extracted text

AUGUST 1991

MIRACLE DRUG? WHY CAN'T WE GET IT?
Ever since the five-justice anti-abortion rights majority of the
Supreme Court handed down their infamous Webster decision, an
enormously bitter battle has raged - in our courts, in our legislatures
and even in our street.
Yet there is a practical way to greatly de-escalate this divisive war. To
dramatically reduce the need for a vast majority of the 1.6 million
.
surgical abortions performed in America each year.
Thanks to an historic breakthrough in medicine, there is a truly
remarkable means by which the need for surgical abortions can be
greatly reduced. In fact, in France in just this first year of use, the need
for surgical abortions was reduced by more than 30%! This was
accomplished by a safe, efficient new medication called RU 486.
But, while more than 60,000 women in France have already
successfully used RU 486, it is not avaiiable in the United States.
Anti-abortion forces have been working around the clock to
intimidate the pharmaceutical companies and keep them from bringing
RU 486 into the U.S.
So far, the one-sided attack against this medical breakthrough is
suceeding. Through targeted letter-writing campaigns aimed at the
French firm Roussel Uclaf, which holds the patent on RU 486, and its
parent company Hoechst, A.G. in Germany, the anti-abortion rights
forces have threatened boycotts and other economic action aimed at
"punishing" these firms if they dare bring RU 486 into the United States.
RU 486 can be used-with over 96% efficiency-up to the 49th day
of pregnancy. After it is determined that a woman is pregnant, in her
doctor's office or women's health center she takes a 600 milligram dose
of RU 486. Two days later she returns for an injection of prostaglandin.
Within another two to five days, she will have a vaginal blood flow,
similar to a heavy menstrual period. She then returns to her doctor to
ensure the abortion is complete and the bleeding is controlled. Since this
is not an invasive procedure, there is no risk of any infection, nor need

for anesthesia.
While the most recent Harris poll shows that 59% of all adults think
RU 486 should be made available in the U.S., the leaders of the
anti-abortion rights groups are doing their utmost to stop it.
Beyond its capacity to dramatically reduce surgical abortions, RU
486 has other amazing properties which hold enormous promise for the
benefit of women in the treatment of several major diseases and health
conditions, including endometriosis. So potentially important is this
drug that its inventor, Dr. Etienne-Emile Baulieu, has been awarded the
Albert Lasker Medical Research Aw:,i.rd, America's highest medical
research honor and frequently the front-runner of the Nobel prize.
Today RU 486 is being tested to treat some types of:
• Breast cancer, which one in nine women develop. RU 486 has been
found to be very promising in tests performed over the past two years.
• Meningioma, a benign brain tumor which, however, is fatal iflocated
in an inoperable part of the brain.
• Endometriosis, a leading cause of infertility. After successful test:S on
animals, clinical tests are being conducted right now.
• Caesarean Sections, as RU 486 may be effective in inducing labor in a
difficult delivery and reducing the number of Caesarean births.
And RU 486 is being tested to treat glaucoma and ulcers, and has
been proven to effectively treat some forms of Cushings's Syndrome, a
rare adrenal tumor which mostly affects women in -their 30s to 40s.
With this vast spectrum of potential and actual uses, as well as its
primary application as a means to medically terminate unintended
pregnancies, it is unthinkable that the anti-abortion forces are
determined to stop RU 486.
For more information ab.o ut this drug and how to get involved in
making it legal in our country, contact The Feminist Majority Founda. tion, P.O. Box 96780, Washington, D.C. 2007-7. Petitions are being
circulated, WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
•

BAR..B.. QUE ~:c.-

PORTHOLE BENEFIT PARTY

20 A~o~;~~~~D

Other Options, Inc. will be the recipient of a benefit to
be held at the Porthole on August 24, 9:00 p .m .
There will be balloons with prizes in them, events and
great fun, and an option for an autographed copy of the
book "Aids for HIV-AIDS" will go to the highest bidder.
A $15 donation for the book will be appreciated, which
will be used for reprints of the book.
Music at the benefit will be provided by Peggy Johnson
and Route 66. Donations from artists include Shadow,
White Antelope, Kelly Arbuckle and Parker Perry.
So come on out to the Porthole expecting to have a good
time and to help with a great cause. Don't forget to thank
Shatzy and Carol and their shipmates for allowing this to
take place. For more information please contact Cookie at
495-2732 or Cindy Bookout or Shatzy at the Porthole.

VOLUME 8 NUMBER 8

•

HERLAND SISTER RESOURCES

\?
BARBARA CLEVELAND 0
TO HERLAND'S FOUNDING MOTHER

Herland will provide iced tea and
bar-b-qued chicken. All you need
to bring is a dish to share.

~

9i/P

•

SATUR.DAY, ~UGUST
6.00 - 9.00 P.M.
2312 N.W. 39th

'
2312 NW 39th , OKC, OK 73112

17t~®
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•

(405) 521-9696

LUCY STONE

1818-1893

Even as a child, Lucy Stone had a reformer's spirit. From the time she
could read, she read William Lloyd Garrison's abolitionist journal The
Liberator, and attended anti-slavery lectures. At 16, she quit school to
teach, but was discouraged by the disparity in wages paid to men and
women. She attended Oberlin College, enrolling in the regular four-year
academic course. Her Greek and Hebrew studies convinced her that
critical translations outlining the status and position of women in those
societies had been misconstrued, and she determined to speak out
against the current status of women.
Women were barred from the debating and oratorical societies at
Oberlin, so she practiced on her own. In 184 7, she was awarded a degree
with honors, and refused to write a commencement address, since she
would not have been allowed to deliver it herself.
After graduation, she was appointed a lecturer of the American
antislavery Society. She lectured on both abolition and feminism,
speaking on women's rights on the weekends, and for the Society during
the week. Her sincerity, eloquence, and intensity drew large audiences,
not all of them friendly, and mobs sometimes heckled, threw things, and
turned hoses on her.
In 1850, Stone led the call for the first National Women's Rights
Convention. Though not as famous as the Seneca Falls Conference, the
gathering was more representative. Her speech inspired Susan B.
Anthony to join the women's movement and prompted J. Stuart Mills
to write "The Enfranchisement of Women." She became the star
speaker in the new feminist network, traveling and lecturing extensively.
She wore the unconventional "bloomer" costume and preached against
traditional marriage customs, characterizing marriage in her day as
legalized prostitution, and promising to "call no man master." She
wrote, "It is very little to me to havae the right to vote, to own property,
if I may not keep my body and its uses in my absolute right."
In 1855, she married Henry Blackwell and kept her birth name. In the
ceremony, the couple refuted the laws of marriage, creating instead "an
equal and permanent partnership."
Stone presided over the seventh National Women's Rights Convention in New York in 1856, then took leave to raise her child, resuming a
full lecturing schedule in 1867. In 1869, the movement split into the
National Woman Suffrage Association and the American Woman
Suffrage Association (AWSA). The division was due in part to personal
conflicts between Stone and Anthony as well as to a dispute about
endorsing the Fifteenth Amendment (which gave the vote to black men)
if it was not broadened to include woman's suffrage. Stone led the
AWSA, and published a paper called the Women's Journal, lauded for its
journalistic excellence.
When the desire for unity overcame past antagonism. The two factions
formed the National American Woman Suffrage Assoc. in 1890, with
Anthony as President and Stone chair of the Executive Committee.
Lucy Stone devoted her life to challenging traditional notions about
women's abilities and "nature," questioning the validity and justice of
the social mores and customs of her day.
•

EllCODlllGS
Volume 1, No. 2

NEW POETRY AND ARTWORK BY WOMEN IN HOUSTON
Leslie Lopez, Carol Snyder, Cathy Stern,
Sharon Stewart, Monica Vaughn, Fabian Worsham
AT YOUR FAVORITE BOOKSTORE, OR WRITE:

LIAUD: A Women's Press
P.O. Box 6793, Houston, TX 77265-6793

$4.50/copy

ST. SYBIL
St. Sybil, Matron Saint of the Forgotten Woman, has been having a little
nap while waiting for the cosmic post person to bring her some mail. She
finally got some:

Dear St. Sybil,
I thought you and the folks where you are would like to try your hands at solving
some riddles; so here goes: what do the U.S. Marines, the friendly
neighborhood serial rapist, and my teenage children have in common?
Oh, that's too easy: They keep you awake at night wondering where they
are and what they are up to.

OK, Smarty: What do Clarence Thomas, Margaret Thatcher and Phyllis
Schlafly all have in common?
Easy, easy! They're all honorary white males.

OK, then: What do Clarence Thomas, Margaret Thatcher, Phyllis Schlafly
and the proud mother of a baby pachyderm have in common?
They all think they made it on their own.

What do the employer who pays you 60 cents on the white-male dollar, the
insurance company who won't insure you, and your ex-husband have in
common?

They expect you to make it on your own.

What do the nazi skinheads down the street and a pit bull have in common?
A couple of things, at least: IQand temperament.

What do Ronald Reagan and a soft boiled egg have in common?
IQand temperament? Let's not get nasty.

Sorry. What do George Bush and a straw in the wind have in common?
I'm not going to play any more if all the answers are going to be "IQand
temperament.''

OK, 0 K. Just a couple more now. What do the nazi skinheads down the street
and Oliver North have in common?
Get real, what don't they have in common?

Ink Well Vvint{ng
TERI HOELTZEL
SUSAN BROOKS
Owners

2

(405) 942-5693
50 l N. Meridian, Suite l 07
Oklahoma City, OK 73107-5701

HERLAND VOICE AUGUST 1991

OK, OK, acceptable answer. Wrapping it up now: What do our friendly
neighborhood serial rapist, the nazi skinheads down the street, George Bush,
Ronald Reagan, Phyllis Schlafly, Ollie North and his Marines, Clarence
Thomas, profiteering employers, and a Rubbermaid girdle have in common?
We know that one, too! They all want to control you, honey, and don't
you let them. FIGHT BACK! and write again soon.
Love,
Sybil

MARDI GRAS IN CONNECTICUT?
LOUISIANA BOYCOTT LAUNCHED BY FEMINISTS
Madison, Wis - The Feminist Caucus of the American Humanist
Association, the largest humanist group in the nation, is asking for a
full-scale economic boycott of Louisiana, which just passed the
country's most restrictive antiabortion law.
"Let's mov.e Mardi Gras to a state that respects women's rights,"
suggests Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-chair of the Caucus, which is based in
Madison, Wisconsin. "How about Connecticut, which has passed
safeguards ensuring that women can obtain safe abortions there?
Tourists who care about women should shun Louisiana."
The Caucus has wired motion picture producers to boycott filmmaking in Louisiana, a newly-important industry for the deficit-ridden
state, which depends on tourism for survival.
In wires to the Alliance of Motion Picture and TV Producers in
Sherman Oaks, California, and to the New-York based Motion Picture
Association of America, the Caucus pointed out that "there exists a
plentitude of states supporting women's rights in which to make movies,
including Wisconsin, the first state to ratify women's right to vote!"
"The message is to shun states that shun women," Gaylor said. "This
law not only punishes Louisiana women, but threatens the rights of ALL
women because it was passed as a test to overturn Roe v Wade."
The Feminist Caucus has also targeted major Louisiana products. It is
the major producer of sweet potatoes. Other products include rice, Cajun
cooking, spices and music, and such specialty items as Tabasco sauce.
"We can do without Tabasco sauce, but can the Louisiana economy
survive a tourism and consumer boycott?" asks Gaylor.
The Feminist Caucus pointed out that abolitionists protested a
similar injustice, when states' rights were held more important than
human rights. They responded by severe economic and moral sanctions
against "slave states."
"We can do no less," Gaylor said.
The Louisiana boycott joins a boycott of Utah called earlier this year,
after that state passed similar restrictions. The U.S. Olympic Committee is being pressured to drop consideration of Utah as a possible site for
the 1998 Winter Olympics.
"Joe Hill, legendary union organizer, said he wouldn't be caught dead
in Utah," Gaylor said. "That's the spirit we're urging women and
friends of women to adopt."
Abortion supporters are being asked to dial the Louisiana Tourism
Hotline at 1-800-1133-GUMBO to register their support of a boycott,
as well as to cancel convention or travel plans for Louisiana.
•

Edwina V. Johnson, D.D.S.
"Catering to Cowards needing Tender Care"
in Comprehensive Dentistry

5009 North Pennsylvania Ave, Suite 103
(405) 840-5410
Night & Sunday practice by appt. only
Emergencies welcome
Insurance accepted

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SANDIE
794-6884

KAY
794-0081

GAYS & LESBIANS ORGANIZE
MARCH ON WASHINGTON
At a weekend planning held in Washington, D.C., May 11 and 12,
more than 200 lesbian and gay politicos and activists called for a
National March on Washington for lesbian and gay civil rights,
scheduled for April of 1993.
The meeting was an opportunity for community representatives and
individuals to discuss a national march in the spirit of the historical
1987 event, which attracted more than a half-million lesbians and gay
men to our nation's capitol.
Present at the two-day event were many leading figures in the struggle
for lesbian and gay rights, including principals of The Names Project,
Black and White Men Together, National Minority AIDS Council,
Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, National Organization for
Women, National Coalition of Black Lesbians and Gays, Gay and
Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, National Gay and Lesbian Law
Association, Queer Nation, Metropolitan Community Church, The
National Lesbian and Gay Task Force, The Human Rights Campaign
Fund, ACT UP, and representatives of groups from 22 states, from
Florida to Alaska.
During the meeting, delegates endorsed two upcoming political
events: Stonewall 25, international march and festival in New York City
on June 26, 1994. This event commemorates the 25th anniversary of the
riots that sparked the modern lesbian and gay liberation movement.
Also endorsed was the October, 1992 march on Washington to
commemorate the SOOth anniversary of the Survival of Indigenous
Cultures. This event is held to protest Christopher Columbus' "discovery" of the new world and the subsequent genocide of its Native
American peoples.
The next organizational meeting for the March on Washington will be
held in Chicago on August 3 - 4 at the Allerton Hotel, at which time the ;\)(.·
national co-chairs, steering committee and working groups will be
established, and a final date for the march will be set. For more
information, contact the MOW hotline at 1-800-832-2889, or write to
MOW c/o NGLTF, 1734 14th Street NW, Washington, DC 200094309. FAX: (202) 332-0207.
• '"'

A LESBIAN & GAY SUPPORT GROUP
has begun meeting in
NORMAN
on Thursdays, from 5 - 6:30 p.m.
at Counseling Psychology Clinic
at South Base

CALL 325-2914
FOR MORE INFORMATION
HERLAND VOICE AUGUST 1991

3

CALL FOR MANUSCRIPTS
THE WOMAN-CENTERED ECONOMY:
Ideals, Reality and the Space In-Between
Seeking essays, interviews, and stories that explore the relationship
between feminist women (and organizations) and the money we need
to keep ourselves alive. Particular needs include:
• Women who succeed at making their livings from within the women's
community
• Women who have tried to make their livings from within and have
failed - especially women who have run restaurants, coffeehouses, concert
series, etc. whose target market was the women's community
• Investing in the community: women who have run banks, brokerage firms,
etc. that invest in woman-owned business
• Women of Color /immigrants from non-capitalist countries/women from
rich and poor backgrounds: how does upbringing affect participation in the
woman-centered economy?
• Taking from the patriarchy: political analyses pro and con
• Making capitalism work for us and how capitalism has worked against us
• Land ownership: creating woman-only space for ourselves/for profit/ for
the community
• Feminist service organizations: pros & cons of grant funding/ seeking
contributions/ volunteer labor
These ideas are only the beginning! I am especially interested in differing
perspectives on money I finance from within the women's community. Please
feel free to call me at (312) 784-6725 if you would like to discuss your piece
before sending/writing it. Send clean, typed manuscript with SASE to:
Loraine Edwalds, Third Side Press, 2250 W. Farragut, Chicago, IL 60625.
DEADLINE: August 10, 1991.
•

Office Hours
Tues - Thurs 9-3
Friday J0-6
Sat by appointment

(405) 843-3281
VISA & MC accepted.
We file insurance.

HRCF CALLS FOR HALT TO
PENTAGON DISCRIMINATION
Washington, D. C. - Tim Mcfeeley, executive director of the Human Rights
Campaign Fund (HRCF), the nation's largest lesbian and gay organization,
today called on Secretary of Defense Richard Cheney to halt proceedings
against an Air Force Captain whose discharge has been held up following the
serviceman's participation in the Washington, D.C. Lesbian and Gay Pride
Parade.
"The simple fact is that the Pentagon is promoting bigotry," Mcfeeley
told Cheney in a letter sent earlier today. "Captain Greg Greeley has served
our country honorably for four years. Now, on the eve of his discharge, he is
being hounded because he sought to express his solidarity with other lesbian
and gay Americans," Mcfeeley wrote.
The Washington Post reported in a front page story this morning that Air
Force Captain Greg Greeley has been told that his discharge has been put on
administrative hold.
"The American public overwhelmingly opposes the kind ofharrassment
Captain Greeley is facing," Mcfeeley stated. He noted that a public opinion
surgey released in April found that 65% of the American public support
admitting openly lesbian and gay Americans into the armed forces. An even
greater percentage of Americans-Bl percent- oppose discharging a service
member simply because of his/her sexual orientation.
Mcfeeley noted that every study ever commissioned by the Pentagon
itself on military policy regarding homosexuality-including two that were
made public last year-support the idea of modifying or eliminating the
discharge requirement.
"Just as the military integrated blacks and women into the ranks, the
Human Rights Campaign Fund believes they will also end their policy of
discrimination against lesbians and gays. We urge Secretary Cheney to end
the enforcement of this outmoded and discriminatory policy today,"
Mcfeeley said.
•

M. COLEEN WOODY

MARILYN D. BEST

'D-i. 'DeJ..ra ~- ~~. 'R. 'P'-.. 'D. 'D.S.

f

Comprehensive Dental Care
5009 North Pennsylvania Ave, Suite 103
Oklahoma City, OK 73112

CALL FOR WORK
Survivors of Trauma Share Their Success Stories
I'm looking for recovery stories and ways of dealing with after-effects of
trauma including (but not limited to) panic attacks, depression, sleep
disorders, nightmares, flashbacks, splitting, hyperalertness (startle response),
guilt about surviving when others have not, and memory and/or concentration problems, The emphasis of the collection will be on thriving, not merely
surviving. Please send a self-addressed stamped enevelope (SASE) if you'd
like a copy of the guidelines to: L.A. Ross, Box 51, 2 S. 723 Rt. 59,
Warrenville, IL 60555. If you would like information about the book when it
is published, please send your name and address and I'll put you on the
mailing list.
•

CALL FOR WORK
Short fiction, poetry, and cartoons by lesbians and gay men wanted for
collection of Ex-Lover Wierd Shit. Pretty much looking for funny stuff.
Simultaneous submissions okay. DEADLINE: September 1, 1991. Send
submissions, brief bio, and SASE (with adequate postage) to: Debra Riggin
Waugh (X), P.O. Box 5243, Takoma Park, Maryland 20913.
•

4

HERLAND VOICE AUGUST 1991

ATTORNEYS-AT-LAW
General Practice

1518 N.W. 29th St.
Oklahoma City, OK 73106

405-525-2174

OLD LESBIANS UNITE!
The Old Lesbian O rganizing Committee, based in Chicago Illinois, asks
you to ASK YOURSELF: Where do groups of Old Lesbians get together?
Could I get in touch with those who are isolated near me? Could I organize a
small O .L. gathering in my area? Would I want to be a contact person for a
region not covered, or a specific area in my region? What would I like to have
happen in my area?
OLOC says that YOU ARE THE ONE who can find out, reach out to
other lesbians your age near you, especially those who are isolated and are
hesitant to join a group. Start by just getting acquainted. Then discuss
possibilities for group activities. You can be a link between your area and the
contact person in your region or a link between your area and OLOC.
OLOC can provide you with brochures and ideas. There are videotapes of
Old Lesbians which were previewed at the National Lesbian Conference,
and soon there will be a Speaker's List, and a Handbook on Ageism to use in
discussion groups. You can obtain this resource material through OLOC or
your region's Contact Person. Contact The Old Lesbian Organizing
Committee, P.O . Box 14816, Chicago IL 60614.
•

SISTERS BEWARE

Sam L. Nicolosi, D.V.M.

by Deborah Fox
... of the Patriarchy in the New Age movement. I've had a growing
suspicion about the New Age movement; my gut feeling told me that
all was not love and enlightenment in the house of the family of light.
It started a few years back when I lived in New Mexico. There was
an advertisement for a "Prosperity Workshop" in Albuquerque . In a
storefront building decorated in pastel purples, pinks, and blues, with
an atmosphere of an Art Gallery, I inquired about the workshop to a
soft-spoken woman with curly brown hair. She lovingly informed me
of all the New Age celebrities that would be conducting the seminar,
that it was a three-evening affair over the weekend and that the fee
was $450.00. After I picked my jaw up off the floor I asked her why
the fee was so high, explaining that if I had $450.00 to spare I doubt
I'd need a Prosperity Workshop. Wasn't this a workshop for poor
people? She in turn explained to me ever so gently and simply that the
high cost discouraged those who are not yet willing to change negative
thought patterns and limit the audience to only those who really want
prosperity consciousness, that those who are really serious about this
will create the $450.00 fee. And this as if hierarchy, greed, inequity of
jobs and resources, ecological destruction, and capitalism did not
exist! What for the people most harmed by these injustices! I began to
suspect the New Age movement was elitist (last time I checked the
fees for such seminars and retreats ranged from $740 to $1,000).
Then there's the New Age slogan: We Create Our Own Reality.
Something I couldn't quite pinpoint about this idea, didn't sit right
with me from the start. When I see the commercials about the
starving children all over this world it becomes increasingly clear to
me that there is something wrong with anyone who could advocte
that these children created their reality, or that it is their "karma."
That reeks of scapegoating to me! I suppose the child being abused
created that reality? Or the rape victim; she created that reality? That's
victim blaming, guilt tripping, and it places all the responsibility for
oppression onto the oppressed. I can believe that we are co-creators
of our reality and I do believe we can reclaim our power and create a
better reality, but there are other forces at work too. We are not
isolated islands unto ourselves. We do not create our lives in a
vacuum. And what better way to stifle women from reclaiming our
power than by dragging us down with guilt and blame, causing us to
believe that we created the rapes and abuses, that the suffering from
our oppression is the result of our past life wrongs. We must always
be wary and read between the lines because misogyny is insidious
within language and ideology. Those little nuances that we can
overlook because they seem so trivial can become thorns festering in
our souls. They beat down our self esteem.
Male authors outnumber female authors published in New Age
magazines. Interviewers and interviewees are predominantly male.
The few words spoken about sexism seem token. Though there is
plenty of information, little is written about the Goddess and
Matriarchal cultures. Those that espouse "Prosperity Consciousness"
are middle to upper class and there are tons of outrageously expensive

NICOLOSI ANIMAL HOSPITAL
4015 N.W . 23rd
Oklahoma City

by Appointment
Phone ( 405) 947-5545

New Age goodies flooding the marketplace. Non-Indians exploit, and
therefore defile, Native American spiritual practices. The spiritual
focus is still predominantly Patriarchal. Both eastern and western,
wose transcendental gods are "out there" somewhere above the earth
denying the unity of spirit and matter. The disciplines often aspire to
"rise above" the earthly plane, physical processes (like birth) and
sexual desires. Rarely have I seen the New Age philosophy deal with
the root causes of suffering and injustice -there is far more profit in
treating the symptoms. And now there is the Men's Movement which
seems intent upon neutralizing the Women's Movement and calling
themselves "success objects" (gee, guys, we'd have taken t~ose jobs!),
and articles with quotes like this: ". . . I came to see American
feminism as having a few good points but as mostly being very
damaging and very corrosive, in addition to simply being wrong."
(!!**!)This by the white male New Age guru Ken Wilbur. (No way
guys, you no longer have a monopoly on authority -heck, we can't
even trust you to dispose of your garbage!)
Author and artist, Monica Sjoo has said that: "New Age teachings
have become distorted and biased because of the middle to upper
class privilege of the white men who dominate the movement."
(Women of Power magazine, Winter 1991.) The New Age movement is
being exploited as a vehicle for white male capitalism and used as
another tool in the oppression of women. " ... we as women know
that spirituality cannot be divorced from the struggle against oppression." Sjoo
I agree with Monica and I want to join my sisters in rescuing what is
valuable in New Age teachings and in reclaiming the New Age. As
author Lynn V. Andrews so aptly put it: "I sometimes see women
who have been cheated out of their spiritual heritage just as they have
been cheated out of their minds and bodies. I, for one, struggle against
that theft." You are not alone, Lynn.
Monica Sjoo is the author of: The Great Cosmic Mother, in cahoots
with Barbara Mor, and has a new book: New Age Or Armageddon: The
Goddess Or The Guru? A Feminist Vision Of The Future. Woman Of Power
is a magazine of feminism, spirituality, and politics. For subscription
information, write: Woman of Power, Inc., P.O. Box 827, Cambridge,
MA 02238. Lynn V. Andrews is the author of several books, Flight Of
The Seventh Moon being one of my favorites.
•

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HERLAND VOICE AUGUST 1991

5

~~---"LADIES SEWING CIRCLE & TERRORIST SOCIETY" Tshirts and sweat-shirts are now available for special order from
Herland. Purple, Turquoise, Red, Royal or Navy . ....
FICTION, CRITICAL ESSAYS AND REVIEWS for and about
women are wanted for a multi-cultural literary journal. Contact The
Artfocus Collection, 822 Guilford Avenue, Suite 153, Baltimore MD
21202; (301) 962-8565 .....
THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF POETRY is sponsoring their
1991 poetry contest. $6,000 in prizes will be awarded. The deadline
for entry is August 30, 191. Contact NLP, 5-E Gwynns Mill Court,
P.O. Box 704A, Owings Mills, MD 21117; (301) 356-2000 .. . ..
THE RAGDALE FOUNDATION OFFERS A WRITING
FELLOWSHIP ANNUALLY to a woman over age 55 who is
beginning a writing career. The winner is given a free 2-month
residency anywhere in the continental U.S. Contact Ragdale, 1260 N.
Green Bay Rd., Lake Forest, IL 60045; (708) 234-1063 . ... .

MANDA.CA iii: (A Poem)
Braced 6etween my thro66ing thighs
bJour supple strength supports my ride
ohrough moonlit vales to sunlit peak
While others dream and others sleep
We glide.
Astride your smooth, sleek frame 9 slide
Pulsing, pumping, Rhythm-tide
oo match your silence with my sighs
!:Jou yield 6eneath my eager stride
We move as one in a summer wind
9, and my two-wheeled twelve-speed friend!

6y Su3an Ceterra

Kay Killgore , M.Ed.
Wo man to Wo man Counseling

1010 NW. 45th
Oklahoma City , Oklahom a 73118
(405) 524-1062

LESBIAN ONLY THERAPY GROUP. For further information
call Jo L. Soske, M.Ed./MHR/CAC at 360-5708 . .. . .
FALL RETREAT - OCTOBER 11 - 13. Mark your caiendars
now. Nancy Scott of Austin, Texas will be our headliner.

DEAR SISTERS:
On Friday, July 12, 1991, 20/20 aired a segment on Naomi Wolf's book,

The Beauty Myth. The segment included an interview with a courageous
16-year-old woman who admitted being absorbed in our society's expectations for
women's appearance. She also spoke honestly of the pain she experiences as a
result of this.
Following the segment, Barbara Walters dismissed Naomi's book as "greatly
exaggerated." She referred to the idea of a feminist backlash as a "crock." She
discounted the interview with the young woman, saying that all 16-year-olds are
insecure. She offered herself as proof that women are not being held back.
I was outraged by 20 / 20' s use of a woman to totally discount our experience.
As most of you know, Naomi Wolf's book is a well documented scholarly
work which was first pu~lished by Oxford University Press. As a teacher and a
therapist, I have seen several women who are killing themselves to try to achieve
"the look." They are all around us, and they are our sisters. Frequently, the
damage done to their bodies will never heal. It is less easy to measure the damage
done to all of our minds and souls.
I do not wish to encourage a great deal of horizontal rage at Barbara Walters.
She is a pawn of the patriarchy which keeps women dieting/dieing. I would like
to ask, though, that you take 5 minutes to send a postcard to 20 / 20 and let them
know that their treatment of women's real pain is inexcusable. The address is:
20/20 Journal Graphics, 267 Broadway, New York, New York 10007. Thank
you for your commitment to women's lives.
Sincerely, Jo L. Soske

NEED TO TALK?
NEED COMMUNITY INFORMATION?

CALL

842-GAYS
The Gay & Lesbian
HELPLINE

Hours: 7 p.m. - 1 a.m. Wednesday - Monday
Volunteers Needed: Leave a message with
a current volunteer if you are interested.
6

HERLAND VOICE AUGUST 1991

DEAR EDITOR,
I was incensed by the letter in a previous issue from Palmira C. She is weary of
"pagan propaganda" -well, I am weary of Catholic propagand and propaganda of other white-male religious denominations and white-male religions.
We live in a world created by men, for men and religion is one of the tools used
by men to retain the status quo. Our lives are saturated with references to and
talk of these white, male religions. Our flag salute contains "one nation under
God." We have prayers before athletic events, at the beginning of the daily state
legislative sessions. We have legislators who physically fight over who will be the
Chaplain for the week. We fougt a war in which God was on our side. We
prayed to God and thanked God regularly on television for our small number of
casualties (our God did not care about the lives of the people of Iraq; guess that
was because they were not Christians!) In the courts, we are often asked to
"swear to God."
To become a member of the Oklahoma Bar Association, a prerequisite for a
permanent practice of law in Oklahoma, an individual must take an oath in
which "God" is used. In Oklahoma, and I would assume most states, in
addition to a Judge or Justice of the Peace, a minister is able to perform
weddings recognized by the law. If you are admitted to a hospital, you are asked
what religion you belong to. It is a foregone conclusion that we all believe in this
white, male god.
References to goddesses in the Voice are infinitesimal when compared to this
"foregone conclusion" of the existence and belief in this white, male god by the
populous. If Palmira C. is so weary of references to "Goddesses" in the Voice, I
wonder if she would attempt to understand how weary I am of "white, male
god" propaganda.
I do not believe in Goddesses for that matter; but I do believe in
women, and references to Goddesses can only promote the image and
welfare of women. Isn't it interesting that the two religions which Ms. C.
refers to are Jewish and Christian-guess Muslims, Hindus, etc. are not
valid. Is that because they were not created by caucasian males?
Thanks to everyone responsible for the Voice.
Take care, take power, and trust joy.

Coleen··woody
PUBLISHED BY: Herland Sister Resources, Inc. 2312 NW 39th, Oklahoma City, OK 73112
NEWSLETIER COMMITIEE: Margaret Cox, Pat Reaves
CIRCULATION: 750
GENERAL INFO: (405) 521-9696 (leave message)
SUBSCRIPTIONS to the Her/and Voice are free upon request.

H E R U\ ~JD

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SISTER RESOURCES !NC.

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Hour·s: Saturday 10 - 6:

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524- 3915

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Monda)'

Sunda)'

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7:00 P.• .

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Richard Nixon
resil!ned the
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1974

Re•e•ber·
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1945 ;
Work for
Peace .

Benefit <or
Second
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Johnson at
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LUCY STONE

IBIS - 1893

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M. Ed .

COUNSELOR
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Oklahoma City, Oklah o ma 73106·---Telephone: (405) 556·4105

HELEN ti 0 LGATE
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Counselor

HERLAND VOICE JULY 1991

7

THE ECONOMY OF DEATH
Amount

Paid for

Could have paid for

$20 million

20 Patriot missiles

Vaccines to protect all the women in Africa from tetanus

$65 million

E-2C Hawkeye aircraft

The estimated total amount of external funds spend on AIDS in Africa in
1990.

$450

M-16 rifle

The training of a primary health care worker to respond to such community
needs as immunization, oral rehydration, antibiotics, safe births and postnatal
care.

$340 million

Two days of air combat

$12.3 billion

Noncombat costs, January-March '91 The total current annual amount of investment in water supply in the
developing world

$500 million

One day of air and ground combat

UNlCEF's 1990-91 budgeted expenditures (plus $48 million)

Oxfam's operating budget-forty-six times over-for 1989-90

$6.9 million

CH-4 7D army transport helicopter All of Save the Children's refugee programs in Indonesia and Thailand, 198990 (providing services for 25,000 people)

$20,000

Stinger missile

Basic medical equipment and building materials for a maternity center in Mali

If you were to spend $1.2 million a day for ten years you would spend $44 billion, the estimated amount spent on the Gulf War
alone (not including long-term costs of operating a base in Saudi Arabia or reconstructing Kuwait) .
Source: Vol 1 No. 6 of Ms. Magazine.

Articles appearing in the voice are the opinion of the author and
do not necessarily reflect the views of Herland Sister Resources.

NonProfit Org.
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Oklahoma City, Okla.

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Permit No. 861



AUGUST 1991

MIRACLE DRUG? WHY CAN'T WE GET IT?
Ever since the five-justice anti-abortion rights majority of the
Supreme Court handed down their infamous Webster decision, an
enormously bitter battle has raged - in our courts, in our legislatures
and even in our street.
Yet there is a practical way to greatly de-escalate this divisive war. To
dramatically reduce the need for a vast majority of the 1.6 million
.
surgical abortions performed in America each year.
Thanks to an historic breakthrough in medicine, there is a truly
remarkable means by which the need for surgical abortions can be
greatly reduced. In fact, in France in just this first year of use, the need
for surgical abortions was reduced by more than 30%! This was
accomplished by a safe, efficient new medication called RU 486.
But, while more than 60,000 women in France have already
successfully used RU 486, it is not avaiiable in the United States.
Anti-abortion forces have been working around the clock to
intimidate the pharmaceutical companies and keep them from bringing
RU 486 into the U.S.
So far, the one-sided attack against this medical breakthrough is
suceeding. Through targeted letter-writing campaigns aimed at the
French firm Roussel Uclaf, which holds the patent on RU 486, and its
parent company Hoechst, A.G. in Germany, the anti-abortion rights
forces have threatened boycotts and other economic action aimed at
"punishing" these firms if they dare bring RU 486 into the United States.
RU 486 can be used-with over 96% efficiency-up to the 49th day
of pregnancy. After it is determined that a woman is pregnant, in her
doctor's office or women's health center she takes a 600 milligram dose
of RU 486. Two days later she returns for an injection of prostaglandin.
Within another two to five days, she will have a vaginal blood flow,
similar to a heavy menstrual period. She then returns to her doctor to
ensure the abortion is complete and the bleeding is controlled. Since this
is not an invasive procedure, there is no risk of any infection, nor need

for anesthesia.
While the most recent Harris poll shows that 59% of all adults think
RU 486 should be made available in the U.S., the leaders of the
anti-abortion rights groups are doing their utmost to stop it.
Beyond its capacity to dramatically reduce surgical abortions, RU
486 has other amazing properties which hold enormous promise for the
benefit of women in the treatment of several major diseases and health
conditions, including endometriosis. So potentially important is this
drug that its inventor, Dr. Etienne-Emile Baulieu, has been awarded the
Albert Lasker Medical Research Aw:,i.rd, America's highest medical
research honor and frequently the front-runner of the Nobel prize.
Today RU 486 is being tested to treat some types of:
• Breast cancer, which one in nine women develop. RU 486 has been
found to be very promising in tests performed over the past two years.
• Meningioma, a benign brain tumor which, however, is fatal iflocated
in an inoperable part of the brain.
• Endometriosis, a leading cause of infertility. After successful test:S on
animals, clinical tests are being conducted right now.
• Caesarean Sections, as RU 486 may be effective in inducing labor in a
difficult delivery and reducing the number of Caesarean births.
And RU 486 is being tested to treat glaucoma and ulcers, and has
been proven to effectively treat some forms of Cushings's Syndrome, a
rare adrenal tumor which mostly affects women in -their 30s to 40s.
With this vast spectrum of potential and actual uses, as well as its
primary application as a means to medically terminate unintended
pregnancies, it is unthinkable that the anti-abortion forces are
determined to stop RU 486.
For more information ab.o ut this drug and how to get involved in
making it legal in our country, contact The Feminist Majority Founda. tion, P.O. Box 96780, Washington, D.C. 2007-7. Petitions are being
circulated, WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
•

BAR..B.. QUE ~:c.-

PORTHOLE BENEFIT PARTY

20 A~o~;~~~~D

Other Options, Inc. will be the recipient of a benefit to
be held at the Porthole on August 24, 9:00 p .m .
There will be balloons with prizes in them, events and
great fun, and an option for an autographed copy of the
book "Aids for HIV-AIDS" will go to the highest bidder.
A $15 donation for the book will be appreciated, which
will be used for reprints of the book.
Music at the benefit will be provided by Peggy Johnson
and Route 66. Donations from artists include Shadow,
White Antelope, Kelly Arbuckle and Parker Perry.
So come on out to the Porthole expecting to have a good
time and to help with a great cause. Don't forget to thank
Shatzy and Carol and their shipmates for allowing this to
take place. For more information please contact Cookie at
495-2732 or Cindy Bookout or Shatzy at the Porthole.

VOLUME 8 NUMBER 8

•

HERLAND SISTER RESOURCES

\?
BARBARA CLEVELAND 0
TO HERLAND'S FOUNDING MOTHER

Herland will provide iced tea and
bar-b-qued chicken. All you need
to bring is a dish to share.

~

9i/P

•

SATUR.DAY, ~UGUST
6.00 - 9.00 P.M.
2312 N.W. 39th

'
2312 NW 39th , OKC, OK 73112

17t~®
~

•

(405) 521-9696

LUCY STONE

1818-1893

Even as a child, Lucy Stone had a reformer's spirit. From the time she
could read, she read William Lloyd Garrison's abolitionist journal The
Liberator, and attended anti-slavery lectures. At 16, she quit school to
teach, but was discouraged by the disparity in wages paid to men and
women. She attended Oberlin College, enrolling in the regular four-year
academic course. Her Greek and Hebrew studies convinced her that
critical translations outlining the status and position of women in those
societies had been misconstrued, and she determined to speak out
against the current status of women.
Women were barred from the debating and oratorical societies at
Oberlin, so she practiced on her own. In 184 7, she was awarded a degree
with honors, and refused to write a commencement address, since she
would not have been allowed to deliver it herself.
After graduation, she was appointed a lecturer of the American
antislavery Society. She lectured on both abolition and feminism,
speaking on women's rights on the weekends, and for the Society during
the week. Her sincerity, eloquence, and intensity drew large audiences,
not all of them friendly, and mobs sometimes heckled, threw things, and
turned hoses on her.
In 1850, Stone led the call for the first National Women's Rights
Convention. Though not as famous as the Seneca Falls Conference, the
gathering was more representative. Her speech inspired Susan B.
Anthony to join the women's movement and prompted J. Stuart Mills
to write "The Enfranchisement of Women." She became the star
speaker in the new feminist network, traveling and lecturing extensively.
She wore the unconventional "bloomer" costume and preached against
traditional marriage customs, characterizing marriage in her day as
legalized prostitution, and promising to "call no man master." She
wrote, "It is very little to me to havae the right to vote, to own property,
if I may not keep my body and its uses in my absolute right."
In 1855, she married Henry Blackwell and kept her birth name. In the
ceremony, the couple refuted the laws of marriage, creating instead "an
equal and permanent partnership."
Stone presided over the seventh National Women's Rights Convention in New York in 1856, then took leave to raise her child, resuming a
full lecturing schedule in 1867. In 1869, the movement split into the
National Woman Suffrage Association and the American Woman
Suffrage Association (AWSA). The division was due in part to personal
conflicts between Stone and Anthony as well as to a dispute about
endorsing the Fifteenth Amendment (which gave the vote to black men)
if it was not broadened to include woman's suffrage. Stone led the
AWSA, and published a paper called the Women's Journal, lauded for its
journalistic excellence.
When the desire for unity overcame past antagonism. The two factions
formed the National American Woman Suffrage Assoc. in 1890, with
Anthony as President and Stone chair of the Executive Committee.
Lucy Stone devoted her life to challenging traditional notions about
women's abilities and "nature," questioning the validity and justice of
the social mores and customs of her day.
•

EllCODlllGS
Volume 1, No. 2

NEW POETRY AND ARTWORK BY WOMEN IN HOUSTON
Leslie Lopez, Carol Snyder, Cathy Stern,
Sharon Stewart, Monica Vaughn, Fabian Worsham
AT YOUR FAVORITE BOOKSTORE, OR WRITE:

LIAUD: A Women's Press
P.O. Box 6793, Houston, TX 77265-6793

$4.50/copy

ST. SYBIL
St. Sybil, Matron Saint of the Forgotten Woman, has been having a little
nap while waiting for the cosmic post person to bring her some mail. She
finally got some:

Dear St. Sybil,
I thought you and the folks where you are would like to try your hands at solving
some riddles; so here goes: what do the U.S. Marines, the friendly
neighborhood serial rapist, and my teenage children have in common?
Oh, that's too easy: They keep you awake at night wondering where they
are and what they are up to.

OK, Smarty: What do Clarence Thomas, Margaret Thatcher and Phyllis
Schlafly all have in common?
Easy, easy! They're all honorary white males.

OK, then: What do Clarence Thomas, Margaret Thatcher, Phyllis Schlafly
and the proud mother of a baby pachyderm have in common?
They all think they made it on their own.

What do the employer who pays you 60 cents on the white-male dollar, the
insurance company who won't insure you, and your ex-husband have in
common?

They expect you to make it on your own.

What do the nazi skinheads down the street and a pit bull have in common?
A couple of things, at least: IQand temperament.

What do Ronald Reagan and a soft boiled egg have in common?
IQand temperament? Let's not get nasty.

Sorry. What do George Bush and a straw in the wind have in common?
I'm not going to play any more if all the answers are going to be "IQand
temperament.''

OK, 0 K. Just a couple more now. What do the nazi skinheads down the street
and Oliver North have in common?
Get real, what don't they have in common?

Ink Well Vvint{ng
TERI HOELTZEL
SUSAN BROOKS
Owners

2

(405) 942-5693
50 l N. Meridian, Suite l 07
Oklahoma City, OK 73107-5701

HERLAND VOICE AUGUST 1991

OK, OK, acceptable answer. Wrapping it up now: What do our friendly
neighborhood serial rapist, the nazi skinheads down the street, George Bush,
Ronald Reagan, Phyllis Schlafly, Ollie North and his Marines, Clarence
Thomas, profiteering employers, and a Rubbermaid girdle have in common?
We know that one, too! They all want to control you, honey, and don't
you let them. FIGHT BACK! and write again soon.
Love,
Sybil

MARDI GRAS IN CONNECTICUT?
LOUISIANA BOYCOTT LAUNCHED BY FEMINISTS
Madison, Wis - The Feminist Caucus of the American Humanist
Association, the largest humanist group in the nation, is asking for a
full-scale economic boycott of Louisiana, which just passed the
country's most restrictive antiabortion law.
"Let's mov.e Mardi Gras to a state that respects women's rights,"
suggests Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-chair of the Caucus, which is based in
Madison, Wisconsin. "How about Connecticut, which has passed
safeguards ensuring that women can obtain safe abortions there?
Tourists who care about women should shun Louisiana."
The Caucus has wired motion picture producers to boycott filmmaking in Louisiana, a newly-important industry for the deficit-ridden
state, which depends on tourism for survival.
In wires to the Alliance of Motion Picture and TV Producers in
Sherman Oaks, California, and to the New-York based Motion Picture
Association of America, the Caucus pointed out that "there exists a
plentitude of states supporting women's rights in which to make movies,
including Wisconsin, the first state to ratify women's right to vote!"
"The message is to shun states that shun women," Gaylor said. "This
law not only punishes Louisiana women, but threatens the rights of ALL
women because it was passed as a test to overturn Roe v Wade."
The Feminist Caucus has also targeted major Louisiana products. It is
the major producer of sweet potatoes. Other products include rice, Cajun
cooking, spices and music, and such specialty items as Tabasco sauce.
"We can do without Tabasco sauce, but can the Louisiana economy
survive a tourism and consumer boycott?" asks Gaylor.
The Feminist Caucus pointed out that abolitionists protested a
similar injustice, when states' rights were held more important than
human rights. They responded by severe economic and moral sanctions
against "slave states."
"We can do no less," Gaylor said.
The Louisiana boycott joins a boycott of Utah called earlier this year,
after that state passed similar restrictions. The U.S. Olympic Committee is being pressured to drop consideration of Utah as a possible site for
the 1998 Winter Olympics.
"Joe Hill, legendary union organizer, said he wouldn't be caught dead
in Utah," Gaylor said. "That's the spirit we're urging women and
friends of women to adopt."
Abortion supporters are being asked to dial the Louisiana Tourism
Hotline at 1-800-1133-GUMBO to register their support of a boycott,
as well as to cancel convention or travel plans for Louisiana.
•

Edwina V. Johnson, D.D.S.
"Catering to Cowards needing Tender Care"
in Comprehensive Dentistry

5009 North Pennsylvania Ave, Suite 103
(405) 840-5410
Night & Sunday practice by appt. only
Emergencies welcome
Insurance accepted

Mowing • Fertlllzlng • Trimming
• Light Hauling •

"We Are Insured"
SANDIE
794-6884

KAY
794-0081

GAYS & LESBIANS ORGANIZE
MARCH ON WASHINGTON
At a weekend planning held in Washington, D.C., May 11 and 12,
more than 200 lesbian and gay politicos and activists called for a
National March on Washington for lesbian and gay civil rights,
scheduled for April of 1993.
The meeting was an opportunity for community representatives and
individuals to discuss a national march in the spirit of the historical
1987 event, which attracted more than a half-million lesbians and gay
men to our nation's capitol.
Present at the two-day event were many leading figures in the struggle
for lesbian and gay rights, including principals of The Names Project,
Black and White Men Together, National Minority AIDS Council,
Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, National Organization for
Women, National Coalition of Black Lesbians and Gays, Gay and
Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, National Gay and Lesbian Law
Association, Queer Nation, Metropolitan Community Church, The
National Lesbian and Gay Task Force, The Human Rights Campaign
Fund, ACT UP, and representatives of groups from 22 states, from
Florida to Alaska.
During the meeting, delegates endorsed two upcoming political
events: Stonewall 25, international march and festival in New York City
on June 26, 1994. This event commemorates the 25th anniversary of the
riots that sparked the modern lesbian and gay liberation movement.
Also endorsed was the October, 1992 march on Washington to
commemorate the SOOth anniversary of the Survival of Indigenous
Cultures. This event is held to protest Christopher Columbus' "discovery" of the new world and the subsequent genocide of its Native
American peoples.
The next organizational meeting for the March on Washington will be
held in Chicago on August 3 - 4 at the Allerton Hotel, at which time the ;\)(.·
national co-chairs, steering committee and working groups will be
established, and a final date for the march will be set. For more
information, contact the MOW hotline at 1-800-832-2889, or write to
MOW c/o NGLTF, 1734 14th Street NW, Washington, DC 200094309. FAX: (202) 332-0207.
• '"'

A LESBIAN & GAY SUPPORT GROUP
has begun meeting in
NORMAN
on Thursdays, from 5 - 6:30 p.m.
at Counseling Psychology Clinic
at South Base

CALL 325-2914
FOR MORE INFORMATION
HERLAND VOICE AUGUST 1991

3

CALL FOR MANUSCRIPTS
THE WOMAN-CENTERED ECONOMY:
Ideals, Reality and the Space In-Between
Seeking essays, interviews, and stories that explore the relationship
between feminist women (and organizations) and the money we need
to keep ourselves alive. Particular needs include:
• Women who succeed at making their livings from within the women's
community
• Women who have tried to make their livings from within and have
failed - especially women who have run restaurants, coffeehouses, concert
series, etc. whose target market was the women's community
• Investing in the community: women who have run banks, brokerage firms,
etc. that invest in woman-owned business
• Women of Color /immigrants from non-capitalist countries/women from
rich and poor backgrounds: how does upbringing affect participation in the
woman-centered economy?
• Taking from the patriarchy: political analyses pro and con
• Making capitalism work for us and how capitalism has worked against us
• Land ownership: creating woman-only space for ourselves/for profit/ for
the community
• Feminist service organizations: pros & cons of grant funding/ seeking
contributions/ volunteer labor
These ideas are only the beginning! I am especially interested in differing
perspectives on money I finance from within the women's community. Please
feel free to call me at (312) 784-6725 if you would like to discuss your piece
before sending/writing it. Send clean, typed manuscript with SASE to:
Loraine Edwalds, Third Side Press, 2250 W. Farragut, Chicago, IL 60625.
DEADLINE: August 10, 1991.
•

Office Hours
Tues - Thurs 9-3
Friday J0-6
Sat by appointment

(405) 843-3281
VISA & MC accepted.
We file insurance.

HRCF CALLS FOR HALT TO
PENTAGON DISCRIMINATION
Washington, D. C. - Tim Mcfeeley, executive director of the Human Rights
Campaign Fund (HRCF), the nation's largest lesbian and gay organization,
today called on Secretary of Defense Richard Cheney to halt proceedings
against an Air Force Captain whose discharge has been held up following the
serviceman's participation in the Washington, D.C. Lesbian and Gay Pride
Parade.
"The simple fact is that the Pentagon is promoting bigotry," Mcfeeley
told Cheney in a letter sent earlier today. "Captain Greg Greeley has served
our country honorably for four years. Now, on the eve of his discharge, he is
being hounded because he sought to express his solidarity with other lesbian
and gay Americans," Mcfeeley wrote.
The Washington Post reported in a front page story this morning that Air
Force Captain Greg Greeley has been told that his discharge has been put on
administrative hold.
"The American public overwhelmingly opposes the kind ofharrassment
Captain Greeley is facing," Mcfeeley stated. He noted that a public opinion
surgey released in April found that 65% of the American public support
admitting openly lesbian and gay Americans into the armed forces. An even
greater percentage of Americans-Bl percent- oppose discharging a service
member simply because of his/her sexual orientation.
Mcfeeley noted that every study ever commissioned by the Pentagon
itself on military policy regarding homosexuality-including two that were
made public last year-support the idea of modifying or eliminating the
discharge requirement.
"Just as the military integrated blacks and women into the ranks, the
Human Rights Campaign Fund believes they will also end their policy of
discrimination against lesbians and gays. We urge Secretary Cheney to end
the enforcement of this outmoded and discriminatory policy today,"
Mcfeeley said.
•

M. COLEEN WOODY

MARILYN D. BEST

'D-i. 'DeJ..ra ~- ~~. 'R. 'P'-.. 'D. 'D.S.

f

Comprehensive Dental Care
5009 North Pennsylvania Ave, Suite 103
Oklahoma City, OK 73112

CALL FOR WORK
Survivors of Trauma Share Their Success Stories
I'm looking for recovery stories and ways of dealing with after-effects of
trauma including (but not limited to) panic attacks, depression, sleep
disorders, nightmares, flashbacks, splitting, hyperalertness (startle response),
guilt about surviving when others have not, and memory and/or concentration problems, The emphasis of the collection will be on thriving, not merely
surviving. Please send a self-addressed stamped enevelope (SASE) if you'd
like a copy of the guidelines to: L.A. Ross, Box 51, 2 S. 723 Rt. 59,
Warrenville, IL 60555. If you would like information about the book when it
is published, please send your name and address and I'll put you on the
mailing list.
•

CALL FOR WORK
Short fiction, poetry, and cartoons by lesbians and gay men wanted for
collection of Ex-Lover Wierd Shit. Pretty much looking for funny stuff.
Simultaneous submissions okay. DEADLINE: September 1, 1991. Send
submissions, brief bio, and SASE (with adequate postage) to: Debra Riggin
Waugh (X), P.O. Box 5243, Takoma Park, Maryland 20913.
•

4

HERLAND VOICE AUGUST 1991

ATTORNEYS-AT-LAW
General Practice

1518 N.W. 29th St.
Oklahoma City, OK 73106

405-525-2174

OLD LESBIANS UNITE!
The Old Lesbian O rganizing Committee, based in Chicago Illinois, asks
you to ASK YOURSELF: Where do groups of Old Lesbians get together?
Could I get in touch with those who are isolated near me? Could I organize a
small O .L. gathering in my area? Would I want to be a contact person for a
region not covered, or a specific area in my region? What would I like to have
happen in my area?
OLOC says that YOU ARE THE ONE who can find out, reach out to
other lesbians your age near you, especially those who are isolated and are
hesitant to join a group. Start by just getting acquainted. Then discuss
possibilities for group activities. You can be a link between your area and the
contact person in your region or a link between your area and OLOC.
OLOC can provide you with brochures and ideas. There are videotapes of
Old Lesbians which were previewed at the National Lesbian Conference,
and soon there will be a Speaker's List, and a Handbook on Ageism to use in
discussion groups. You can obtain this resource material through OLOC or
your region's Contact Person. Contact The Old Lesbian Organizing
Committee, P.O . Box 14816, Chicago IL 60614.
•

SISTERS BEWARE

Sam L. Nicolosi, D.V.M.

by Deborah Fox
... of the Patriarchy in the New Age movement. I've had a growing
suspicion about the New Age movement; my gut feeling told me that
all was not love and enlightenment in the house of the family of light.
It started a few years back when I lived in New Mexico. There was
an advertisement for a "Prosperity Workshop" in Albuquerque . In a
storefront building decorated in pastel purples, pinks, and blues, with
an atmosphere of an Art Gallery, I inquired about the workshop to a
soft-spoken woman with curly brown hair. She lovingly informed me
of all the New Age celebrities that would be conducting the seminar,
that it was a three-evening affair over the weekend and that the fee
was $450.00. After I picked my jaw up off the floor I asked her why
the fee was so high, explaining that if I had $450.00 to spare I doubt
I'd need a Prosperity Workshop. Wasn't this a workshop for poor
people? She in turn explained to me ever so gently and simply that the
high cost discouraged those who are not yet willing to change negative
thought patterns and limit the audience to only those who really want
prosperity consciousness, that those who are really serious about this
will create the $450.00 fee. And this as if hierarchy, greed, inequity of
jobs and resources, ecological destruction, and capitalism did not
exist! What for the people most harmed by these injustices! I began to
suspect the New Age movement was elitist (last time I checked the
fees for such seminars and retreats ranged from $740 to $1,000).
Then there's the New Age slogan: We Create Our Own Reality.
Something I couldn't quite pinpoint about this idea, didn't sit right
with me from the start. When I see the commercials about the
starving children all over this world it becomes increasingly clear to
me that there is something wrong with anyone who could advocte
that these children created their reality, or that it is their "karma."
That reeks of scapegoating to me! I suppose the child being abused
created that reality? Or the rape victim; she created that reality? That's
victim blaming, guilt tripping, and it places all the responsibility for
oppression onto the oppressed. I can believe that we are co-creators
of our reality and I do believe we can reclaim our power and create a
better reality, but there are other forces at work too. We are not
isolated islands unto ourselves. We do not create our lives in a
vacuum. And what better way to stifle women from reclaiming our
power than by dragging us down with guilt and blame, causing us to
believe that we created the rapes and abuses, that the suffering from
our oppression is the result of our past life wrongs. We must always
be wary and read between the lines because misogyny is insidious
within language and ideology. Those little nuances that we can
overlook because they seem so trivial can become thorns festering in
our souls. They beat down our self esteem.
Male authors outnumber female authors published in New Age
magazines. Interviewers and interviewees are predominantly male.
The few words spoken about sexism seem token. Though there is
plenty of information, little is written about the Goddess and
Matriarchal cultures. Those that espouse "Prosperity Consciousness"
are middle to upper class and there are tons of outrageously expensive

NICOLOSI ANIMAL HOSPITAL
4015 N.W . 23rd
Oklahoma City

by Appointment
Phone ( 405) 947-5545

New Age goodies flooding the marketplace. Non-Indians exploit, and
therefore defile, Native American spiritual practices. The spiritual
focus is still predominantly Patriarchal. Both eastern and western,
wose transcendental gods are "out there" somewhere above the earth
denying the unity of spirit and matter. The disciplines often aspire to
"rise above" the earthly plane, physical processes (like birth) and
sexual desires. Rarely have I seen the New Age philosophy deal with
the root causes of suffering and injustice -there is far more profit in
treating the symptoms. And now there is the Men's Movement which
seems intent upon neutralizing the Women's Movement and calling
themselves "success objects" (gee, guys, we'd have taken t~ose jobs!),
and articles with quotes like this: ". . . I came to see American
feminism as having a few good points but as mostly being very
damaging and very corrosive, in addition to simply being wrong."
(!!**!)This by the white male New Age guru Ken Wilbur. (No way
guys, you no longer have a monopoly on authority -heck, we can't
even trust you to dispose of your garbage!)
Author and artist, Monica Sjoo has said that: "New Age teachings
have become distorted and biased because of the middle to upper
class privilege of the white men who dominate the movement."
(Women of Power magazine, Winter 1991.) The New Age movement is
being exploited as a vehicle for white male capitalism and used as
another tool in the oppression of women. " ... we as women know
that spirituality cannot be divorced from the struggle against oppression." Sjoo
I agree with Monica and I want to join my sisters in rescuing what is
valuable in New Age teachings and in reclaiming the New Age. As
author Lynn V. Andrews so aptly put it: "I sometimes see women
who have been cheated out of their spiritual heritage just as they have
been cheated out of their minds and bodies. I, for one, struggle against
that theft." You are not alone, Lynn.
Monica Sjoo is the author of: The Great Cosmic Mother, in cahoots
with Barbara Mor, and has a new book: New Age Or Armageddon: The
Goddess Or The Guru? A Feminist Vision Of The Future. Woman Of Power
is a magazine of feminism, spirituality, and politics. For subscription
information, write: Woman of Power, Inc., P.O. Box 827, Cambridge,
MA 02238. Lynn V. Andrews is the author of several books, Flight Of
The Seventh Moon being one of my favorites.
•

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Emphasis on the problems of gay people.
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HERLAND VOICE AUGUST 1991

5

~~---"LADIES SEWING CIRCLE & TERRORIST SOCIETY" Tshirts and sweat-shirts are now available for special order from
Herland. Purple, Turquoise, Red, Royal or Navy . ....
FICTION, CRITICAL ESSAYS AND REVIEWS for and about
women are wanted for a multi-cultural literary journal. Contact The
Artfocus Collection, 822 Guilford Avenue, Suite 153, Baltimore MD
21202; (301) 962-8565 .....
THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF POETRY is sponsoring their
1991 poetry contest. $6,000 in prizes will be awarded. The deadline
for entry is August 30, 191. Contact NLP, 5-E Gwynns Mill Court,
P.O. Box 704A, Owings Mills, MD 21117; (301) 356-2000 .. . ..
THE RAGDALE FOUNDATION OFFERS A WRITING
FELLOWSHIP ANNUALLY to a woman over age 55 who is
beginning a writing career. The winner is given a free 2-month
residency anywhere in the continental U.S. Contact Ragdale, 1260 N.
Green Bay Rd., Lake Forest, IL 60045; (708) 234-1063 . ... .

MANDA.CA iii: (A Poem)
Braced 6etween my thro66ing thighs
bJour supple strength supports my ride
ohrough moonlit vales to sunlit peak
While others dream and others sleep
We glide.
Astride your smooth, sleek frame 9 slide
Pulsing, pumping, Rhythm-tide
oo match your silence with my sighs
!:Jou yield 6eneath my eager stride
We move as one in a summer wind
9, and my two-wheeled twelve-speed friend!

6y Su3an Ceterra

Kay Killgore , M.Ed.
Wo man to Wo man Counseling

1010 NW. 45th
Oklahoma City , Oklahom a 73118
(405) 524-1062

LESBIAN ONLY THERAPY GROUP. For further information
call Jo L. Soske, M.Ed./MHR/CAC at 360-5708 . .. . .
FALL RETREAT - OCTOBER 11 - 13. Mark your caiendars
now. Nancy Scott of Austin, Texas will be our headliner.

DEAR SISTERS:
On Friday, July 12, 1991, 20/20 aired a segment on Naomi Wolf's book,

The Beauty Myth. The segment included an interview with a courageous
16-year-old woman who admitted being absorbed in our society's expectations for
women's appearance. She also spoke honestly of the pain she experiences as a
result of this.
Following the segment, Barbara Walters dismissed Naomi's book as "greatly
exaggerated." She referred to the idea of a feminist backlash as a "crock." She
discounted the interview with the young woman, saying that all 16-year-olds are
insecure. She offered herself as proof that women are not being held back.
I was outraged by 20 / 20' s use of a woman to totally discount our experience.
As most of you know, Naomi Wolf's book is a well documented scholarly
work which was first pu~lished by Oxford University Press. As a teacher and a
therapist, I have seen several women who are killing themselves to try to achieve
"the look." They are all around us, and they are our sisters. Frequently, the
damage done to their bodies will never heal. It is less easy to measure the damage
done to all of our minds and souls.
I do not wish to encourage a great deal of horizontal rage at Barbara Walters.
She is a pawn of the patriarchy which keeps women dieting/dieing. I would like
to ask, though, that you take 5 minutes to send a postcard to 20 / 20 and let them
know that their treatment of women's real pain is inexcusable. The address is:
20/20 Journal Graphics, 267 Broadway, New York, New York 10007. Thank
you for your commitment to women's lives.
Sincerely, Jo L. Soske

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6

HERLAND VOICE AUGUST 1991

DEAR EDITOR,
I was incensed by the letter in a previous issue from Palmira C. She is weary of
"pagan propaganda" -well, I am weary of Catholic propagand and propaganda of other white-male religious denominations and white-male religions.
We live in a world created by men, for men and religion is one of the tools used
by men to retain the status quo. Our lives are saturated with references to and
talk of these white, male religions. Our flag salute contains "one nation under
God." We have prayers before athletic events, at the beginning of the daily state
legislative sessions. We have legislators who physically fight over who will be the
Chaplain for the week. We fougt a war in which God was on our side. We
prayed to God and thanked God regularly on television for our small number of
casualties (our God did not care about the lives of the people of Iraq; guess that
was because they were not Christians!) In the courts, we are often asked to
"swear to God."
To become a member of the Oklahoma Bar Association, a prerequisite for a
permanent practice of law in Oklahoma, an individual must take an oath in
which "God" is used. In Oklahoma, and I would assume most states, in
addition to a Judge or Justice of the Peace, a minister is able to perform
weddings recognized by the law. If you are admitted to a hospital, you are asked
what religion you belong to. It is a foregone conclusion that we all believe in this
white, male god.
References to goddesses in the Voice are infinitesimal when compared to this
"foregone conclusion" of the existence and belief in this white, male god by the
populous. If Palmira C. is so weary of references to "Goddesses" in the Voice, I
wonder if she would attempt to understand how weary I am of "white, male
god" propaganda.
I do not believe in Goddesses for that matter; but I do believe in
women, and references to Goddesses can only promote the image and
welfare of women. Isn't it interesting that the two religions which Ms. C.
refers to are Jewish and Christian-guess Muslims, Hindus, etc. are not
valid. Is that because they were not created by caucasian males?
Thanks to everyone responsible for the Voice.
Take care, take power, and trust joy.

Coleen··woody
PUBLISHED BY: Herland Sister Resources, Inc. 2312 NW 39th, Oklahoma City, OK 73112
NEWSLETIER COMMITIEE: Margaret Cox, Pat Reaves
CIRCULATION: 750
GENERAL INFO: (405) 521-9696 (leave message)
SUBSCRIPTIONS to the Her/and Voice are free upon request.

H E R U\ ~JD

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HERLAND VOICE JULY 1991

7

THE ECONOMY OF DEATH
Amount

Paid for

Could have paid for

$20 million

20 Patriot missiles

Vaccines to protect all the women in Africa from tetanus

$65 million

E-2C Hawkeye aircraft

The estimated total amount of external funds spend on AIDS in Africa in
1990.

$450

M-16 rifle

The training of a primary health care worker to respond to such community
needs as immunization, oral rehydration, antibiotics, safe births and postnatal
care.

$340 million

Two days of air combat

$12.3 billion

Noncombat costs, January-March '91 The total current annual amount of investment in water supply in the
developing world

$500 million

One day of air and ground combat

UNlCEF's 1990-91 budgeted expenditures (plus $48 million)

Oxfam's operating budget-forty-six times over-for 1989-90

$6.9 million

CH-4 7D army transport helicopter All of Save the Children's refugee programs in Indonesia and Thailand, 198990 (providing services for 25,000 people)

$20,000

Stinger missile

Basic medical equipment and building materials for a maternity center in Mali

If you were to spend $1.2 million a day for ten years you would spend $44 billion, the estimated amount spent on the Gulf War
alone (not including long-term costs of operating a base in Saudi Arabia or reconstructing Kuwait) .
Source: Vol 1 No. 6 of Ms. Magazine.

Articles appearing in the voice are the opinion of the author and
do not necessarily reflect the views of Herland Sister Resources.

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