Immigration Equality Lesbian and Gay Immigration Rights Task Force/LA c/o L.A Gay and Lesbian Community Services Center/Legal Services Department 1625 North Schrader Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90028-9998 (new vox) 213-526-2915 (fax) 213-993-7699 (email) LGIRTF@abacus.oxy.edu September 5, 1995 Hello! Thank you for your interest in the Immigration Equality: The Lesbian and Gay Immigration Rights Task Force/LA. Now that the summer is over it is time to refocus our efforts on getting the word out about the mission of Immigration Equality. Members have been quite busy over the summer. Our materials were distributed at the Gay and Lesbian Pride Celebrations at San Diego, Orange County, and Los Angeles. We also were at The Center's table at Sunset Street Junction Fair. A petition has been developed wihch we can distribute and try and get as many signatures on it as we can in order to raise awareness. A logo has been proposed for the group and we are participating on Queer Immigration organizing which is occurring on the Internet and will soon have a homepage on the World Wide Web at the Queer Resources Directory. Some time this fall Lavi Soloway from LGIRTF/NY will be in town to promote a video they have produced which dramatizes the plight of bi-national couples. We have joined the Freedom To Marry Coalition which is organizing grassroots preparation for the impact of the Hawaii Same-Gender Marriage case. All of this activity has been accomplished with a handful of volunteers working diligently through the hot summer! We need more of you who read these monthly updates to come to the monthly meetings and assist us with the planning and execution of these activities. We will especially need help with fundraising to help us keep the voice mailbox going (213-526-2915) as well as continuing our outreach and education activities. The decision of the future activities of Immigration Equality will be going on at next week's meeting at 7pm Tuesday September 12. The minutes of last month's meeting are on the other side of this letter. Take a moment to read them and then make the decision to attend the next meeting on Tuesday September 12. As usual, the first 30 minutes of the meeting will be a social gathering where we can chat and share stories about immigration haggles. At 7:30pm the business part of the meeting will begin. Our next meeting will be held Tuesday, September 12, 7pm at The Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Community Services Center. The Center is located at 1625 North Schrader Boulevard in Hollywood, two blocks west of Cahuenga Boulevard and one-half block south of Holywood Boulevard. Parking is free in the back lot. Hope to see you there! If you have any questions about the upcoming meeting please contact the group at our new voicemail number (213-526-2915). Very truly yours, Ron Buckmire & Dean Elzinga Secretary MINUTES_of_the_Tuesday_August_8_Meeting_of_Immigration_Equality___________ (by Ron Buckmire) Business part of the meeting began at 7:27pm. The agenda items were processed with extreme rapidity. o arrangements to attend Sunset Junction Street Fair were completed (Ron will attend) o Andie and Chris were taped as part of the preliminary project towards the radio interview to be aired on KPFK 90.7 FM o Jeff will compile a list of queer-friendly immigration attorneys based in the LA area and keep a schedule of free immigration consultations at The Center o Dean agreed to develop a petition which endorses the principles of immigration equality o J will work with The Center's new immigration attorney to develop flyers listing basic questions and answers on immigration In addition, we will try to schedule another Immigration Seminar for close to the end of the year. Ron brought up the info that Lavi is planning on coming to town in the Fall and wants to hold a fundraiser around the screening of the video the New York chapter has developed which dramatizes the plight of bi-national couples. Andie presented her proposals for the Immigration Equality logo and they were very warmly recieved by the group. We will be looking at scanning in the images and using them in future pamphlets and the web site. Ron made the suggestion that we should try contacting local college gay student groups and international student groups. Meeting ended at 8:42pm.