reaches as far as to suggest special
status for sexual orientation under federal civil rights statutes."

When asked why his campaign rejected the now-infamous $1000 contribution from
Log Cabin, Dole's campaign spokesman Nelson Warfield responded to the
Washington Post, "Our policy is to decline contributions from political
groups that have an agenda that is 100 percent at odds with Sen. Dole's.

Bauman said, "Some gay Republicans have told me that they hoped the selection
of Jack Kemp signaled a kinder, gentler, more inclusive campaign, Kemp's
recent statements and actions make clear he is no friend of the gay
community. While on CNN's Capital Gang in May, Kemp responded to the U.S.
Supreme Court decision overturning Colorado's anti-gay Amendment Two, Kemp
said "I think Justice Kennedy was wrong in suggesting that the people of
Colorado had an animosity toward gay people. What they were basically saying,
they shouldn't get special rights." 

During Kemp's tenure as Secretary of HUD he rejected a union-negotiated
contract that included a non-discrimination policy and limited family
benefits for gay couples. He also told the Washington Post that he supported
firing gay teachers. "I think a school board should have the right to choose
what type of example we have for our children in public schools."

Bauman concluded "This election will determine the future of our nation into
the new millennium. The decisions made by the next President will determine
the ultimate success or failure of the hard fought struggle for equality for
lesbians and gays. The single most important action affecting the gay
community the next President will take is the appointment of at least 40
percent of the federal judiciary, including several Supreme Court Justices.
We have seen the effect of President Clinton's Supreme Court appointees when
they  both voted to overturn Amendment Two. Bob Dole has made clear that he
favors Supreme Court Justices in the mold of Antonin Scalia and Robert Borke,
both major outspoken opponents of lesbian and gay rights. Only by reelecting
Bill Clinton can we have any faith that our struggle for equal rights will
succeed. "

The Network of Lesbian and Gay Democratic Clubs was formed this past spring
to facilitate communication and the sharing of resources between gay
Democratic groups around the country. Network members form around the country
will be meeting in Chicago during the upcoming Democratic National
Convention. The organization is co-chaired by Eric Bauman, president of
Stonewall Democratic Club in Los Angeles and  Mandy Carter, a political
consultant and activist in North Carolina.
-end-