From: Date: Fri, 13 Jan 1995 17:43:22 -0500 Subject: Mayhem in Des Moines - NGLTF Press Release ************************************************* National Gay and Lesbian Task Force NEWS RELEASE Contact: Robert Bray (415) 552-6448 Robin Kane (202) 332-6483 ext. 3311 (800) 757-7736 pager 2320 17th Street NW Washington, DC 20009 ************************************************* MAYHEM IN DES MOINES AS RADICAL RIGHT ELEVATES SCHOOL CURRICULA DEBATE TO STATE BATTLE Washington, DC...January 13, 1995...In a Battle Royale that could rock gay rights in the Breadbasket of America -- and has political significance for the 1996 presidential primary -- Radical Right organizers are threatening to seek statewide legislation in Iowa prohibiting any reference to homosexuality in the public schools. The threat follows several weeks of attacks against plans by the Des Moines, Iowa school board to include discussion of homosexuality in local school curriculum. A non-discrimination policy and a policy to include homosexuality in appropriate curricula areas were approved in 1991 in Des Moines. However, implementation of the curriculum policy has come under fire in recent weeks due to organizing efforts led by Bill Horn, a recent arrival in Iowa who is a political operative of the conservative fundamentalist group The Report, producer of "The Gay Agenda" propaganda video. On January 2, 3,000 people attended an anti-gay rally Horn organized to oppose the curriculum implementation process. The following day, 1,500 people, most of them anti-gay, attended a marathon eight-hour public forum before the school board. According to local activists, the mob screamed, jeered and heckled while supporters of the gay-inclusive policy testified. The superintendent of public schools, Dr. Gary Wegenke, will make recommendations regarding implementation of the policy at the upcoming January 24 school board meeting. The school board president, Jacquie Easley -- the first African-American women to head the local board -- supports teaching of the gay-inclusive curriculum. Meanwhile, Horn has stated he intends to press the conservative-dominated state legislature, including the Republican-controlled House, to pass a measure barring any references to homosexuality in the public schools. The 1995 state legislative session opened this week and is expected to last through the end of March. Control of the Iowa GOP central committee was taken over by the Christian Coalition in 1994. With the Iowa presidential caucuses -- one of the first in the country and usually a political bellwether for candidates -- just over one year away, the school curriculum debate and ensuing legislative battle could be used as an organizing tool by the Radical Right to energize their supporters. Gay and lesbian activists expect the issue to gain in political significance as the 1996 race draws closer. The recent controversy follows nearly four years of local discussions and action. In 1991, the school board adopted a policy prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation for students, faculty and staff. The policy also called for curriculum to "foster respect and appreciation of the diversity found in our country." That same year a committee of community and school staff members was created to investigate ways to include homosexuality in school curricula. The battle erupted when a proposal on implementation was discussed December 22 on Iowa radio talk show station WHO-AM. The show is hosted by Jan Mickelson, popular conservative Iowa "shock jock." Since then, Mickelson has joined forces with Bill Horn and was the principle speaker at the anti-gay rally on January 2. "Schools have a responsibility to create a safe learning environment for all students, including gay and lesbian youth," said Melinda Paras, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF). "The Des Moines school system should be praised, not attacked, for its commitment to fairness and diversity." "While Bill Horn says God called him to Iowa, it seems clear that political opportunism drove him there," Paras said. "Horn doesn't simply want to stop implementation of the diversity curriculum -- he wants to repeal the local policy and pass a statewide ban on discussion of homosexuality." John Schmacker, co-founder and member of the Des Moines Gay and Lesbian Resource Center, added, "The very controversy this issue has caused dramatically illustrates the need for unlearning homophobia and educating people about tolerance. The presence of an 'opportunist' like Bill Horn, who is selling Gay Agenda tapes for $75-a-set in downtown Des Moines, will do a lot to rally our gay, lesbian and bisexual community and our allies to stand up for the right of our children to learn respect for difference." Horn, who has lived in Iowa for 10 months and has no children enrolled in the Des Moines public schools, has organized local conservative churches to oppose the school policy. The Gay and Lesbian Community Resource Center in Des Moines and many mainstream clergy and rabbis have offered and are organizing support for the curriculum changes. No other state currently has a statewide prohibition on the discussion of homosexuality in the public schools. NGLTF was lead complainant in a lawsuit that nullified a similar law in Oklahoma in the mid-1980s. NGLTF Field Organizer Robert Bray is organizing a "Fight the Right" training in Des Moines with local activists in the near future, and is working in tandem with NGLTF Field Organizer Sue Hyde and other Midwest activists to offer additional organizing and media assistance as the controversy escalates. "We will assist local activists in defeating this draconian measure that will poison the educational atmosphere for all children," NGLTF's Paras said. "If Horn's statewide legislative effort were successful, Iowa would be a leader in the Radical Right's insidious effort to erase homosexuality from our culture." --end-- [For further information contact John Schmacker of the Gay and Lesbian Resource Center, 515-282-7925].