The Herland Voice : v.22: no.6(2004)
- Title
- The Herland Voice : v.22: no.6(2004)
- Description
- The Herland Voice is the monthly publication of Herland Sister Resources, a womanist organization with a strong lesbian focus based in Oklahoma City.
- Date Issued
- 2004-06
- Rights
- All rights reserved by Herland Sister Resources. Contact UCO Archives & Special Collections for the permission policy on the use, reproduction or distribution of these materials.
- Is Part Of
- Herland Voice
- Creator
- Herland Sister Resources
- Date
- 2017-09-02T17:01:16Z
- Date Available
- 2017-09-02T17:01:16Z
- Subject
- Oklahoma
- Type
- application/pdf
- extracted text
-
June 2004
volume 22, number 6
Herland Pride Picnic is Coming Home
Our Annual Pride Picnic, the Saturday before the
Pride Parade, took a road trip last year to the park at
36th & Classen. It was fun, but people encouraged
us to return it to Herland, and so this year, we're
coming home to Herland's backyard. From 5 pm until
about 8, we will grill hamburgers and hotdogs, and
shamburgers and notdogs for our vegetarian friends.
And of course baked beans, coleslaw, potato salad,
chips, as well as • . ----.~
. . all the fixin's for
. · ~ ~ burgers. Also
the dogs and
included in one
-~ ~ ,., low donation of
$5: soft drinks,
the ever popular
bottled water,
and great music!
Oklahoma's own ( ok, Georgia claims her too) Peggy
Johnson will sing for us and emcee. Our lineup is still
fluid as we go to press, but we have a marvelous
supply of good musicians in Oklahoma, and we'll get
a lot of them here to entertain you.
So come early, stay late, bring the kids and have a
good old family picnic with Herland. On Saturday,
June 26, 5 - 8 pm. Call 521-9696 with any questions.
Herland Retreats
Our Spring Retreat at Roman Nose last month
was one of our best ever. IRIS was great, giving us
a Saturday night concert under the stars and singing with the rest of us around the Friday and Saturday campfires. The weather has never been more
perfect - 70's, sunny, no wind. We learned how
to give better massages to our partners and
friends, (the woman who lucked into the job of
practice dummy still has a silly grin on her face)
and learned a lot more about our personality types
and how that affects our relationships. That workshop was conducted by an IRIS harmonica player
and was very well attended, outdoors under the
trees. Only one person fell out of her chair in apparent amazement that she had not ONE alphatype personality trait. The birdwatchers saw a ton
of Painted Buntings, an Indigo Bunting, and two
Road Runners, Everyone pitched in and did their
part, and we all had a wonderful time. It was just a
great group of wimmin.
Next Retreat: September 10 - 12, at Robbers
Cave, one of the most beautiful and fun of our state
parks. Robbers Cave is closer to Texas and Arkansas
than Roman Nose, and we hope some of you Arkansas folks will come over, and that our great new
Texas friends will come back. As soon as we know
who our entertainment will be we'll let you know.
Meanwhile, save the date, and thanks again to all of
the great people who made Roman Nose retreat so
much fun.
Benefit Herland with Planned Giving
There are many ways to donate to Herland. We
have a large donor base of wonderful folks who send
money from time to time, and/or bring us great gifts
- couches, rugs, microwaves, lily bulbs, artwork, and
of course, books. It is also possible to leave Herland
bequests in your will, and via your retirement accounts.
Many people do not know that when retirement
plans such as pension funds, 401(k)s, and IRAs are
left to an individual other than a spouse, they can be
subject to income taxes and estate taxes. The two
taxes combined could erode up to 80% of the remaining benefits.
If bequeathed to a 501(c)3, as Herland is, these
funds would escape income and estate taxes, thereby
reducing the size of your total taxable estate. Herland
would receive 100% of the remaining benefit in your
retirement plan, and the assets in the plan would be
removed from your taxable estate. If you are planning to include Herland in your estate plans, the most
effective way to do so is to leave all or part of your
retirement plan to Herland, setting aside other assets
for partners, family and friends. Naming HSR as
beneficiary of your retirement plan is easy: you need
only to contact the administrator of your retirement
or insurance plan and inform them that you wish to
give all or part of the remainder to Herland Sister Resources, Inc., 2312 NW 39th Street, Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma 73112.
Source, New York Public Library
www.herlandsisters.org
herland sister resources, 2312 nw 39th, oklahoma city, ok 73112
(405) 521-9696
email: herlandsisters@cox.net
bookstore hours: saturdays 1-5 pm
WNBA will be a profitable league by
2007
By Jill Garner
It's that time of year again when the college
basketball season has endebd,
C>
and the WNBA season is a out
~
~~~e~f~~· t~:~~o~l:g~:~=~~~n
1
6~ ~
1
exciting league, and more equal
.~!; \ •
all the time. Sure, the LA
f
-:
Sparks are still pretty dominant
'
in the west, but after their loss last year in the
championship to Detroit, it's no longer a given
that they will win it all.
I saw an article this morning where Val Ackerman, president of the league, announced
that the WNBA will be a profitable league by
2007. She said a few teams have been profitable from the beginning, but this pronouncement is surprising since three teams folded last
year. She also said there are plans to add a
14th team to the league within the next year or
two but did not announce the city.
The league is now entering what some journalists are calling "the Taurasi era", in reference to Diana Taurasi, Connecticut's wonder
girl who was the first draft pick this year,
picked up by the Phoenix Mercury. It will be
interesting to see how she does, and what effect she will have on one of the league's least
successful teams in number of wins. She will
probably experience more than triple the number of losses in her first year with Phoenix than
she did in four years at Connecticut. But she's
really an awesome player and will be a lot of
fun to watch.
The fourth pick in the draft, Lindsey Whalen,
was picked by the Connecticut Sun. Whalen
was the most prolific scorer in Minnesota history, and the darling of the NCAA tournament,
particularly after Minnesota surprisingly
knocked off Duke in the semi-finals. My favorite memory of Whalen is from that game
against Duke when driving to the basket, she
did a beautiful spin move and left Alana Beard
in the dust and made the bucket. People don't
leave Alana Beard behind very often. She's
usually the one leaving everyone else behind.
Speaking of Beard, she was the 2nd pick,
drafted by the Washington Mystics, where former OU player Stacy Dales-Schuman plays.
She will add a really strong presence to a team
that desperately needs help.
One interesting twist to this year's season
is the Olympics, and the WNBA is taking a
break from August 2nd to August 31st, while
some of their biggest stars play for the USA.
The other options were to shorten their season, or continue playing without players like
Sheryl Swoopes, Diana Taurasi, Tina Thompson and Lisa Leslie. Yawn.
Television coverage has expanded this
year with more networks broadcasting
games. ABC, ESPN2, Oxygen, and Telemundo will show more than 60 games this
season. Check www.wnba.com for the complete schedule.
The WNBA is getting more talented players all the time, and fewer teams will continue their dominance. That's good for the
league, and the players, and should make for
some close games and rivalries this year.
Check it out!
Herland Has A Listserve!
About a dozen women met at the Bricktown Brewery and had supper prior to the
Melissa Etheridgeconcert May 19, which they
report They arranged it through the Herland
was a blast. Listserve. If you are not a
member, consider joining. Go to our website
at www.herlandsisters.org and take it from
there.
Help Berland Prepare for Pride Week
On Saturday June 12th, Herland needs
volunteers to help prepare for our annual
Pride Picnic in the back yard. We will begin
at 1 pm and end at 4 pm, giving plenty of
time to rest and clean up for
the Herland Supper Club that
evening. Tasks include cleaning the inside of the building,
cleaning out flower beds, trimming shrubs and general allaround sprucing up the yard. So if you have
from 1 to 3 hours to give, just show up at
Herland on the 12th and your contribution
will be greatly appreciated.
The Therapy Sisters are coming to
town-lune 10th. Watch for details at www.herlandsisters.org
Herland Supper Club
Herland Supper Club will meet at 6 pm on Saturday, June 12th, at Granny Had One in Guthrie.
Following dinner, we will trek across the street to
the Pollard theatre to see "Godspell". Those wishing to car pool from Herland need to meet there at
5:30 pm.
Native American Women
OKC Two-Spirit Society is having meetings for lesbian and bi-sexual women of Native American descent. Please call the OKC Two-Spirit Hotline number at (405) 317-7283 for information.
Womyn of Color
Womyn of Color group meets the 2nd Sunday of
each month. Please email womynofcolor@cox.net
or call (405) 842-3464 or (405) 947-7691 for more
information.
Scrabble Night at Herland
If you like to play games and would like some fun
and fellowship, just show up at Herland at 6 pm
Saturday June 19th. Each month, about 10 women
gather in 2 or 3 groups for a couple of hours of
mental challenge and snacks ($2.00 contribution).
Pride Weekend
Plan to celebrate Pride Week by attending Herland's annual Pride Picnic June 26th, once again in
the back yard at Herland.
The 2004 Festival at Memorial Park will be two
days, Saturday June 26 & Sunday June 27,
2004 with a huge stage of continuous entertainment all afternoon beginning at 3:00 P.M., including special appearances by some of the best of
OKC local talent.
--------------------------~
Don't Forget to Support the Voice!
Your contribution is important! Just $12 a year will
help us pay for the $300+ it costs every month to print
and mail the newsletter.
D
Enclosed is a contribution for $ _ _
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---------------------------
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
•
: HERlAND EVENTS CALENDAR
•
•
•
.ha
•
: Saturday. June 12: Herland Hike at Martin Nature :
• Park, 5000 W. Memorial, 10 am. Meet at
• Panera Bread on Memorial at 9 am prior to the
: hike
• Saturday. June 12: Herland Supper Club In Guth•
• rie-eat at Granny Had One and see
: "Godspell" at the Pollard Theatre
• Saturday. June 12: Herland work day starting at 1
•
•pm.
: Sunday. June 13: Womyn of Color Meeting, call
: 842-3464 for details
• Monday. June 14: OGLPC Monthly Meeting at
•
• the Center, 2135 NW 39th, 7 pm
: Saturday. June 19: Herland Scrabble Night, 6 pm
: Sunday. June 20: Herland Board Meeting, 4 pm,
• everyone welcome
: Saturday. June 26: Herland Pride Picnic in the
: back yard at Herland.
• Sunday. June 27: Herland participates in the
•
• Pride Parade
•
•
••
:
•
•
•
•
•
•
:
•
•
•
:
•
•
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
July
•
Wednesday. July 31: Diversity House Fund raiser •
•
at Herland
•
•
•
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Check Out Our Website of the Month
www.tolerance.org
Saint Sybil
Dear St. Sybil,
I am heartsick and ashamed at our actions in Iraq. I
didn't think we had cause to go to war there, but since
we did, it never occurred to me that we would not behave in an exemplary manner in our occupation. Ha!
Oklahoma's Senator James Inhofe, rapidly making a
national name for himself as the stupidest member of
the Senate, has said that he is more outraged by the
public outrage than by the actions at Abu Ghraib (and
other) prisons.. Well, I am outraged by his kind of attitude.
Two things that concern me a lot about our reactions
to these glimpses of horror: First, I keep hearing the
photos of American soldiers abusing prisoners described
as "S&M photos" - well excuse me, Sybil, I saw plenty of
Sadism, but just where does anyone see any evidence of
the "M" - masochism? I didn't see any sign of enjoyment on the part of the victims.
Secondly, I hear one commentator after another talk
about our soldiers "having sex with the Iraqi women
prisoners, and it was not consensual". Sybil! Why
can't any of them come out and call it what it is: rape.
Rape and sadistic abuse as American policy. Unless we
call it by its correct name we won't be able to come to
terms with it, to adequately apologize and compensate
for it, properly punish it, and put in safeguards to be
sure it doesn't happen again.
Sorrowfully,
Vera D. Jectid
Dear Vera,
I know how you feel - I will see your Heartsick and
Ashamed and raise you an Aghast and Appalled. Also
Confused as to why they keep calling those pictures
"S&M" - that is too bizarre. Perhaps they are trying to
"sexify" them, to minimize it by turning it into sex
games, boys (and girls) will be boys; while really the pictures show total power-over sadistic cruelty.
Of course, rape is a war crime. There may be a
hope that "having sex but not consensually" might not
be recognized as a war crime, who knows. It's clear to
you and me that it is rape, and to everyone else, I think.
I am most amazed by the defense being put
forth by the lawyers and families and, we presume, the perpetrators themselves: they were
just following orders. Didn't these people go to
school? Didn't their school teach history? Did
they not read about the Holocaust? Does the
military not devote even ten minutes to instructions on how to respond to illegal orders? How
can they bear to resort to crying "I was only following orders" and thus align themselves with
guards from Belsen Belsen and Dachau?
And yet, of course, they were just following
orders, and as one of them implored in his court
martial, "This is not me!" And it wasn't him. At
least, it was not the most of him. It was maybe
the 1% of him, the 1 % that is within all of us,
which is capable of terrible deeds. Prison guards
and soldiers are most susceptible; they are abso-
lutely subordinate and subjugated to massively
powerful people - wardens, generals,
"contractors"; and yet themselves have unbridled
power over others, "lower" than themselves .. This
is a recipe for brutality and war crimes, every
time.
And oh! The women involved, at every
level! Am I the only one who read the name
"Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski" and thought "Oh God,
let Janis be a Slav name, let it be a He"? This
more than breaks our hearts, it sears our souls.
But what did we think, really? That deep down,
women were better than men? That it was all
hormonal? Drat that testosterone, it's responsible
for all the woes of the world? Or did we think it
was the conditioning, if we would just allow little
boys to be gentle and cry, they would be as kind
and sweet as women? Well, we have certainly
had to disabuse ourselves of that notion. It's a
good thing to let little boys cry and all, but it is
not a panacea. We need to search for the root
cause of this tragedy, and unlike the drunk who
lost his keys in the shadows but is looking under
the street lamp because the light is better, we
need to search in the deep shadows where lie the
rationalization of war itself, greed, ambition, arrogance,, revenge, self-righteousness and the hubris stemming from an obscene notion of superiority and Empire.
Sharing your sorrow,
Sybil
The Beauty Industry's Ugly Secret
For decades, cosmetic companies have made
products containing chemical compounds that have
been linked to reproductive birth defects and cancer. The compounds are phthalates (pronounced
THA-laytes)
and they help cosmetics adhere ~
"-··
without smudging.
The Euror . 1(~ pean Union has
ban~ed phtha~~~~ lates from ~~I cosmetics and
i~ now a coalition of
advocacy
~ groups has given
U.S. companies a deadline to
support a ban.
Three environmentally-conscious manufacturers
(Body Shop International, Urban Decay Cosmetics
and Aveda Corporation) have already volunteered
to remove phthalates from all their products. Estee
Lauder Companies, Inc. and Procter and Gamble
were the only large, multinational companies to
follow suit--and they have done so by removing
phthalates from one product only, nail polish.
Now, Avon Products, Inc has. announced it will
remove phthalates from all its makeup as a result
of their "wish to allay public concern, not a safety
concern," contending that phthalates are not dangerous.
"Chemicals linked to birth defects and infertility
don't belong in cosmetics," says Bryony Schwan, a
spokesperson for the Montana-based advocacy
group Women's Voices for the Earth. "We demand
that manufacturers act responsibly and immediately
remove them from the products that we use every
day."
Source: wv.'w.womensenews.coril
Fighting the Bad Legislation
"Oklahoma - going out of business" was the
headline on an ad in the Business section of USA
Today recently. The ad, authored and paid for by
Cimarron Equality Oklahoma (www.eqok.org) featured the distinctive outline of Oklahoma with a
"Closed" sign hanging on it. And why is Oklahoma closed for business?
Because, according to Richard Florida in his
best-selling book "The Rise of the Creative Class",
one of the major indices of whether a city will
grow or stagnate is its "diversity" index; and with
the abhorrent bills passed by Oklahoma's legislature this year, our Diversity index, already abysmally low, will take a nosedive. Progressive companies will not move their businesses to a state
which does not welcome their workers. Studies
show that a state's level of tolerance for its Gay
and Lesbian citizens directly impacts its success in
attracting the talented people and creative atmosphere essential for economic growth in today's
competitive marketplace. 211 of the Fortune 500
companies offer Domestic Partner Health benefits,
and the large majority of them have nondiscriminatory policies which include sexual orientation.
Oklahoma City has in recent years abolished
the Human Rights Commission, in order to keep
sexual orientation out of their anti-discrimination
policies. They have yanked Gay Pride banners
from Classen Avenue poles, passed a law to forbid
flying gay pride banners, and when that law was
shot down, fought and lost an expensive lawsuit
over the banners - paid with glbt as well as
straight tax dollars, needless to say.
And then the clincher was this legislative session, when the folks at the Capitol sent an anti-gay
Marriage amendment to a vote of the people in November, and passed that most harmful of legislation, the anti-gay adoption bill . This is not the kind
of lawmaking which will bring Dell and Delphi to
the state.
Most people looking at the adoption bill think it
is most clearly unconstitutional, and that it was
just passed as a kind of anti-gay grandstanding on
the part of the lege. Just a little political gaybashing. Within the next few weeks a lawsuit will
be filed to find it unconstitutional.
Cimarron is saying that these bills, and this
history, are anti-business, and hope that the
business community can be persuaded to say so
also. Cimarron is also conducting polling to determine the best way to fight the anti-Marriage
amendment. Collective wisdom says that the
amendment will pass big, but CW's been wrong
before. For the next five months there will be a
massive statewide educational campaign to defeat it. Legal opinion is divided on whether or
not the Amendment can be kept off the ballot,
and there will be attempts at that also. If it is on
the ballot and does pass in November, a legal
challenge will be mounted at that time to overturn it.
If you have a particular interest in the outcome of either of these two issues, feel free to
email Margaret at herlandsisters@cox.net
PEACE CAMP Give your kids a wonderful week this summer. The Spiritual Walk for Peace, the Peace
House, and Pax Christi, OKC, are sponsoring a
Peace Camp for youth ages 12 - 16. The
camp will be held the week of July 19-24,
2004, in the facilities of Church of the Open
Arms, 3131 N. Pennsylvania, Oklahoma City.
This is not a religious or church program and
people of any and all, or no faith, are invited.
It will be from 10am - 6 pm, with an overnight Friday night ending at 10: 30 am Saturday morning.
The camp will be a celebration of nonviolence and student-led activism for justice
and compassion.
Youth will make new friends in creative activities exploring community building, conflict
resolution, anger management, and peacemaking. They will laugh, eat, play games,
watch videos, share fun arts and
crafts adventures, have small group discussions, learn about the history of civil rights
and non-violence, and get a global perspective. The overnight "Lock In" Friday night
will be a highlight of the week.
The registration fee of $55 per camper for
the week includes meals, snacks, materials,
and staff costs.
Some scholarship money is available. Questions: email: KmcCallie@aol.com , or call 5259555
Registration forms are available at
www .okpeacemakers.org
-
June 2004
volume 22, number 6
Herland Pride Picnic is Coming Home
Our Annual Pride Picnic, the Saturday before the
Pride Parade, took a road trip last year to the park at
36th & Classen. It was fun, but people encouraged
us to return it to Herland, and so this year, we're
coming home to Herland's backyard. From 5 pm until
about 8, we will grill hamburgers and hotdogs, and
shamburgers and notdogs for our vegetarian friends.
And of course baked beans, coleslaw, potato salad,
chips, as well as • . ----.~
. . all the fixin's for
. · ~ ~ burgers. Also
the dogs and
included in one
-~ ~ ,., low donation of
$5: soft drinks,
the ever popular
bottled water,
and great music!
Oklahoma's own ( ok, Georgia claims her too) Peggy
Johnson will sing for us and emcee. Our lineup is still
fluid as we go to press, but we have a marvelous
supply of good musicians in Oklahoma, and we'll get
a lot of them here to entertain you.
So come early, stay late, bring the kids and have a
good old family picnic with Herland. On Saturday,
June 26, 5 - 8 pm. Call 521-9696 with any questions.
Herland Retreats
Our Spring Retreat at Roman Nose last month
was one of our best ever. IRIS was great, giving us
a Saturday night concert under the stars and singing with the rest of us around the Friday and Saturday campfires. The weather has never been more
perfect - 70's, sunny, no wind. We learned how
to give better massages to our partners and
friends, (the woman who lucked into the job of
practice dummy still has a silly grin on her face)
and learned a lot more about our personality types
and how that affects our relationships. That workshop was conducted by an IRIS harmonica player
and was very well attended, outdoors under the
trees. Only one person fell out of her chair in apparent amazement that she had not ONE alphatype personality trait. The birdwatchers saw a ton
of Painted Buntings, an Indigo Bunting, and two
Road Runners, Everyone pitched in and did their
part, and we all had a wonderful time. It was just a
great group of wimmin.
Next Retreat: September 10 - 12, at Robbers
Cave, one of the most beautiful and fun of our state
parks. Robbers Cave is closer to Texas and Arkansas
than Roman Nose, and we hope some of you Arkansas folks will come over, and that our great new
Texas friends will come back. As soon as we know
who our entertainment will be we'll let you know.
Meanwhile, save the date, and thanks again to all of
the great people who made Roman Nose retreat so
much fun.
Benefit Herland with Planned Giving
There are many ways to donate to Herland. We
have a large donor base of wonderful folks who send
money from time to time, and/or bring us great gifts
- couches, rugs, microwaves, lily bulbs, artwork, and
of course, books. It is also possible to leave Herland
bequests in your will, and via your retirement accounts.
Many people do not know that when retirement
plans such as pension funds, 401(k)s, and IRAs are
left to an individual other than a spouse, they can be
subject to income taxes and estate taxes. The two
taxes combined could erode up to 80% of the remaining benefits.
If bequeathed to a 501(c)3, as Herland is, these
funds would escape income and estate taxes, thereby
reducing the size of your total taxable estate. Herland
would receive 100% of the remaining benefit in your
retirement plan, and the assets in the plan would be
removed from your taxable estate. If you are planning to include Herland in your estate plans, the most
effective way to do so is to leave all or part of your
retirement plan to Herland, setting aside other assets
for partners, family and friends. Naming HSR as
beneficiary of your retirement plan is easy: you need
only to contact the administrator of your retirement
or insurance plan and inform them that you wish to
give all or part of the remainder to Herland Sister Resources, Inc., 2312 NW 39th Street, Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma 73112.
Source, New York Public Library
www.herlandsisters.org
herland sister resources, 2312 nw 39th, oklahoma city, ok 73112
(405) 521-9696
email: herlandsisters@cox.net
bookstore hours: saturdays 1-5 pm
WNBA will be a profitable league by
2007
By Jill Garner
It's that time of year again when the college
basketball season has endebd,
C>
and the WNBA season is a out
~
~~~e~f~~· t~:~~o~l:g~:~=~~~n
1
6~ ~
1
exciting league, and more equal
.~!; \ •
all the time. Sure, the LA
f
-:
Sparks are still pretty dominant
'
in the west, but after their loss last year in the
championship to Detroit, it's no longer a given
that they will win it all.
I saw an article this morning where Val Ackerman, president of the league, announced
that the WNBA will be a profitable league by
2007. She said a few teams have been profitable from the beginning, but this pronouncement is surprising since three teams folded last
year. She also said there are plans to add a
14th team to the league within the next year or
two but did not announce the city.
The league is now entering what some journalists are calling "the Taurasi era", in reference to Diana Taurasi, Connecticut's wonder
girl who was the first draft pick this year,
picked up by the Phoenix Mercury. It will be
interesting to see how she does, and what effect she will have on one of the league's least
successful teams in number of wins. She will
probably experience more than triple the number of losses in her first year with Phoenix than
she did in four years at Connecticut. But she's
really an awesome player and will be a lot of
fun to watch.
The fourth pick in the draft, Lindsey Whalen,
was picked by the Connecticut Sun. Whalen
was the most prolific scorer in Minnesota history, and the darling of the NCAA tournament,
particularly after Minnesota surprisingly
knocked off Duke in the semi-finals. My favorite memory of Whalen is from that game
against Duke when driving to the basket, she
did a beautiful spin move and left Alana Beard
in the dust and made the bucket. People don't
leave Alana Beard behind very often. She's
usually the one leaving everyone else behind.
Speaking of Beard, she was the 2nd pick,
drafted by the Washington Mystics, where former OU player Stacy Dales-Schuman plays.
She will add a really strong presence to a team
that desperately needs help.
One interesting twist to this year's season
is the Olympics, and the WNBA is taking a
break from August 2nd to August 31st, while
some of their biggest stars play for the USA.
The other options were to shorten their season, or continue playing without players like
Sheryl Swoopes, Diana Taurasi, Tina Thompson and Lisa Leslie. Yawn.
Television coverage has expanded this
year with more networks broadcasting
games. ABC, ESPN2, Oxygen, and Telemundo will show more than 60 games this
season. Check www.wnba.com for the complete schedule.
The WNBA is getting more talented players all the time, and fewer teams will continue their dominance. That's good for the
league, and the players, and should make for
some close games and rivalries this year.
Check it out!
Herland Has A Listserve!
About a dozen women met at the Bricktown Brewery and had supper prior to the
Melissa Etheridgeconcert May 19, which they
report They arranged it through the Herland
was a blast. Listserve. If you are not a
member, consider joining. Go to our website
at www.herlandsisters.org and take it from
there.
Help Berland Prepare for Pride Week
On Saturday June 12th, Herland needs
volunteers to help prepare for our annual
Pride Picnic in the back yard. We will begin
at 1 pm and end at 4 pm, giving plenty of
time to rest and clean up for
the Herland Supper Club that
evening. Tasks include cleaning the inside of the building,
cleaning out flower beds, trimming shrubs and general allaround sprucing up the yard. So if you have
from 1 to 3 hours to give, just show up at
Herland on the 12th and your contribution
will be greatly appreciated.
The Therapy Sisters are coming to
town-lune 10th. Watch for details at www.herlandsisters.org
Herland Supper Club
Herland Supper Club will meet at 6 pm on Saturday, June 12th, at Granny Had One in Guthrie.
Following dinner, we will trek across the street to
the Pollard theatre to see "Godspell". Those wishing to car pool from Herland need to meet there at
5:30 pm.
Native American Women
OKC Two-Spirit Society is having meetings for lesbian and bi-sexual women of Native American descent. Please call the OKC Two-Spirit Hotline number at (405) 317-7283 for information.
Womyn of Color
Womyn of Color group meets the 2nd Sunday of
each month. Please email womynofcolor@cox.net
or call (405) 842-3464 or (405) 947-7691 for more
information.
Scrabble Night at Herland
If you like to play games and would like some fun
and fellowship, just show up at Herland at 6 pm
Saturday June 19th. Each month, about 10 women
gather in 2 or 3 groups for a couple of hours of
mental challenge and snacks ($2.00 contribution).
Pride Weekend
Plan to celebrate Pride Week by attending Herland's annual Pride Picnic June 26th, once again in
the back yard at Herland.
The 2004 Festival at Memorial Park will be two
days, Saturday June 26 & Sunday June 27,
2004 with a huge stage of continuous entertainment all afternoon beginning at 3:00 P.M., including special appearances by some of the best of
OKC local talent.
--------------------------~
Don't Forget to Support the Voice!
Your contribution is important! Just $12 a year will
help us pay for the $300+ it costs every month to print
and mail the newsletter.
D
Enclosed is a contribution for $ _ _
_
D
Please add me to the mailing list for The Voice.
D
Please change my address (new address below).
Name
Street _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
City _ _ __ _ _ __ _ State _ _ Zip _ __
---------------------------
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
•
: HERlAND EVENTS CALENDAR
•
•
•
.ha
•
: Saturday. June 12: Herland Hike at Martin Nature :
• Park, 5000 W. Memorial, 10 am. Meet at
• Panera Bread on Memorial at 9 am prior to the
: hike
• Saturday. June 12: Herland Supper Club In Guth•
• rie-eat at Granny Had One and see
: "Godspell" at the Pollard Theatre
• Saturday. June 12: Herland work day starting at 1
•
•pm.
: Sunday. June 13: Womyn of Color Meeting, call
: 842-3464 for details
• Monday. June 14: OGLPC Monthly Meeting at
•
• the Center, 2135 NW 39th, 7 pm
: Saturday. June 19: Herland Scrabble Night, 6 pm
: Sunday. June 20: Herland Board Meeting, 4 pm,
• everyone welcome
: Saturday. June 26: Herland Pride Picnic in the
: back yard at Herland.
• Sunday. June 27: Herland participates in the
•
• Pride Parade
•
•
••
:
•
•
•
•
•
•
:
•
•
•
:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
July
•
Wednesday. July 31: Diversity House Fund raiser •
•
at Herland
•
•
•
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Check Out Our Website of the Month
www.tolerance.org
Saint Sybil
Dear St. Sybil,
I am heartsick and ashamed at our actions in Iraq. I
didn't think we had cause to go to war there, but since
we did, it never occurred to me that we would not behave in an exemplary manner in our occupation. Ha!
Oklahoma's Senator James Inhofe, rapidly making a
national name for himself as the stupidest member of
the Senate, has said that he is more outraged by the
public outrage than by the actions at Abu Ghraib (and
other) prisons.. Well, I am outraged by his kind of attitude.
Two things that concern me a lot about our reactions
to these glimpses of horror: First, I keep hearing the
photos of American soldiers abusing prisoners described
as "S&M photos" - well excuse me, Sybil, I saw plenty of
Sadism, but just where does anyone see any evidence of
the "M" - masochism? I didn't see any sign of enjoyment on the part of the victims.
Secondly, I hear one commentator after another talk
about our soldiers "having sex with the Iraqi women
prisoners, and it was not consensual". Sybil! Why
can't any of them come out and call it what it is: rape.
Rape and sadistic abuse as American policy. Unless we
call it by its correct name we won't be able to come to
terms with it, to adequately apologize and compensate
for it, properly punish it, and put in safeguards to be
sure it doesn't happen again.
Sorrowfully,
Vera D. Jectid
Dear Vera,
I know how you feel - I will see your Heartsick and
Ashamed and raise you an Aghast and Appalled. Also
Confused as to why they keep calling those pictures
"S&M" - that is too bizarre. Perhaps they are trying to
"sexify" them, to minimize it by turning it into sex
games, boys (and girls) will be boys; while really the pictures show total power-over sadistic cruelty.
Of course, rape is a war crime. There may be a
hope that "having sex but not consensually" might not
be recognized as a war crime, who knows. It's clear to
you and me that it is rape, and to everyone else, I think.
I am most amazed by the defense being put
forth by the lawyers and families and, we presume, the perpetrators themselves: they were
just following orders. Didn't these people go to
school? Didn't their school teach history? Did
they not read about the Holocaust? Does the
military not devote even ten minutes to instructions on how to respond to illegal orders? How
can they bear to resort to crying "I was only following orders" and thus align themselves with
guards from Belsen Belsen and Dachau?
And yet, of course, they were just following
orders, and as one of them implored in his court
martial, "This is not me!" And it wasn't him. At
least, it was not the most of him. It was maybe
the 1% of him, the 1 % that is within all of us,
which is capable of terrible deeds. Prison guards
and soldiers are most susceptible; they are abso-
lutely subordinate and subjugated to massively
powerful people - wardens, generals,
"contractors"; and yet themselves have unbridled
power over others, "lower" than themselves .. This
is a recipe for brutality and war crimes, every
time.
And oh! The women involved, at every
level! Am I the only one who read the name
"Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski" and thought "Oh God,
let Janis be a Slav name, let it be a He"? This
more than breaks our hearts, it sears our souls.
But what did we think, really? That deep down,
women were better than men? That it was all
hormonal? Drat that testosterone, it's responsible
for all the woes of the world? Or did we think it
was the conditioning, if we would just allow little
boys to be gentle and cry, they would be as kind
and sweet as women? Well, we have certainly
had to disabuse ourselves of that notion. It's a
good thing to let little boys cry and all, but it is
not a panacea. We need to search for the root
cause of this tragedy, and unlike the drunk who
lost his keys in the shadows but is looking under
the street lamp because the light is better, we
need to search in the deep shadows where lie the
rationalization of war itself, greed, ambition, arrogance,, revenge, self-righteousness and the hubris stemming from an obscene notion of superiority and Empire.
Sharing your sorrow,
Sybil
The Beauty Industry's Ugly Secret
For decades, cosmetic companies have made
products containing chemical compounds that have
been linked to reproductive birth defects and cancer. The compounds are phthalates (pronounced
THA-laytes)
and they help cosmetics adhere ~
"-··
without smudging.
The Euror . 1(~ pean Union has
ban~ed phtha~~~~ lates from ~~I cosmetics and
i~ now a coalition of
advocacy
~ groups has given
U.S. companies a deadline to
support a ban.
Three environmentally-conscious manufacturers
(Body Shop International, Urban Decay Cosmetics
and Aveda Corporation) have already volunteered
to remove phthalates from all their products. Estee
Lauder Companies, Inc. and Procter and Gamble
were the only large, multinational companies to
follow suit--and they have done so by removing
phthalates from one product only, nail polish.
Now, Avon Products, Inc has. announced it will
remove phthalates from all its makeup as a result
of their "wish to allay public concern, not a safety
concern," contending that phthalates are not dangerous.
"Chemicals linked to birth defects and infertility
don't belong in cosmetics," says Bryony Schwan, a
spokesperson for the Montana-based advocacy
group Women's Voices for the Earth. "We demand
that manufacturers act responsibly and immediately
remove them from the products that we use every
day."
Source: wv.'w.womensenews.coril
Fighting the Bad Legislation
"Oklahoma - going out of business" was the
headline on an ad in the Business section of USA
Today recently. The ad, authored and paid for by
Cimarron Equality Oklahoma (www.eqok.org) featured the distinctive outline of Oklahoma with a
"Closed" sign hanging on it. And why is Oklahoma closed for business?
Because, according to Richard Florida in his
best-selling book "The Rise of the Creative Class",
one of the major indices of whether a city will
grow or stagnate is its "diversity" index; and with
the abhorrent bills passed by Oklahoma's legislature this year, our Diversity index, already abysmally low, will take a nosedive. Progressive companies will not move their businesses to a state
which does not welcome their workers. Studies
show that a state's level of tolerance for its Gay
and Lesbian citizens directly impacts its success in
attracting the talented people and creative atmosphere essential for economic growth in today's
competitive marketplace. 211 of the Fortune 500
companies offer Domestic Partner Health benefits,
and the large majority of them have nondiscriminatory policies which include sexual orientation.
Oklahoma City has in recent years abolished
the Human Rights Commission, in order to keep
sexual orientation out of their anti-discrimination
policies. They have yanked Gay Pride banners
from Classen Avenue poles, passed a law to forbid
flying gay pride banners, and when that law was
shot down, fought and lost an expensive lawsuit
over the banners - paid with glbt as well as
straight tax dollars, needless to say.
And then the clincher was this legislative session, when the folks at the Capitol sent an anti-gay
Marriage amendment to a vote of the people in November, and passed that most harmful of legislation, the anti-gay adoption bill . This is not the kind
of lawmaking which will bring Dell and Delphi to
the state.
Most people looking at the adoption bill think it
is most clearly unconstitutional, and that it was
just passed as a kind of anti-gay grandstanding on
the part of the lege. Just a little political gaybashing. Within the next few weeks a lawsuit will
be filed to find it unconstitutional.
Cimarron is saying that these bills, and this
history, are anti-business, and hope that the
business community can be persuaded to say so
also. Cimarron is also conducting polling to determine the best way to fight the anti-Marriage
amendment. Collective wisdom says that the
amendment will pass big, but CW's been wrong
before. For the next five months there will be a
massive statewide educational campaign to defeat it. Legal opinion is divided on whether or
not the Amendment can be kept off the ballot,
and there will be attempts at that also. If it is on
the ballot and does pass in November, a legal
challenge will be mounted at that time to overturn it.
If you have a particular interest in the outcome of either of these two issues, feel free to
email Margaret at herlandsisters@cox.net
PEACE CAMP Give your kids a wonderful week this summer. The Spiritual Walk for Peace, the Peace
House, and Pax Christi, OKC, are sponsoring a
Peace Camp for youth ages 12 - 16. The
camp will be held the week of July 19-24,
2004, in the facilities of Church of the Open
Arms, 3131 N. Pennsylvania, Oklahoma City.
This is not a religious or church program and
people of any and all, or no faith, are invited.
It will be from 10am - 6 pm, with an overnight Friday night ending at 10: 30 am Saturday morning.
The camp will be a celebration of nonviolence and student-led activism for justice
and compassion.
Youth will make new friends in creative activities exploring community building, conflict
resolution, anger management, and peacemaking. They will laugh, eat, play games,
watch videos, share fun arts and
crafts adventures, have small group discussions, learn about the history of civil rights
and non-violence, and get a global perspective. The overnight "Lock In" Friday night
will be a highlight of the week.
The registration fee of $55 per camper for
the week includes meals, snacks, materials,
and staff costs.
Some scholarship money is available. Questions: email: KmcCallie@aol.com , or call 5259555
Registration forms are available at
www .okpeacemakers.org
-
June 2004
volume 22, number 6
Herland Pride Picnic is Coming Home
Our Annual Pride Picnic, the Saturday before the
Pride Parade, took a road trip last year to the park at
36th & Classen. It was fun, but people encouraged
us to return it to Herland, and so this year, we're
coming home to Herland's backyard. From 5 pm until
about 8, we will grill hamburgers and hotdogs, and
shamburgers and notdogs for our vegetarian friends.
And of course baked beans, coleslaw, potato salad,
chips, as well as • . ----.~
. . all the fixin's for
. · ~ ~ burgers. Also
the dogs and
included in one
-~ ~ ,., low donation of
$5: soft drinks,
the ever popular
bottled water,
and great music!
Oklahoma's own ( ok, Georgia claims her too) Peggy
Johnson will sing for us and emcee. Our lineup is still
fluid as we go to press, but we have a marvelous
supply of good musicians in Oklahoma, and we'll get
a lot of them here to entertain you.
So come early, stay late, bring the kids and have a
good old family picnic with Herland. On Saturday,
June 26, 5 - 8 pm. Call 521-9696 with any questions.
Herland Retreats
Our Spring Retreat at Roman Nose last month
was one of our best ever. IRIS was great, giving us
a Saturday night concert under the stars and singing with the rest of us around the Friday and Saturday campfires. The weather has never been more
perfect - 70's, sunny, no wind. We learned how
to give better massages to our partners and
friends, (the woman who lucked into the job of
practice dummy still has a silly grin on her face)
and learned a lot more about our personality types
and how that affects our relationships. That workshop was conducted by an IRIS harmonica player
and was very well attended, outdoors under the
trees. Only one person fell out of her chair in apparent amazement that she had not ONE alphatype personality trait. The birdwatchers saw a ton
of Painted Buntings, an Indigo Bunting, and two
Road Runners, Everyone pitched in and did their
part, and we all had a wonderful time. It was just a
great group of wimmin.
Next Retreat: September 10 - 12, at Robbers
Cave, one of the most beautiful and fun of our state
parks. Robbers Cave is closer to Texas and Arkansas
than Roman Nose, and we hope some of you Arkansas folks will come over, and that our great new
Texas friends will come back. As soon as we know
who our entertainment will be we'll let you know.
Meanwhile, save the date, and thanks again to all of
the great people who made Roman Nose retreat so
much fun.
Benefit Herland with Planned Giving
There are many ways to donate to Herland. We
have a large donor base of wonderful folks who send
money from time to time, and/or bring us great gifts
- couches, rugs, microwaves, lily bulbs, artwork, and
of course, books. It is also possible to leave Herland
bequests in your will, and via your retirement accounts.
Many people do not know that when retirement
plans such as pension funds, 401(k)s, and IRAs are
left to an individual other than a spouse, they can be
subject to income taxes and estate taxes. The two
taxes combined could erode up to 80% of the remaining benefits.
If bequeathed to a 501(c)3, as Herland is, these
funds would escape income and estate taxes, thereby
reducing the size of your total taxable estate. Herland
would receive 100% of the remaining benefit in your
retirement plan, and the assets in the plan would be
removed from your taxable estate. If you are planning to include Herland in your estate plans, the most
effective way to do so is to leave all or part of your
retirement plan to Herland, setting aside other assets
for partners, family and friends. Naming HSR as
beneficiary of your retirement plan is easy: you need
only to contact the administrator of your retirement
or insurance plan and inform them that you wish to
give all or part of the remainder to Herland Sister Resources, Inc., 2312 NW 39th Street, Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma 73112.
Source, New York Public Library
www.herlandsisters.org
herland sister resources, 2312 nw 39th, oklahoma city, ok 73112
(405) 521-9696
email: herlandsisters@cox.net
bookstore hours: saturdays 1-5 pm
WNBA will be a profitable league by
2007
By Jill Garner
It's that time of year again when the college
basketball season has endebd,
C>
and the WNBA season is a out
~
~~~e~f~~· t~:~~o~l:g~:~=~~~n
1
6~ ~
1
exciting league, and more equal
.~!; \ •
all the time. Sure, the LA
f
-:
Sparks are still pretty dominant
'
in the west, but after their loss last year in the
championship to Detroit, it's no longer a given
that they will win it all.
I saw an article this morning where Val Ackerman, president of the league, announced
that the WNBA will be a profitable league by
2007. She said a few teams have been profitable from the beginning, but this pronouncement is surprising since three teams folded last
year. She also said there are plans to add a
14th team to the league within the next year or
two but did not announce the city.
The league is now entering what some journalists are calling "the Taurasi era", in reference to Diana Taurasi, Connecticut's wonder
girl who was the first draft pick this year,
picked up by the Phoenix Mercury. It will be
interesting to see how she does, and what effect she will have on one of the league's least
successful teams in number of wins. She will
probably experience more than triple the number of losses in her first year with Phoenix than
she did in four years at Connecticut. But she's
really an awesome player and will be a lot of
fun to watch.
The fourth pick in the draft, Lindsey Whalen,
was picked by the Connecticut Sun. Whalen
was the most prolific scorer in Minnesota history, and the darling of the NCAA tournament,
particularly after Minnesota surprisingly
knocked off Duke in the semi-finals. My favorite memory of Whalen is from that game
against Duke when driving to the basket, she
did a beautiful spin move and left Alana Beard
in the dust and made the bucket. People don't
leave Alana Beard behind very often. She's
usually the one leaving everyone else behind.
Speaking of Beard, she was the 2nd pick,
drafted by the Washington Mystics, where former OU player Stacy Dales-Schuman plays.
She will add a really strong presence to a team
that desperately needs help.
One interesting twist to this year's season
is the Olympics, and the WNBA is taking a
break from August 2nd to August 31st, while
some of their biggest stars play for the USA.
The other options were to shorten their season, or continue playing without players like
Sheryl Swoopes, Diana Taurasi, Tina Thompson and Lisa Leslie. Yawn.
Television coverage has expanded this
year with more networks broadcasting
games. ABC, ESPN2, Oxygen, and Telemundo will show more than 60 games this
season. Check www.wnba.com for the complete schedule.
The WNBA is getting more talented players all the time, and fewer teams will continue their dominance. That's good for the
league, and the players, and should make for
some close games and rivalries this year.
Check it out!
Herland Has A Listserve!
About a dozen women met at the Bricktown Brewery and had supper prior to the
Melissa Etheridgeconcert May 19, which they
report They arranged it through the Herland
was a blast. Listserve. If you are not a
member, consider joining. Go to our website
at www.herlandsisters.org and take it from
there.
Help Berland Prepare for Pride Week
On Saturday June 12th, Herland needs
volunteers to help prepare for our annual
Pride Picnic in the back yard. We will begin
at 1 pm and end at 4 pm, giving plenty of
time to rest and clean up for
the Herland Supper Club that
evening. Tasks include cleaning the inside of the building,
cleaning out flower beds, trimming shrubs and general allaround sprucing up the yard. So if you have
from 1 to 3 hours to give, just show up at
Herland on the 12th and your contribution
will be greatly appreciated.
The Therapy Sisters are coming to
town-lune 10th. Watch for details at www.herlandsisters.org
Herland Supper Club
Herland Supper Club will meet at 6 pm on Saturday, June 12th, at Granny Had One in Guthrie.
Following dinner, we will trek across the street to
the Pollard theatre to see "Godspell". Those wishing to car pool from Herland need to meet there at
5:30 pm.
Native American Women
OKC Two-Spirit Society is having meetings for lesbian and bi-sexual women of Native American descent. Please call the OKC Two-Spirit Hotline number at (405) 317-7283 for information.
Womyn of Color
Womyn of Color group meets the 2nd Sunday of
each month. Please email womynofcolor@cox.net
or call (405) 842-3464 or (405) 947-7691 for more
information.
Scrabble Night at Herland
If you like to play games and would like some fun
and fellowship, just show up at Herland at 6 pm
Saturday June 19th. Each month, about 10 women
gather in 2 or 3 groups for a couple of hours of
mental challenge and snacks ($2.00 contribution).
Pride Weekend
Plan to celebrate Pride Week by attending Herland's annual Pride Picnic June 26th, once again in
the back yard at Herland.
The 2004 Festival at Memorial Park will be two
days, Saturday June 26 & Sunday June 27,
2004 with a huge stage of continuous entertainment all afternoon beginning at 3:00 P.M., including special appearances by some of the best of
OKC local talent.
--------------------------~
Don't Forget to Support the Voice!
Your contribution is important! Just $12 a year will
help us pay for the $300+ it costs every month to print
and mail the newsletter.
D
Enclosed is a contribution for $ _ _
_
D
Please add me to the mailing list for The Voice.
D
Please change my address (new address below).
Name
Street _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
City _ _ __ _ _ __ _ State _ _ Zip _ __
---------------------------
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
•
: HERlAND EVENTS CALENDAR
•
•
•
.ha
•
: Saturday. June 12: Herland Hike at Martin Nature :
• Park, 5000 W. Memorial, 10 am. Meet at
• Panera Bread on Memorial at 9 am prior to the
: hike
• Saturday. June 12: Herland Supper Club In Guth•
• rie-eat at Granny Had One and see
: "Godspell" at the Pollard Theatre
• Saturday. June 12: Herland work day starting at 1
•
•pm.
: Sunday. June 13: Womyn of Color Meeting, call
: 842-3464 for details
• Monday. June 14: OGLPC Monthly Meeting at
•
• the Center, 2135 NW 39th, 7 pm
: Saturday. June 19: Herland Scrabble Night, 6 pm
: Sunday. June 20: Herland Board Meeting, 4 pm,
• everyone welcome
: Saturday. June 26: Herland Pride Picnic in the
: back yard at Herland.
• Sunday. June 27: Herland participates in the
•
• Pride Parade
•
•
••
:
•
•
•
•
•
•
:
•
•
•
:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
July
•
Wednesday. July 31: Diversity House Fund raiser •
•
at Herland
•
•
•
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Check Out Our Website of the Month
www.tolerance.org
Saint Sybil
Dear St. Sybil,
I am heartsick and ashamed at our actions in Iraq. I
didn't think we had cause to go to war there, but since
we did, it never occurred to me that we would not behave in an exemplary manner in our occupation. Ha!
Oklahoma's Senator James Inhofe, rapidly making a
national name for himself as the stupidest member of
the Senate, has said that he is more outraged by the
public outrage than by the actions at Abu Ghraib (and
other) prisons.. Well, I am outraged by his kind of attitude.
Two things that concern me a lot about our reactions
to these glimpses of horror: First, I keep hearing the
photos of American soldiers abusing prisoners described
as "S&M photos" - well excuse me, Sybil, I saw plenty of
Sadism, but just where does anyone see any evidence of
the "M" - masochism? I didn't see any sign of enjoyment on the part of the victims.
Secondly, I hear one commentator after another talk
about our soldiers "having sex with the Iraqi women
prisoners, and it was not consensual". Sybil! Why
can't any of them come out and call it what it is: rape.
Rape and sadistic abuse as American policy. Unless we
call it by its correct name we won't be able to come to
terms with it, to adequately apologize and compensate
for it, properly punish it, and put in safeguards to be
sure it doesn't happen again.
Sorrowfully,
Vera D. Jectid
Dear Vera,
I know how you feel - I will see your Heartsick and
Ashamed and raise you an Aghast and Appalled. Also
Confused as to why they keep calling those pictures
"S&M" - that is too bizarre. Perhaps they are trying to
"sexify" them, to minimize it by turning it into sex
games, boys (and girls) will be boys; while really the pictures show total power-over sadistic cruelty.
Of course, rape is a war crime. There may be a
hope that "having sex but not consensually" might not
be recognized as a war crime, who knows. It's clear to
you and me that it is rape, and to everyone else, I think.
I am most amazed by the defense being put
forth by the lawyers and families and, we presume, the perpetrators themselves: they were
just following orders. Didn't these people go to
school? Didn't their school teach history? Did
they not read about the Holocaust? Does the
military not devote even ten minutes to instructions on how to respond to illegal orders? How
can they bear to resort to crying "I was only following orders" and thus align themselves with
guards from Belsen Belsen and Dachau?
And yet, of course, they were just following
orders, and as one of them implored in his court
martial, "This is not me!" And it wasn't him. At
least, it was not the most of him. It was maybe
the 1% of him, the 1 % that is within all of us,
which is capable of terrible deeds. Prison guards
and soldiers are most susceptible; they are abso-
lutely subordinate and subjugated to massively
powerful people - wardens, generals,
"contractors"; and yet themselves have unbridled
power over others, "lower" than themselves .. This
is a recipe for brutality and war crimes, every
time.
And oh! The women involved, at every
level! Am I the only one who read the name
"Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski" and thought "Oh God,
let Janis be a Slav name, let it be a He"? This
more than breaks our hearts, it sears our souls.
But what did we think, really? That deep down,
women were better than men? That it was all
hormonal? Drat that testosterone, it's responsible
for all the woes of the world? Or did we think it
was the conditioning, if we would just allow little
boys to be gentle and cry, they would be as kind
and sweet as women? Well, we have certainly
had to disabuse ourselves of that notion. It's a
good thing to let little boys cry and all, but it is
not a panacea. We need to search for the root
cause of this tragedy, and unlike the drunk who
lost his keys in the shadows but is looking under
the street lamp because the light is better, we
need to search in the deep shadows where lie the
rationalization of war itself, greed, ambition, arrogance,, revenge, self-righteousness and the hubris stemming from an obscene notion of superiority and Empire.
Sharing your sorrow,
Sybil
The Beauty Industry's Ugly Secret
For decades, cosmetic companies have made
products containing chemical compounds that have
been linked to reproductive birth defects and cancer. The compounds are phthalates (pronounced
THA-laytes)
and they help cosmetics adhere ~
"-··
without smudging.
The Euror . 1(~ pean Union has
ban~ed phtha~~~~ lates from ~~I cosmetics and
i~ now a coalition of
advocacy
~ groups has given
U.S. companies a deadline to
support a ban.
Three environmentally-conscious manufacturers
(Body Shop International, Urban Decay Cosmetics
and Aveda Corporation) have already volunteered
to remove phthalates from all their products. Estee
Lauder Companies, Inc. and Procter and Gamble
were the only large, multinational companies to
follow suit--and they have done so by removing
phthalates from one product only, nail polish.
Now, Avon Products, Inc has. announced it will
remove phthalates from all its makeup as a result
of their "wish to allay public concern, not a safety
concern," contending that phthalates are not dangerous.
"Chemicals linked to birth defects and infertility
don't belong in cosmetics," says Bryony Schwan, a
spokesperson for the Montana-based advocacy
group Women's Voices for the Earth. "We demand
that manufacturers act responsibly and immediately
remove them from the products that we use every
day."
Source: wv.'w.womensenews.coril
Fighting the Bad Legislation
"Oklahoma - going out of business" was the
headline on an ad in the Business section of USA
Today recently. The ad, authored and paid for by
Cimarron Equality Oklahoma (www.eqok.org) featured the distinctive outline of Oklahoma with a
"Closed" sign hanging on it. And why is Oklahoma closed for business?
Because, according to Richard Florida in his
best-selling book "The Rise of the Creative Class",
one of the major indices of whether a city will
grow or stagnate is its "diversity" index; and with
the abhorrent bills passed by Oklahoma's legislature this year, our Diversity index, already abysmally low, will take a nosedive. Progressive companies will not move their businesses to a state
which does not welcome their workers. Studies
show that a state's level of tolerance for its Gay
and Lesbian citizens directly impacts its success in
attracting the talented people and creative atmosphere essential for economic growth in today's
competitive marketplace. 211 of the Fortune 500
companies offer Domestic Partner Health benefits,
and the large majority of them have nondiscriminatory policies which include sexual orientation.
Oklahoma City has in recent years abolished
the Human Rights Commission, in order to keep
sexual orientation out of their anti-discrimination
policies. They have yanked Gay Pride banners
from Classen Avenue poles, passed a law to forbid
flying gay pride banners, and when that law was
shot down, fought and lost an expensive lawsuit
over the banners - paid with glbt as well as
straight tax dollars, needless to say.
And then the clincher was this legislative session, when the folks at the Capitol sent an anti-gay
Marriage amendment to a vote of the people in November, and passed that most harmful of legislation, the anti-gay adoption bill . This is not the kind
of lawmaking which will bring Dell and Delphi to
the state.
Most people looking at the adoption bill think it
is most clearly unconstitutional, and that it was
just passed as a kind of anti-gay grandstanding on
the part of the lege. Just a little political gaybashing. Within the next few weeks a lawsuit will
be filed to find it unconstitutional.
Cimarron is saying that these bills, and this
history, are anti-business, and hope that the
business community can be persuaded to say so
also. Cimarron is also conducting polling to determine the best way to fight the anti-Marriage
amendment. Collective wisdom says that the
amendment will pass big, but CW's been wrong
before. For the next five months there will be a
massive statewide educational campaign to defeat it. Legal opinion is divided on whether or
not the Amendment can be kept off the ballot,
and there will be attempts at that also. If it is on
the ballot and does pass in November, a legal
challenge will be mounted at that time to overturn it.
If you have a particular interest in the outcome of either of these two issues, feel free to
email Margaret at herlandsisters@cox.net
PEACE CAMP Give your kids a wonderful week this summer. The Spiritual Walk for Peace, the Peace
House, and Pax Christi, OKC, are sponsoring a
Peace Camp for youth ages 12 - 16. The
camp will be held the week of July 19-24,
2004, in the facilities of Church of the Open
Arms, 3131 N. Pennsylvania, Oklahoma City.
This is not a religious or church program and
people of any and all, or no faith, are invited.
It will be from 10am - 6 pm, with an overnight Friday night ending at 10: 30 am Saturday morning.
The camp will be a celebration of nonviolence and student-led activism for justice
and compassion.
Youth will make new friends in creative activities exploring community building, conflict
resolution, anger management, and peacemaking. They will laugh, eat, play games,
watch videos, share fun arts and
crafts adventures, have small group discussions, learn about the history of civil rights
and non-violence, and get a global perspective. The overnight "Lock In" Friday night
will be a highlight of the week.
The registration fee of $55 per camper for
the week includes meals, snacks, materials,
and staff costs.
Some scholarship money is available. Questions: email: KmcCallie@aol.com , or call 5259555
Registration forms are available at
www .okpeacemakers.org
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