From: Gandalf66@aol.com Date: Tue, 12 Jul 1994 22:24:09 -0700 FISH (Fighting Intolerance, Scapegoating, & Hatred) has put together a small booklet regarding information on the Religious Right and some things you can do to combat them. Below you will find 2 articles from that booklet. If someone wants a copy of the booklet please e-mail gandalf66@aol.com and I will send you a copy. It is geared to Californians but there is information that is useful for everyone. Thanx, A BRIEF HISTORY OF FISH On September 19th, 1993, Lou Sheldon spoke at an anti-gay rally at the Hamilton Square Baptist Church in San Francisco. Because news of the event had been leaked to the gay press, a crowd of queer activists showedup to protest. The event was videotaped by the church and in the following weeks, the footage was shown by the 700 Club and the Christian Broadcasting Network, both of which encouraged their viewers to put pressure on the SFPD and the District Attorney to prosecute the protesters. FISH was formed in resonse to that threat of prosecution and repression. When Lou Sheldon returned to San Francisco in November to march from Hamilton Square to the Board of Supervisors meeting, FISH recognized that the queer community was again being set up to play the villains if we demonstrated at the church. We instead organized a press conference to announce our solidarity with the Sept. 19th demonstrators and our intention to continue battling the repression and hate of the religious right. Two of those demonstrators are now being prosecuted by District Attorney Arlo Smith for their participation in the protest. The religious right clearly hopes to frighten queers who organize against them. They also hope to encourage a perception of the fundamentalists as victims and queers as oppressors. This fits right in with their nationwide strategy to portray queer civil rights as oppressive of Christians. To continue our struggle against the bigotry of the religious right, we must be able to protest wherever hatred is preached, even if the bigots hide inside churches. Write or call District Attorney Arlo Smith and demand that all charges against the demonstrators be dropped. Arlo Smith, District Attorney, 850 Bryant St., San Francisco, CA 94103 415-553-1752. (the names of the protestors have been ommitted to protect their privacy, there are only two people that are being charged so the DA will know who you are referring to.) THE EVIL AIDS BILLS The Christian Right, which used to refer to AIDS as "God's punishment for homosexuality", has toned down its rhetoric lately but stepped up legislative action. FISH has joined other progressive groups such as ACT UP, the Brother's Network, the Bay Area HIV Advocacy Network (BAHAN) and LAGAI (Lesbians and Gays Against Intervention) to form W.A.T.C.H. (Working Against the Criminalization of HIV). W.A.T.C.H. opposes the following bills: SB1239 (Russell) - Allows for non-consensual testing of a patients blood for HIV if a healthcare worker experiences a significant exposure documented by a doctor and previously collected samples of blood exist. Testing does not prevent AIDS. Only universal precautions such as rubber gloves, proper disposal of syringes and medical waste, and other safety measures put forth the CAL-OSHA will prevent transmission of HIV. AB2815 & AB 109X - These two bills support mandatory testing for sex offenders. This is a controversial and sensitive issue. Rape and child molestation are horrible experiences and the added fear of HIV infection can make it even worse. However, testing the perpetrator won't accurately determine if the victim is infected. In fact, it is possible that the victim could get a false sense of security which prevents them from getting tested. These bills promote stereotypes that gay men are child molesters and HIV+ people are predators waiting to infect others. ************************************** For more information about F.I.S.H. contact Gandalf66@aol.com.