The Herland Voice : v.10: no.8(1993)
- Title
- The Herland Voice : v.10: no.8(1993)
- 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
- 1993-08
- 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
- 2017-09-02T17:03:13Z
- Date Available
- 2017-09-02T17:03:13Z
- Subject
- Oklahoma
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- application/pdf
- extracted text
-
io~HERLAND ~
August, 1993
.
ICE
MILITARY POLICY
AL1x Is
DENOUNCED
The Herland Fall Retreat scheduled for September 24-26
will feature entertainer Alix Dobkin. The irrepressible Alix
Dobkin, "goddess of womyn' s music", is an international
women's folk singer who consistently demonstrates hWnor,
compassion, and intelligence.
A "feminist folkie" with impressive vocal agility,
Dobkin celebrates the diversity of international lesbian culture ·
in songs interspersed with witty political banter. Those who
know her through her music and reputation are delighted that
she will be Herland' s guest performer at the September 25
retreat, and those in the community who were privileged to
spend an evening of dinner and storytelling with her some years
ago are thrilled at the prospect of her return to Oklahoma.
Alix will perform Saturday evening, September 25, at the
Herland Fall '93 Retreat at Lake Murray. Entry to the concert
is included in the Retreat Registration price. For those not
registered at the retreat, concert-only admission is $10.00.
The 1993 Fall Retreat will be held at Lake Murray State
Park near Ardmore, OK. In addition to the performance by Alix
Dobkin , there will be plenty of opportunity for women to have
fun together, learn from each other and build community. Any
one who is interested in presenting a workshop or leading a
discussion is encouraged to come prepared. The workshop
sign-up and schedule will be done at the retreat.
Favorite activities from previous retreats will also be a part
of this retreat. Bring your musical instrument, poetry, or other
talent to share in the open mike time. Saturday night will
feature the famous potluck with our (and your) favorite foods.
There's sure to be a campfire and campfire songs.
Send your registration now to guarantee your spot at the
retreat -- it's sure to fill up fast. A registration form is included
in this issue of The Voice . Pre-registration is required for all
scholarship requests. Advance registration is also required for
children. All girls and boys under 10 are may attend with their
parent without additional registration costs.
Wat ch for the September Voice for more retreat details. D
Simply Equal of Oklahoma City joined with lesbian and
gay advocacy groups nationwide condemning the
Administration's new policy on lesbians and gays in the
military and pledging to continue the struggle for a complete
lifting of the ban.
Simply Equal has announced plans for a town meeting to
discuss the Administration's new policy and further actions to
support complete lifting of the ban on lesbians and gays in the
military. The town meeting will be held August 3 at 7 :00 P .M.
at Triangle Associates, 2136 N.W. 39, Oklahoma City.
''Simply Equal of OKC feels that the ban is unacceptable,
unconstitutional, and unjust. This policy is based solely on
stereotypes, prejudices, and ignorance .... Simply Equal of OKC
calls for an end to the ban so that all patriotic Americans have
the opportunity to serve their country,'' according to a statement released by chapter spokespersons, Peggy Johnson and
Terry Gatewood.
Thomas Stoddard, Coordinator of the Campaign for Military Service, called the new policy, " 'let's pretend' -- 'lets
pretend' gay people don't exist." He said the policy provides
no advance for lesbian and gay service members. "In short,
under the new policy, lesbian and gay service members may be
gay only in the abstract -- only in their private unarticulated
thoughts."
Torrie Osburn, NGLTF executive director, denounced the
new policy as an unworkable codification of the current
discriminatory policy. ·'This policy is simply a re-packaging
of discrimination. It enforces the closet, which is an exhausting
exercise in half truths and blatant lies.''
The announcement of the new policy, "don't ask, don' t
tell, don't pursue," prompted protests in dozens of cities. In
Washington, D.C., lesbian and gay veterans and leaders of
several national organizations were arrested outside the White
House following a demonstration.
Tanya Domi, a former Army captain and current director
of the NGL TFMilitary Freedom Initiative, participated in civil
disobedience for the first time. She said, "I've played by the
rules all my life. But today, it is my duty as a veteran and as an
advocate for gay and lesbian people to engage in this act of civil
disobedience.''
Lesbian and gay leaders continue to call for a complete
lifting of the ban. ·'Nothing less than a complete lifting of the
ban can uphold the high constitutional standard of our country,
that all people are created equal,'' according to Simply Equal.
COMING!
(continued page 5)
Volume IO Number 8
Herland Sister Resources
2312 N.W. 39, OKC, OK 73112
ST. SYBIL
St. Sybil is an occasional contributor to this space. She welcomes
questions, yearnings, befuddlements, unspecified nebulous
ponderings, deep queries, deep thoughts, ridiculous questions - any
inquiry at all upon which an observer from a distant time station
might shed illumination.
Dear St. Sybil,
A hot topic in our community these days is ''outing" - the
ethics thereof, etc. What do you think about outing?
Sincerely,
Wanda Duright
Dear Ms. Duright,
Well, I try not to think about it, but when I have to, I have
a lot of concerns about it. For instance, who does the outing,
who is outed, what is the purpose, what is the result, who wins,
who loses - that kind of thing.
When I first learned about outing, and realized that people
were not talking about a picnic at Grandmother's house or a trip
to the museum, I assumed that it was the vicious work of
rampant homophobes, designed to destroy the lives of gay and
lesbian people of fame and achievement - because I have
noticed that the comer grocer or friendly low level public
employee seldom achieves the dubious distinction of being
outed.
Imagine my surprise to discover that outing of '' lesbigay''
people is inevitably (not counting the military witch hunts, of
course) the work of other lesbigays. Imagine also the surprise
of many of those here with me who were earthly victims of
deadly pogroms and persecutions. Harriet Tubman, Matron
Saint of the Ferociously Brave, assures me that she doesn't
know of a single case during her lifetime where· 'the white side
of the family,'' as former mayor of Atlanta and Ambassador to
the United Nations Andrew Young described some of his
relatives, were exposed - outed - as black by other blacks.
What is the purpose of outing? Allegedly it is to gain
greater support for gays and lesbians by showing the straight
world how many upstanding, mainstream people are gay; this
to me is a twisted use of the valid insight that if all of the gays
and lesbians in the world were to come out, the straight world
would be impressed, amazed, and robbed of the capacity or
desire to pass mean, malicious, homophobic laws. ·
But, dear Ms. Duright, everyone is not coming out en
masse, and the fact is that actors who makes a living as sex
objects will have their earnings and opportunities seriously
impaired by the public perception of them as gay or lesbian.
Politicians aspiring to high office, or low for that matter, will
likely have their ambitions stifled by the public's knowledge of
their homosexuality.
People in favor of outing sometimes use the argument that
the closet is a miserable, unhappy place, and that people will be
better off once they are out and can breathe free. Puhleeze, this
is paternalistic rubbish at its oiliest. Let's let people determine
their own fate, their own progress, their own agenda, their own
lives. It's one thing to throw yourself on a grenade to save your
buddies, and another to throw someone else on it.
The way it looks from here, and putting the best light on it,
outing is a tactic of terrorism, designed to improve the Ii ves of
many at the expense of one. (Though many here with me think
it's just meanness, pure and simple). Does anyone in your time
continuum really still believe that the end justifies the means?
I hope not.
By the way, did you hear the one about the plane load of
lesbians and gays that ran into trouble? The pilot came on the
PA and announced that they were running short of fuel, and the
bad news was that they were going to have to jettison five
people; and the really bad news was that they had no parachutes, and needed volunteers to jump. After a moment a lanky
gay Texan in a cowboy hat stood up, shouted " Remember the
Alamo, ' ' and jumped out. Next, an Oklahoma lesbian stood
up, shouted ''Viva Amelia Earhart,'' and jumped out. After a
few moments of stunned silence and appreciation, a Queer
Nation member from New York stood up, shouted "No more
hiding in closets!'' - and tossed ounwo movie stars and a US
Senator.
Best wishes for being happily and voluntarily out,
Sybil
Dear St. Sybil,
I'm involved with a wonderful woman, warm, passionate,
kind, funny and smart, and we are thinking of moving in
together and committing to each other, but there's one thing
that really bothers me: I never get to touch the tv remote
control. She seems to think that control of the damn thing is
her birthright or something. Can you give me some good ideas
on how to change this situation?
Thank you,
Patsy
Dear Patsy,
· Well now, honey, I suggest that you just get over it, right
now. There are only two kinds of people in the world, you
know, those who are alw;iys going to control the remote and
most everything else, and those who like you are basically
along for the ride. (You never got to control the remote even
when it was just you and your kids, did you now.) So you have
two options: you can fret and bum and harbor little resentments
and one day kick her and the damn remote and the horse she
rode in on out the door and down the street, or you can relax,
put your feet up (she might rub them) and save your energy for
more important things; like running for the school board,
organizing anew chapterof Simply Equal, or figuring out what
to get her for her birthday. Be glad you found each other.
Love and kisses,
Cl
Sybil
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2 Her/and Voice August, 1993
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BACKLASH
by Vivien Ng
I have been in New York for three full weeks already. ·I
have seen three movies and one Broadway play (Angels in
America), been to three museums and a botanical garden, so
I should be in a good mood today. But I am not. Current events
have overwhelmed me.
A friend from DC came to visit and brought with her a
copy of the Private Eye Weekly, a Salt Lake City newspaper.
The front page told a stark and frightening story: ''Farr From
Over,'' about the firing of a professor at Brigham Young
University because of her politics. According to the report,
Cecilia Konchar Farr incurred the wrath of Mormon church
elders and the university adminstration with her "anti-abortion but pro-choice political stance'' and her advising a group
of student feminists on the BYU campus.
A call this morning from a women's studies professor at
Penn State deepened my sense of doom and gloom. She
related a harrowing tale of two years of relentless harassment
and out-of-context attacks on her and the Women's Studies
Program by a well-funded conservative student-run newspaper. The university administration had been at b~st only
lukewarm in their support for Women's Studies and women on
campus. She asked: "Isn't there something the National
Women's Studies Association can do to fight this backlash?''
The New York Times reports that two Clinton nominees
are in trouble with the right wing. Dr. Tara J. O'Toole's
confirmation by the Senate as Assistant Secretary for Energy
is no longer assured, because she has come under intense
scrutiny for her membership in a study group, Northeast
Feminist Scholars. Dr. Joycelyn Elders, Surgeon-General
designate, has come under increasingly hostile attack from the
religious rightfor her pro-choice views and outspoken support
for school-based clinics and sex education. Her confirmation
hearing has been postponed. (I hope that by the tim:e this issue
of the Voice reaches your mailbox the Senate has come to its
senses and moved to confirm both of them.)
This litany of feminist woes continues: The House of
Representatives voted to reauthorize the Hyde Amendment,
even though pro-choice activists had expected a very different
outcome. So, although the Amendment was modified slightly
to make exceptions for rape or incest, poor women in the U.S.
will continue to be denied the same access to abortion as their
middle-class sisters.
Much of the backlash has been in evidence for years;
there's even a national bestseller on the subject, so why am I
feeling so blue? Like so many of my fellow travelers, I was
ecstatic over the results of the election last November. Finally, I have voted for a winner for a change and, more
important, someone whose position on many key issues is
(read was) compatible with mine. I have allowed myself to
dream about greater changes to come: passage of the lesbian
and gay civil rights act; the end to sinister exploitation of
racism, sexism, and homophobia; the repeal of the Hyde
Amendment; the passage of a "clean" Freedom of Choice
Act, etc., etc.
What has happened since is nothing short of betrayal. The
about-face with regard to Haitian boatpeople, the timid handling of the ban on lesbians and gays in the military, the long
delay in appointing an AIDS czar, the abandoning of Lani
Guinier, etc., etc. all spelled unprincipled politics as usual. I
have since scraped off my Clinton/Gore bumper sticker.
There is enough blame to spread around. When Lani
Guinier was nominated, for example, mainstream women's
groups did not immediately mobilize to support her. Unlike the
quick response to the nominations of Robert Bork and Clarence
Thomas to the U.S. Supreme Court, when grassroots activists
were immediately contacted to lobby against them, there had
been only a disturbing silence. The unexpected vote to
reauthorize the Hyde Amendment, according to a number of
irate Congresswomen, was a result of failure in Congressional
leadership, which did not recognize the latent class bias of
many of the so-called pro-choice lawmakers.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg pointed out on the first day of Senate
hearings to confirm her nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court
that after the landmark Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, prochoice groups became complacent. How true. Mainstream
groups did not mobilize when the Hyde Amendment was first
passed. Their middle class bias clouded their vision and
allowed the religious right to chisel away at a woman's right to
have an abortion until almost too late. I do hope that we have
learned a hard lesson from history and not fall prey to easy (and
seductive) complacency.
[J
WE SHARE A DREAM
The 30th Anniversary of the 1963 civil rights March on
Washington, which featured Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s
historic ''I Have A Dream'' speech, will be marked by another
March on Washington, to take place on August 28, 1993. The
New Coalition of Conscience will convene a massive march
and rally at the Lincoln Memorial to renew the call for jobs,
justice, and peace. NGLTF is one of the co-conveners of the
March, and is coordinating a contingent of gay and lesbian
marchers to join this unprecedented coalition.
To find out more about the March on Washington Mobilization, call their Southeast office at 404-526-8995 or 404-5241956. To participate in the lesbian and gay contingent, call
Linda Yanney at 202-332-6483.
[J
OKLAHOMA NOW NEWS
Oklahoma NOW is organizing a phone tree to be used
during the legislative session when bills of critical importance
to women come before Congress and the Oklahoma state
legislature. Six to eight times a year, the phone tree will be
activated to inform members of important legislative votes or
other important events, so that calls and letters from their
constituents will get their elected officials' attention. If you
would like to be a member of this phone tree, send your name
and telephone number to Laura Rhodes, NOW Legislative
Coordinator, 1009 Missouri Avenue, Norman OK 73071). [J
Her/and Voice August, 1993
3
DEAR B1LL:
So WHAT HAVE
You DoNE FOR
Us
LATELY?
by Carol Wheller and Abby Hirsch
Well, quite a lot, come to think about it. But why, then,
have so many of us felt so bitterly disappointed? We've seen
retreats here, concessions there. But maybe we're looking at
this wrong. Maybe we're at fault. Maybe we've been sitting
back and expecting one man to change a whole Congress and
a whole country.
Maybe we're playing into the hands of the Doles and the
Nunns and the Borens and the editors of The New York Snides
when we put you down.
It's been a long time since anyone has taken on the issues
you have. They're incredibly complicated, divisive, important
issues and it's no surprise you haven't won them all.
Actually trying to make the economy work for anyone but
the rich, for instance--when was the last time anyone did that?
The previous twelve years saw even Democrats raising taxes on
the middle class and letting the rich get away with untold
boodle. They said you didn't fight hard enough for your plan.
(Meanwhile, what did we do?)
Taking on the banks: You dared to suggest that banks
shouldn't be making money on young people's struggle for
education. And it looks like enough in Congress might be
persuaded to agree to help lower the burden of debt on the
nation's graduates.
And the issue of gays in the military--because you pushed
the issue from the beginning, the level of public consciousness
about homosexuality has risen enormously, as has acceptance.
In fact, it looks like people are beginning to come around on the
issue, beginning to wonder just what the big deal is. Didn't
these guys know there were going to take a lot of showers and
spend a lot of nights with other guys when they joined up? Is that
maybe one reason they did join up (but they would rather not
think about it)?
Things you've been able to do with the fabled stroke of the
pen, you've done, and fast: repealed the gag rule; approved the
importation of RU486; reversed the Mexico City policy that
restricted aid to international family planning programs; lifted
the ban on fetal tissue research and the ban on women having
abortions in military hospitals abroad; appointed the first
woman attorney general and nominated the second woman
associate justice of the Supreme Court.
Other things we have now that we'dalmost given up hope
for: The Family Leave Act and the NIH Reauthorization Act
(with the historic provisions on women's health research) and
the Motor Voter Bill--you fought for them and you signed them
into law.
Pamela Maraldo, president of the Planned Parenthood
Federation of America, says you've "launched a new era in
~erican health care." Texas Governor Ann Richards says,
We have not had a leader in Washington for more than a
decade that understands the obvious fact that 'Women' s
Issues' are the issues that affect a majority of Americans.
President Clinton not only understands ...he has acted upon it."
Could it be that DeeDee Myers is right when she says of
your adminstration, ''We have done more for women s rights
in the last 100 days than happened in the last twelve years.
Sometimes our achievements get lost in a wave of negativity.
And then there are the not-so-little things, like the White
House dress code: ' 'They let us wear trousers to work now; it
makes a big difference,'' says Kim Wood, White House intern.
And the White House club code unequivocally demands that
staffers resign from organizations with the slightest taint of
discrimination. And, of course, the White House correspondence code; it's kind of disarming, Bill, that when you answer
a letter, you start it, "Dear Carol and Abby".
So What's Bugging Us? The way you sometimes raise
our hopes only to let them come crashing to the ground.
Whenever you nominate a "first woman" --or a second or a
third--for Justice or another high office, all of us shine with
reflected glory. Then sometimes you or your staff let her down,
-, or worse, blame her for other's errors, or worst, attack her
writings for things they didn't say or that you should have
known. Then we are all humilitated, because these women are
our champions. (We feel sorry for Judge Breyer, but we view
the constituency as less vulnerable.)
If you'll take this to heart, we'll try to stop carping, stop
saying you' re not fighting hard enough, and pick up our rolling
pins and join the battle. And then, dear Bill, maybe we can say
All is forgiven (for now).
Reprinted from Getting It Gazette.
Talking frankly woman-to-woman is what the Getting lt Ga_
Wk does best. All current contributors of$35 or more receive
all 1993 issues. Send contributions to: Getting It Gazette, 451
West 24th Street, New York, New York 10011. Telephone 2121
229-0763 Fax 0758.
[J
'Ifie
AfcAfow Sisters
Mowing · Fertilizing · Trimming
·Light Hauling
"We are Insured"
Nancy
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4 Her/and Voice August, 1993
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73120
FUNDING FOR PROGRAMS
IMPORTANT TO WOMEN
Three bills providing international assistance were approved by the House of Representatives in June. All three -- the
foreign aid authorization and foreign operations appropriations bills and the State Department authorization bill -- contain
provisions aiding women in developing nations.
One of the key provisions would provide funding for the
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The largest multilateral provider of family planning services in the developing
world, UNFPA has not received U. S . funds since 1985. The
Reagan Administration withdrew funding because UNFPA
operates in China, which has been accused of involuntarily
sterilizing women and performing coercive abortions. The
Clinton Administration supports refunding UNFPA, and asked
for $50 million for the program in its fiscal 1994 budget.
Under the State Department authorization bill, which was
approved June 22, UNFPA would be eligible for $50 million.
However, nearly $14 million of that amount would be withheld
unless UNFPA withdraws from China. The foreign operations
appropriations bill, approved June 17, includes the additional
stipulation that none of the funds for UNFPA be released until
March 1, unless UNFPA ends its operations in China before that
date.
The foreign aid authorization bill, approved by the House
on June 16, authorizes $395 million for family planning and
population programs, while the appropriations bill provides
$392 million in actual spending, $42 million more than last
year, and only slightly less than President Clinton's request of
$400 million. The appropriations bill funds the migration and
refugee assistance program at the Department of State at $670
million, up from $620, and includes language supporting staff
training programs for staff who work with refugees identifying
and addressing the needs of refugee women.
Included in the State Department authorization bill is
language, authored by Rep. Olympia Snowe, Co-Chair of the
Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, addressing women's
human rights and the needs of female refugees. The bill urges
the State Department to designate a senior level official to
promote the issue of international women's human rights
within the overall human rights policy of the U.S. In addition,
the bill requires the State Department to address specific
concerns of refugee women, including protection of women
refugees, maternal and child health, education and training for
refugee women, staff training programs on women refugees,
and involving women refugees in planning and implementing
the delivery of services. An estimated 80 percent of refugees
around the world are women and children.
The Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Terrorism, Narcotics and International Operations approved its version of the State Department bill on June 29, but without the
refugee or human rights language. However, such language is
likely to be added as an amendment when the full Foreign
Relations Committee takes up the bill in July.
BAN DENOUNCED
(continued from page 1)
Stoddard pledged, •'The debate will continue. The struggle
will endure. And the ultimate goal will be realized: eventually,
completely and universally, lesbians and gay men will achieve
their right to equal treatment in the armed forces of the United
States.
"This issue will not go away, and the gay and lesbian
movement will not go away,'' Domi said. "This capitulation to
bigotry will not deterour struggle for equality and fairness. The
'don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue' policy is completely
unacceptable. We will fight the policy in the streets, in the
courts, and in Congress. We will not end this battle until we
attain justice.''
The Senate Armed Services Committee has included policy
to continue the ban on lesbians and gays in the military in the
$262 billion defense budget under consideration. The legislation includes language opposing homosexuality and providing
for discharge of a service member who engages or attempts to
engage in a homosexual act, states verbally ornon-verbally that
they are homosexual or marries or tries to marry someone of the
same sex. The full Senate is expected to consider the defense
budget before it leaves for summer recess on August 9.
IJ
CREATING CHANGE
UPDATE
Scholarships for NGLTF's Creating Change Conference,
to be held in Durham, North Carolina, are available to assist
limited-income activists, activists of color, and activists with
disabilities. The scholarship application deadline is September
10 (student deadline is September 24). To receive an application, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to Creating
Change 1993 at NGLTF, 1734 14th St. NW, Washington DC
20009. Apply early. Funds are limited.
To make a contribution to the Creating Change Scholarship Fund or for any other information about Creating Change
1993, contact Ivy Young, Directorof Creating Change, at 202332-6483, ext. 3304.
1J
Leaf It To Us!
732-4258
Floral Designs
Silk and Fresh
Tropical Plants
Sales and Maintenance
Thank you Her/and for your help after
our loses during the May 8th flood.
Pam & Chris
Reprinted from Update On Women and Family Issues In
Congress VOL. 13 NO. 6, June 29, 1993.
IJ
Her/and Voice August, 1993
5
El..EANoRROOSEVELT-VOL 1: 18U1933
by Blanche Wiesen Cook
Published by Penguin Books
Reviewed by Carol White
For Mother's Day this year I received three pair of men's
gold toe socks, an ancient coin to add to my collection, and my
veryownpaperbackeditionof Eleanor Roosevelt- Voll: 18841933 by Blanche Wiesen Cook. I won't share my socks, I'll let
you see the coin (no touching), but I want to let everyone share
in appreciating Eleanor Roosevelt!
Cook presents by far the most thoroughly researched look
at E.R. (Eleanor Roosevelt) to date. Don't be put off by it's
length of 500 pages or the $14.00 price sticker. The book is
most worthy of your investment of time and money. Wrapped
in an intriguingly warm style, Cook's writing flows with candor
and savvy.
With great ease I could give a lengthy litany on each
chapter of the book. Briefly, among the most notable are the
relationships E.R. had with Marie Souvestre (founder of
Allenswood,a progressive feminist •'finishing'' school in England), Ester Lape and her life-partner Elizabeth Read (impressive political activists), and Nancy Cook and her life-partner
Marion Dickerman (Cook was a potter, jeweler, photographer,
and carpenter; Dickerman was an educator and political activ~Q.
"
Skillful and touching is the author's handling of the impact
of Lorena Hicok on the life of E.R. Long "suspected" as a
lesbian affair, Blanche Wiesen Cook, with intuiti"e accuracy,
discusses the realities of the relationship. Gently reminding the
reader that physical intimacy is never the be-all and end-all of
love shared between women, Blanche Wiesen Cook elevates
the decency of privacy. There are no •'scandal sheet'' details
spewed forth here. There needn't be.
A few months ago, I saw Blanche Wiesen Cook interviewed on C-SP AN. She was rather unassuming and very witty
at times. Yet, when asked a difficult or seemingly trivial detail
about E.R., she at once let the audience know they were in the
presence of the world's leading authority on the life and times
of Eleanor Roosevelt. Close to the end of the interview Cook
was asked about the dedication she gives very humbly at the
beginning of the book. She replied that the book is dedicated
to Clare M. Coss, her life-partner of more than 20 years.
(Stirrings of pride and shrieks of joy rattled the rafters in my
living room at that nonchalant reply!)
I wish Cooks' E.R. Vol. II was already in print. Perhaps it
will be by nextMother'sDay. You can betl'll letyouknow.D
2109 S. AiR DEpor
Midwm CiTY, OK 7 ~ l l 0
(405 )7H -0496
AiR DEpoT ANiMAl HospiTAl
CAil loR AppoiNTMENT
6 Berland Voice August, 1993
JOY HUSKA, D.V.M .
HOUSE APPROVES
DISEASE AND VIOLENCE
PREVENTION BILLS
With an overwhelming majority supporting the measures,
the House easily passed three bills in June authorizing funds for
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to
administer programs important for women's health. On June
14, the House passed the Breast and Cervical Cancer Amendments of 1993 (H.R. 2202) and the Injury Prevention and
Control Amendments of 1993 (H.R. 2201). The following
week, on June 21, the House approved H.R. 2203, legislation
reauthorizing a program for the prevention and control of
sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).
H.R. 2202 extends for five years the Breast and Cervical
Cancer Mortality Prevention Act which authorizes state programs to provide mammograms and pap smears for lowincome women. Currently, 12 states have funding for comprehensive screening programs and an additional 18 states are in
the planning stages. The bill authorizes $135 million for the
program in fiscal 1994, nearly $50 million above President
Clinton's request for the program.
Included in H.R. 2202 are several new provisions to
improve and expand the breast and cervical cancer prevention
programs. Due to concerns that Native American women are
not being adequately served by this program, language in the
bill allows tribes and tribal organizations to apply for funds. In
addition, H.R. 2202 sets aside $3 million in 1994 for three
demonstration projects to provide to women additional preventive health services. Such additional services include screening
for high blood pressure, cholesterol, and sexually transmitted
diseases.
The Injury Prevention and Control Amendments add provisions to the current CDC injury control program designed to
improve the treatment and prevention of domestic violence and
sexual assault. Modeled on legislation introduced by Reps. Jim
McDermott, Constance Morella, andMike Kreidler, H.R. 2201
authorizes CDC to collect data, evaluate prevention efforts, and
establish hospital-based demonstration projects to identify and
treat victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. In
addition, the bill calls for public education projects on the
health consequences of domestic violence. Speaking in support
ofH.R. 2201, Rep. Kreidlernoted, "among the people who do
not understand the connection between violence and public
health are our health care providers. It is time to break the
silence surrounding these issues of victimization and get women
the help they need.'' H.R. 2201 authorizes $50 million for the
program for FY 94.
The SexuallyTransmittedDiseasesAmendmentsof 1993,
funds states to continue providing STD prevention and control
programs which primarily screen for STDs, such as chlamydia
and gonorrhea. Authorized at $80 million in fiscal 1994, the
program is of particular importance to women and infants who
are athighriskof suffering infertility, infant mortality and birth
defects because of STDs.
Reprinted from Update On Women and Family Issues In
Congress, VOL. 13 NO. 6, June 29, 1993.
D
AUGUST
19 9 3
Doc Herland says, Ohmigosh, we 1 ve got Alix Dobkin coming in September, a Harvest Moon Ball in October, and then
just guess who'll be here November 18th! Well, Doc's not telling, but save the date; you'll be glad you did.
Sunday
Monday
2
Tuesday
3
\Wednesday Thursday
5
4
Friday
7
6
Simply Equal
7 PRl
Zoom Beach
CoDA, 7 pm
Tri an Elle
Associates
8
9
10
Simpl:y Equal
7 pm
Herland
11,-.,
Saturday
MARY
REYNOLDS
tilt
Rose Stale
Tom Steed
Center
pm
e
12
13
CoDA, 7 pm
HISS BROJWN
TO YOU
at
vzo·s
8:45 p.m.
15
16
HERL AND
BOARD
MEETING
4:30 pm
22
17
18
19
20
21
Simpl:y Equal
CoDA, 7 pm
7 PDI
Herland
23
24
25
26
Simpl:y Equal
7
pm
27
MARY
REYNOLDS
at the
Country
Coffee
in Tyler, TX
..
Her land
CoDA, 7 pm
29
30
2
~~:.f.:•:
'?":!l· 'J
~ · ·.1::
PEG·c°f'
JOHNSON
9 Pl1 at the
Grateful Bean
31
Simpl:y Equal
7
Piii
Herland
Lucy Stone, August 13, 1819 - 1893. US reformer, campaigner for
women's rights, and fervent abolitionist. She helped to found
the American Woman Suffrage Association in 1869 and edited its
magazine .Wanan's Journal from 1870 -1893 .
HERLAND SISTER RESOlJRCES, INC.
2312 N\\I 39th Street
Oklahoma City. Oklahoma 73112
405/ 521-Q6Q6
Hours: Saturdays 10 - 6: Sundays 1 - 6
l
- -- - --
- -- --
-
-
-
-
- --
- - - -- -- - - - -- - - - -
- - -
-
NonProfit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Oklahoma City, Okla.
Permit No. 861
2312 N.W. 39th Street
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73112
ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED
RETURN POSTAGE GUARANTEED
NEVADA SODOMY LAW
REPEALED
Nevada Governor Bob Miller signed into law a bill to
repeal Nevada's sodomy statute on June 16, 1993. This marks
the first legislative repeal of a sodomy law since 1986 when the
U.S. supreme Court ruled in Bowers v. Hardwick that homosexual sodomy is not constitutionally protected.
First-year Nevada state senator Lori Lipman Brown introduced the bill to repeal the sodomy law in the state senate on
May 13, 1993. The 82-year-old law was previously amended
in 1977 to apply to sexual activity between members of the
same sex only.
Judy Corbisiero of Nevadans for Constitutional Equality
said, •'This effort proved that when the gay community in
northern and southern Nevada pull together we can make things
happen.''
After a grueling lobbying effort, the repeal measure passed
both chambers by more than a two to one ratio. Lee Plotkin, a
member of the Law Vegas Lesbian and Gay Pride committee
who also lobbied for the repeal, said •'We developed a formula
to make this effort work. If it can work in Nevada, it can work
anywhere.''
Cl
GLAAD NOTES
The Right Fight: To assist in the fight against bigotry, People
for the American Way has published An Abridged Guide to
Right Wing Activity in 1993 at the Grassroots Level. This
concise intelligence guide is a state-by-state listing of targets
in the "Religious" Right's war on civil liberties. Many of the
listings highlight anticipated attacks on multicultural textbooks, sex and AIDS education programs, and •'anti-family''
school board policies. The entertainment industry is also on the
hit list, as are art exhibits and other forums for creative
expression. For more information, write to People For the
American Way, 2000 M Street, N. W ., Suite 400, Washington,
DC 20036.
Cl
Published by: Herland Sister Resources, Inc. 2312 N.W .
39th, Oklahoma City, OK 73112
Newsletter Committee: Margaret Cox, Deborah Fox, Vivien
Ng, Pat Reaves
Circulation: 1100
Advertising Rates: Business card $15; 1/4 page $35;
1/2 page$60; full page $100. Deadline for ads is the 15th of the
month preceeding publication date.
The Voice is offered as an open forum for community discourse.
Articles reflect the opinions of the author and not necessarily
those of Herland Sister Resources. Unsolicited articles and
letters to the editor are welcomed and must be signed by the
writer with full name and address. Upon request, letters or
articles may be printed under a pseudonym or anonymously.
Subscriptions to The Voice are free upon request.
WOMEN'S HEALTH
J
A new report from the Nurses' Health Study found that
women who quit smoking quickly lower their risk of having a
stroke (Journal of the American Medical Association, Jan 13.,
1992: 232-236 ). Based on a twelve-year survey of the health
of 117,006 women, the researchers found that within two to
four years of quitting, former smokers have the same relative
risk of developing a stroke as women who have never smoked.
About half of all deaths from stroke in women under the age of
65 are estimated to be caused by smoking.
Info from Women's Health Now. Volume 1, No. 2. Cl
GooD NEws FROM
COLORADO
The State Supreme Court of Colorado has upheld a temporary injunction of Amendment 2 that prevents Amendment 2
from taking effect until the trial on the constitutionality of the
Amendment can be heard in October in Judge Jeffrey Bayless'
District Court in Denver. Judge Bayless had issued an injunction in February, saying there was a right •'not to have the state
give sanction to private biases."
The State Supreme Court also upheld Bayless' criterion
that the State must show a compelling interest in order to
discriminate by enforcing Amendment 2. This is the strictest
criterion the U.S. Supreme Court allows for any kind of
discrimination (usually reserving it for race and religion), and
makes it highly unlikely that the Amendment will be found
Constitutional.
The State Supreme Court, according to news reports,
agreed that it is unlikely that Amendment 2 can meet the strict
test of compelling interest. The Colorado Supreme Court
would be the court to which the loser in Bayless' upcoming
decision will try to appeal.
Colorado State Attorney Gale Norton is appealing the
injunction to the U.S. Supreme Court and has asked Judge
Bayless to postpone the trial on the constitutionality of Amendment 2 while the U.S. Supreme Court considers the injunction.
The filing would be in mid-September with a ruling possible
in July, 1994. If Bayless refuses to postpone his trial, the state
will likely appeal that refusal to the Colorado Supreme Court.
A legal expert said the chances might not be good because
Amendment 2 hasn't had a full trial. ''That's a strong factor
against the likelihood of review," said Richard Collins, a
University of Colorado law professor and constitutional law
specialist.
What the state seems afraid of is that they are required to
prove "compelling governmental interest" in enacting and
enforcing Amendment 2. Except for the American Constitutional Law Foundation (ACLF), the conservative legal group
that helped write Amendment 2 and claimed that the language
will pass Constitutional muster, many legal experts are saying
that the state burden of proof is overwhelming. Cl
The Voice is printed on recycled paper.
Her/and Voice August, 1993
7
r-----------------------------------------,
1
JI tJI. I. l~'l IN Jlct1llll)
Thanks to all the Porthole family for
a great "Christmas in July"
benefitting the Legal Defense Fund.
Classified: Single working mother of 10year old daughter wishes to share housing
with non-smoking woman or women in
similar circumstances in Putnam City or
Yukon school districts. I value shared
expenses as well as my own privacy.
Experienced in community living. Please
leave message at Herland, 521-9696.
The 3rd International Conference on Sexual
Assault on Campus will be held October
7-9 in Nashville, Tennessee. Sponsored
by the Safe Schools Coalition, the conference seeks to bring individuals, campus
organizations and community institutions
together to address efforts to reduce the
magnitude of sexual assault; programs for
meeting the needs of survivors; school
policies, government, and law enforcement needs. For information: Sexual
Assault Conference, P.O. Box 1338,
Holmes Beach, FL 34219; phone 1-800537-4903.
The White House is moving into the Information Age. President Clinton and VicePresident Gore now have e-mail addresses.
The Internet address for President Clintion
is PRESIDENT @WHITEHOUSE.GOV
and for Vice-President Gore is VICE.
PRESIDENT@WHITEHOUSE.GOV.
Electronic mail can be sent to Internet
addresses from Compuserve and almost
all online communications services. Check
with your service to find out how to send
mail to the Internet.
Submissions of poetry and line drawings
by black lesbians and gay men sought by
Kuumba, Box 83912, Los Angles, CA
90083; (310)410-0808.
According to the Los Angles Times, Barbara Streisand and Glenn Close are producing a made-for-TV movie based on the
true story of Col. Margarethe
Carnrnermeyer, who servedfor26years as
one of the highest- ranking women in the
armed services before being expelled fouryears ago after revealing she was a les.bian. The movie, which will star Glenn
Close, is scheduled to air in the fall of
1994.
The Family Next Door, a national newsletter to help lesbian and gay parents celebrate the joys .and conquer the challenges
of parenting, is coming out in August.
Each edition will include information
about education, health , family planning,
social and legal issues and much more. To
subscribe call (510)482-5778 or write Next
Door Publishing, P.O. Box 21580, Oakland, CA 94620.
~----------------------~------------------J
Herland Sister Resources presents
1993
FALL RETREAT FOR WOMEN
SEPTEMBER
24-26
LAKE MURRAY STATE PARK
Single Person's Annual
Income
Retreat Pre-registration
per person
Household Annual
Income
under $6,500
$15
under $13,300
$6,500- $13,250
$25
$13,300- $18,000
$13,250-$19,500
$35
$18,000 - $26,000
$19,500 - $30,000
$45
$26,000 - $30,000
over $30,000
$60
over $50,000
Please choose the registration fee most appropriate for you based on these suggested guidelines. On-site registration will be $60 and
with no exceptions. The deadline for preregistration is September 20, 1993. Registration is non-refundable after September 22.
Complete and return the pre-registration
form to Herland, 2312 N.W. 39, Oklahoma
City, OK 73112.
Name
Phone
------------------------~
Address
City: _____________________ St ate _____ Zip______
---------------------------------------------------------------
Registration fee enclosed: _$15
_$25
_$35
_$60
_
I need a scholarship to attend.
_
I'm enclosing an additional $ ___ to provide retreat scholarships.
_
I'm bringing
~
children.
I would like to ride with someone.
_I can help provide rides to the retreat.
-
io~HERLAND ~
August, 1993
.
ICE
MILITARY POLICY
AL1x Is
DENOUNCED
The Herland Fall Retreat scheduled for September 24-26
will feature entertainer Alix Dobkin. The irrepressible Alix
Dobkin, "goddess of womyn' s music", is an international
women's folk singer who consistently demonstrates hWnor,
compassion, and intelligence.
A "feminist folkie" with impressive vocal agility,
Dobkin celebrates the diversity of international lesbian culture ·
in songs interspersed with witty political banter. Those who
know her through her music and reputation are delighted that
she will be Herland' s guest performer at the September 25
retreat, and those in the community who were privileged to
spend an evening of dinner and storytelling with her some years
ago are thrilled at the prospect of her return to Oklahoma.
Alix will perform Saturday evening, September 25, at the
Herland Fall '93 Retreat at Lake Murray. Entry to the concert
is included in the Retreat Registration price. For those not
registered at the retreat, concert-only admission is $10.00.
The 1993 Fall Retreat will be held at Lake Murray State
Park near Ardmore, OK. In addition to the performance by Alix
Dobkin , there will be plenty of opportunity for women to have
fun together, learn from each other and build community. Any
one who is interested in presenting a workshop or leading a
discussion is encouraged to come prepared. The workshop
sign-up and schedule will be done at the retreat.
Favorite activities from previous retreats will also be a part
of this retreat. Bring your musical instrument, poetry, or other
talent to share in the open mike time. Saturday night will
feature the famous potluck with our (and your) favorite foods.
There's sure to be a campfire and campfire songs.
Send your registration now to guarantee your spot at the
retreat -- it's sure to fill up fast. A registration form is included
in this issue of The Voice . Pre-registration is required for all
scholarship requests. Advance registration is also required for
children. All girls and boys under 10 are may attend with their
parent without additional registration costs.
Wat ch for the September Voice for more retreat details. D
Simply Equal of Oklahoma City joined with lesbian and
gay advocacy groups nationwide condemning the
Administration's new policy on lesbians and gays in the
military and pledging to continue the struggle for a complete
lifting of the ban.
Simply Equal has announced plans for a town meeting to
discuss the Administration's new policy and further actions to
support complete lifting of the ban on lesbians and gays in the
military. The town meeting will be held August 3 at 7 :00 P .M.
at Triangle Associates, 2136 N.W. 39, Oklahoma City.
''Simply Equal of OKC feels that the ban is unacceptable,
unconstitutional, and unjust. This policy is based solely on
stereotypes, prejudices, and ignorance .... Simply Equal of OKC
calls for an end to the ban so that all patriotic Americans have
the opportunity to serve their country,'' according to a statement released by chapter spokespersons, Peggy Johnson and
Terry Gatewood.
Thomas Stoddard, Coordinator of the Campaign for Military Service, called the new policy, " 'let's pretend' -- 'lets
pretend' gay people don't exist." He said the policy provides
no advance for lesbian and gay service members. "In short,
under the new policy, lesbian and gay service members may be
gay only in the abstract -- only in their private unarticulated
thoughts."
Torrie Osburn, NGLTF executive director, denounced the
new policy as an unworkable codification of the current
discriminatory policy. ·'This policy is simply a re-packaging
of discrimination. It enforces the closet, which is an exhausting
exercise in half truths and blatant lies.''
The announcement of the new policy, "don't ask, don' t
tell, don't pursue," prompted protests in dozens of cities. In
Washington, D.C., lesbian and gay veterans and leaders of
several national organizations were arrested outside the White
House following a demonstration.
Tanya Domi, a former Army captain and current director
of the NGL TFMilitary Freedom Initiative, participated in civil
disobedience for the first time. She said, "I've played by the
rules all my life. But today, it is my duty as a veteran and as an
advocate for gay and lesbian people to engage in this act of civil
disobedience.''
Lesbian and gay leaders continue to call for a complete
lifting of the ban. ·'Nothing less than a complete lifting of the
ban can uphold the high constitutional standard of our country,
that all people are created equal,'' according to Simply Equal.
COMING!
(continued page 5)
Volume IO Number 8
Herland Sister Resources
2312 N.W. 39, OKC, OK 73112
ST. SYBIL
St. Sybil is an occasional contributor to this space. She welcomes
questions, yearnings, befuddlements, unspecified nebulous
ponderings, deep queries, deep thoughts, ridiculous questions - any
inquiry at all upon which an observer from a distant time station
might shed illumination.
Dear St. Sybil,
A hot topic in our community these days is ''outing" - the
ethics thereof, etc. What do you think about outing?
Sincerely,
Wanda Duright
Dear Ms. Duright,
Well, I try not to think about it, but when I have to, I have
a lot of concerns about it. For instance, who does the outing,
who is outed, what is the purpose, what is the result, who wins,
who loses - that kind of thing.
When I first learned about outing, and realized that people
were not talking about a picnic at Grandmother's house or a trip
to the museum, I assumed that it was the vicious work of
rampant homophobes, designed to destroy the lives of gay and
lesbian people of fame and achievement - because I have
noticed that the comer grocer or friendly low level public
employee seldom achieves the dubious distinction of being
outed.
Imagine my surprise to discover that outing of '' lesbigay''
people is inevitably (not counting the military witch hunts, of
course) the work of other lesbigays. Imagine also the surprise
of many of those here with me who were earthly victims of
deadly pogroms and persecutions. Harriet Tubman, Matron
Saint of the Ferociously Brave, assures me that she doesn't
know of a single case during her lifetime where· 'the white side
of the family,'' as former mayor of Atlanta and Ambassador to
the United Nations Andrew Young described some of his
relatives, were exposed - outed - as black by other blacks.
What is the purpose of outing? Allegedly it is to gain
greater support for gays and lesbians by showing the straight
world how many upstanding, mainstream people are gay; this
to me is a twisted use of the valid insight that if all of the gays
and lesbians in the world were to come out, the straight world
would be impressed, amazed, and robbed of the capacity or
desire to pass mean, malicious, homophobic laws. ·
But, dear Ms. Duright, everyone is not coming out en
masse, and the fact is that actors who makes a living as sex
objects will have their earnings and opportunities seriously
impaired by the public perception of them as gay or lesbian.
Politicians aspiring to high office, or low for that matter, will
likely have their ambitions stifled by the public's knowledge of
their homosexuality.
People in favor of outing sometimes use the argument that
the closet is a miserable, unhappy place, and that people will be
better off once they are out and can breathe free. Puhleeze, this
is paternalistic rubbish at its oiliest. Let's let people determine
their own fate, their own progress, their own agenda, their own
lives. It's one thing to throw yourself on a grenade to save your
buddies, and another to throw someone else on it.
The way it looks from here, and putting the best light on it,
outing is a tactic of terrorism, designed to improve the Ii ves of
many at the expense of one. (Though many here with me think
it's just meanness, pure and simple). Does anyone in your time
continuum really still believe that the end justifies the means?
I hope not.
By the way, did you hear the one about the plane load of
lesbians and gays that ran into trouble? The pilot came on the
PA and announced that they were running short of fuel, and the
bad news was that they were going to have to jettison five
people; and the really bad news was that they had no parachutes, and needed volunteers to jump. After a moment a lanky
gay Texan in a cowboy hat stood up, shouted " Remember the
Alamo, ' ' and jumped out. Next, an Oklahoma lesbian stood
up, shouted ''Viva Amelia Earhart,'' and jumped out. After a
few moments of stunned silence and appreciation, a Queer
Nation member from New York stood up, shouted "No more
hiding in closets!'' - and tossed ounwo movie stars and a US
Senator.
Best wishes for being happily and voluntarily out,
Sybil
Dear St. Sybil,
I'm involved with a wonderful woman, warm, passionate,
kind, funny and smart, and we are thinking of moving in
together and committing to each other, but there's one thing
that really bothers me: I never get to touch the tv remote
control. She seems to think that control of the damn thing is
her birthright or something. Can you give me some good ideas
on how to change this situation?
Thank you,
Patsy
Dear Patsy,
· Well now, honey, I suggest that you just get over it, right
now. There are only two kinds of people in the world, you
know, those who are alw;iys going to control the remote and
most everything else, and those who like you are basically
along for the ride. (You never got to control the remote even
when it was just you and your kids, did you now.) So you have
two options: you can fret and bum and harbor little resentments
and one day kick her and the damn remote and the horse she
rode in on out the door and down the street, or you can relax,
put your feet up (she might rub them) and save your energy for
more important things; like running for the school board,
organizing anew chapterof Simply Equal, or figuring out what
to get her for her birthday. Be glad you found each other.
Love and kisses,
Cl
Sybil
/lliii1 ::
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BACKLASH
by Vivien Ng
I have been in New York for three full weeks already. ·I
have seen three movies and one Broadway play (Angels in
America), been to three museums and a botanical garden, so
I should be in a good mood today. But I am not. Current events
have overwhelmed me.
A friend from DC came to visit and brought with her a
copy of the Private Eye Weekly, a Salt Lake City newspaper.
The front page told a stark and frightening story: ''Farr From
Over,'' about the firing of a professor at Brigham Young
University because of her politics. According to the report,
Cecilia Konchar Farr incurred the wrath of Mormon church
elders and the university adminstration with her "anti-abortion but pro-choice political stance'' and her advising a group
of student feminists on the BYU campus.
A call this morning from a women's studies professor at
Penn State deepened my sense of doom and gloom. She
related a harrowing tale of two years of relentless harassment
and out-of-context attacks on her and the Women's Studies
Program by a well-funded conservative student-run newspaper. The university administration had been at b~st only
lukewarm in their support for Women's Studies and women on
campus. She asked: "Isn't there something the National
Women's Studies Association can do to fight this backlash?''
The New York Times reports that two Clinton nominees
are in trouble with the right wing. Dr. Tara J. O'Toole's
confirmation by the Senate as Assistant Secretary for Energy
is no longer assured, because she has come under intense
scrutiny for her membership in a study group, Northeast
Feminist Scholars. Dr. Joycelyn Elders, Surgeon-General
designate, has come under increasingly hostile attack from the
religious rightfor her pro-choice views and outspoken support
for school-based clinics and sex education. Her confirmation
hearing has been postponed. (I hope that by the tim:e this issue
of the Voice reaches your mailbox the Senate has come to its
senses and moved to confirm both of them.)
This litany of feminist woes continues: The House of
Representatives voted to reauthorize the Hyde Amendment,
even though pro-choice activists had expected a very different
outcome. So, although the Amendment was modified slightly
to make exceptions for rape or incest, poor women in the U.S.
will continue to be denied the same access to abortion as their
middle-class sisters.
Much of the backlash has been in evidence for years;
there's even a national bestseller on the subject, so why am I
feeling so blue? Like so many of my fellow travelers, I was
ecstatic over the results of the election last November. Finally, I have voted for a winner for a change and, more
important, someone whose position on many key issues is
(read was) compatible with mine. I have allowed myself to
dream about greater changes to come: passage of the lesbian
and gay civil rights act; the end to sinister exploitation of
racism, sexism, and homophobia; the repeal of the Hyde
Amendment; the passage of a "clean" Freedom of Choice
Act, etc., etc.
What has happened since is nothing short of betrayal. The
about-face with regard to Haitian boatpeople, the timid handling of the ban on lesbians and gays in the military, the long
delay in appointing an AIDS czar, the abandoning of Lani
Guinier, etc., etc. all spelled unprincipled politics as usual. I
have since scraped off my Clinton/Gore bumper sticker.
There is enough blame to spread around. When Lani
Guinier was nominated, for example, mainstream women's
groups did not immediately mobilize to support her. Unlike the
quick response to the nominations of Robert Bork and Clarence
Thomas to the U.S. Supreme Court, when grassroots activists
were immediately contacted to lobby against them, there had
been only a disturbing silence. The unexpected vote to
reauthorize the Hyde Amendment, according to a number of
irate Congresswomen, was a result of failure in Congressional
leadership, which did not recognize the latent class bias of
many of the so-called pro-choice lawmakers.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg pointed out on the first day of Senate
hearings to confirm her nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court
that after the landmark Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, prochoice groups became complacent. How true. Mainstream
groups did not mobilize when the Hyde Amendment was first
passed. Their middle class bias clouded their vision and
allowed the religious right to chisel away at a woman's right to
have an abortion until almost too late. I do hope that we have
learned a hard lesson from history and not fall prey to easy (and
seductive) complacency.
[J
WE SHARE A DREAM
The 30th Anniversary of the 1963 civil rights March on
Washington, which featured Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s
historic ''I Have A Dream'' speech, will be marked by another
March on Washington, to take place on August 28, 1993. The
New Coalition of Conscience will convene a massive march
and rally at the Lincoln Memorial to renew the call for jobs,
justice, and peace. NGLTF is one of the co-conveners of the
March, and is coordinating a contingent of gay and lesbian
marchers to join this unprecedented coalition.
To find out more about the March on Washington Mobilization, call their Southeast office at 404-526-8995 or 404-5241956. To participate in the lesbian and gay contingent, call
Linda Yanney at 202-332-6483.
[J
OKLAHOMA NOW NEWS
Oklahoma NOW is organizing a phone tree to be used
during the legislative session when bills of critical importance
to women come before Congress and the Oklahoma state
legislature. Six to eight times a year, the phone tree will be
activated to inform members of important legislative votes or
other important events, so that calls and letters from their
constituents will get their elected officials' attention. If you
would like to be a member of this phone tree, send your name
and telephone number to Laura Rhodes, NOW Legislative
Coordinator, 1009 Missouri Avenue, Norman OK 73071). [J
Her/and Voice August, 1993
3
DEAR B1LL:
So WHAT HAVE
You DoNE FOR
Us
LATELY?
by Carol Wheller and Abby Hirsch
Well, quite a lot, come to think about it. But why, then,
have so many of us felt so bitterly disappointed? We've seen
retreats here, concessions there. But maybe we're looking at
this wrong. Maybe we're at fault. Maybe we've been sitting
back and expecting one man to change a whole Congress and
a whole country.
Maybe we're playing into the hands of the Doles and the
Nunns and the Borens and the editors of The New York Snides
when we put you down.
It's been a long time since anyone has taken on the issues
you have. They're incredibly complicated, divisive, important
issues and it's no surprise you haven't won them all.
Actually trying to make the economy work for anyone but
the rich, for instance--when was the last time anyone did that?
The previous twelve years saw even Democrats raising taxes on
the middle class and letting the rich get away with untold
boodle. They said you didn't fight hard enough for your plan.
(Meanwhile, what did we do?)
Taking on the banks: You dared to suggest that banks
shouldn't be making money on young people's struggle for
education. And it looks like enough in Congress might be
persuaded to agree to help lower the burden of debt on the
nation's graduates.
And the issue of gays in the military--because you pushed
the issue from the beginning, the level of public consciousness
about homosexuality has risen enormously, as has acceptance.
In fact, it looks like people are beginning to come around on the
issue, beginning to wonder just what the big deal is. Didn't
these guys know there were going to take a lot of showers and
spend a lot of nights with other guys when they joined up? Is that
maybe one reason they did join up (but they would rather not
think about it)?
Things you've been able to do with the fabled stroke of the
pen, you've done, and fast: repealed the gag rule; approved the
importation of RU486; reversed the Mexico City policy that
restricted aid to international family planning programs; lifted
the ban on fetal tissue research and the ban on women having
abortions in military hospitals abroad; appointed the first
woman attorney general and nominated the second woman
associate justice of the Supreme Court.
Other things we have now that we'dalmost given up hope
for: The Family Leave Act and the NIH Reauthorization Act
(with the historic provisions on women's health research) and
the Motor Voter Bill--you fought for them and you signed them
into law.
Pamela Maraldo, president of the Planned Parenthood
Federation of America, says you've "launched a new era in
~erican health care." Texas Governor Ann Richards says,
We have not had a leader in Washington for more than a
decade that understands the obvious fact that 'Women' s
Issues' are the issues that affect a majority of Americans.
President Clinton not only understands ...he has acted upon it."
Could it be that DeeDee Myers is right when she says of
your adminstration, ''We have done more for women s rights
in the last 100 days than happened in the last twelve years.
Sometimes our achievements get lost in a wave of negativity.
And then there are the not-so-little things, like the White
House dress code: ' 'They let us wear trousers to work now; it
makes a big difference,'' says Kim Wood, White House intern.
And the White House club code unequivocally demands that
staffers resign from organizations with the slightest taint of
discrimination. And, of course, the White House correspondence code; it's kind of disarming, Bill, that when you answer
a letter, you start it, "Dear Carol and Abby".
So What's Bugging Us? The way you sometimes raise
our hopes only to let them come crashing to the ground.
Whenever you nominate a "first woman" --or a second or a
third--for Justice or another high office, all of us shine with
reflected glory. Then sometimes you or your staff let her down,
-, or worse, blame her for other's errors, or worst, attack her
writings for things they didn't say or that you should have
known. Then we are all humilitated, because these women are
our champions. (We feel sorry for Judge Breyer, but we view
the constituency as less vulnerable.)
If you'll take this to heart, we'll try to stop carping, stop
saying you' re not fighting hard enough, and pick up our rolling
pins and join the battle. And then, dear Bill, maybe we can say
All is forgiven (for now).
Reprinted from Getting It Gazette.
Talking frankly woman-to-woman is what the Getting lt Ga_
Wk does best. All current contributors of$35 or more receive
all 1993 issues. Send contributions to: Getting It Gazette, 451
West 24th Street, New York, New York 10011. Telephone 2121
229-0763 Fax 0758.
[J
'Ifie
AfcAfow Sisters
Mowing · Fertilizing · Trimming
·Light Hauling
"We are Insured"
Nancy
794-6884
0,wtaf {!a.« {o< th< Zntiu 'Jamify
~ult< 302
~a.{< 0,<nti~t<y {o< f1nout ~U<o-io-ou
( 405 )755-4099
d\tlnidia.n d\tl,J1oa.f r:Jown
133 21 dVo<th d\tluidia.n
4 Her/and Voice August, 1993
rDf.ta.homa. {!uy, rD!J(
73120
FUNDING FOR PROGRAMS
IMPORTANT TO WOMEN
Three bills providing international assistance were approved by the House of Representatives in June. All three -- the
foreign aid authorization and foreign operations appropriations bills and the State Department authorization bill -- contain
provisions aiding women in developing nations.
One of the key provisions would provide funding for the
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The largest multilateral provider of family planning services in the developing
world, UNFPA has not received U. S . funds since 1985. The
Reagan Administration withdrew funding because UNFPA
operates in China, which has been accused of involuntarily
sterilizing women and performing coercive abortions. The
Clinton Administration supports refunding UNFPA, and asked
for $50 million for the program in its fiscal 1994 budget.
Under the State Department authorization bill, which was
approved June 22, UNFPA would be eligible for $50 million.
However, nearly $14 million of that amount would be withheld
unless UNFPA withdraws from China. The foreign operations
appropriations bill, approved June 17, includes the additional
stipulation that none of the funds for UNFPA be released until
March 1, unless UNFPA ends its operations in China before that
date.
The foreign aid authorization bill, approved by the House
on June 16, authorizes $395 million for family planning and
population programs, while the appropriations bill provides
$392 million in actual spending, $42 million more than last
year, and only slightly less than President Clinton's request of
$400 million. The appropriations bill funds the migration and
refugee assistance program at the Department of State at $670
million, up from $620, and includes language supporting staff
training programs for staff who work with refugees identifying
and addressing the needs of refugee women.
Included in the State Department authorization bill is
language, authored by Rep. Olympia Snowe, Co-Chair of the
Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, addressing women's
human rights and the needs of female refugees. The bill urges
the State Department to designate a senior level official to
promote the issue of international women's human rights
within the overall human rights policy of the U.S. In addition,
the bill requires the State Department to address specific
concerns of refugee women, including protection of women
refugees, maternal and child health, education and training for
refugee women, staff training programs on women refugees,
and involving women refugees in planning and implementing
the delivery of services. An estimated 80 percent of refugees
around the world are women and children.
The Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Terrorism, Narcotics and International Operations approved its version of the State Department bill on June 29, but without the
refugee or human rights language. However, such language is
likely to be added as an amendment when the full Foreign
Relations Committee takes up the bill in July.
BAN DENOUNCED
(continued from page 1)
Stoddard pledged, •'The debate will continue. The struggle
will endure. And the ultimate goal will be realized: eventually,
completely and universally, lesbians and gay men will achieve
their right to equal treatment in the armed forces of the United
States.
"This issue will not go away, and the gay and lesbian
movement will not go away,'' Domi said. "This capitulation to
bigotry will not deterour struggle for equality and fairness. The
'don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue' policy is completely
unacceptable. We will fight the policy in the streets, in the
courts, and in Congress. We will not end this battle until we
attain justice.''
The Senate Armed Services Committee has included policy
to continue the ban on lesbians and gays in the military in the
$262 billion defense budget under consideration. The legislation includes language opposing homosexuality and providing
for discharge of a service member who engages or attempts to
engage in a homosexual act, states verbally ornon-verbally that
they are homosexual or marries or tries to marry someone of the
same sex. The full Senate is expected to consider the defense
budget before it leaves for summer recess on August 9.
IJ
CREATING CHANGE
UPDATE
Scholarships for NGLTF's Creating Change Conference,
to be held in Durham, North Carolina, are available to assist
limited-income activists, activists of color, and activists with
disabilities. The scholarship application deadline is September
10 (student deadline is September 24). To receive an application, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to Creating
Change 1993 at NGLTF, 1734 14th St. NW, Washington DC
20009. Apply early. Funds are limited.
To make a contribution to the Creating Change Scholarship Fund or for any other information about Creating Change
1993, contact Ivy Young, Directorof Creating Change, at 202332-6483, ext. 3304.
1J
Leaf It To Us!
732-4258
Floral Designs
Silk and Fresh
Tropical Plants
Sales and Maintenance
Thank you Her/and for your help after
our loses during the May 8th flood.
Pam & Chris
Reprinted from Update On Women and Family Issues In
Congress VOL. 13 NO. 6, June 29, 1993.
IJ
Her/and Voice August, 1993
5
El..EANoRROOSEVELT-VOL 1: 18U1933
by Blanche Wiesen Cook
Published by Penguin Books
Reviewed by Carol White
For Mother's Day this year I received three pair of men's
gold toe socks, an ancient coin to add to my collection, and my
veryownpaperbackeditionof Eleanor Roosevelt- Voll: 18841933 by Blanche Wiesen Cook. I won't share my socks, I'll let
you see the coin (no touching), but I want to let everyone share
in appreciating Eleanor Roosevelt!
Cook presents by far the most thoroughly researched look
at E.R. (Eleanor Roosevelt) to date. Don't be put off by it's
length of 500 pages or the $14.00 price sticker. The book is
most worthy of your investment of time and money. Wrapped
in an intriguingly warm style, Cook's writing flows with candor
and savvy.
With great ease I could give a lengthy litany on each
chapter of the book. Briefly, among the most notable are the
relationships E.R. had with Marie Souvestre (founder of
Allenswood,a progressive feminist •'finishing'' school in England), Ester Lape and her life-partner Elizabeth Read (impressive political activists), and Nancy Cook and her life-partner
Marion Dickerman (Cook was a potter, jeweler, photographer,
and carpenter; Dickerman was an educator and political activ~Q.
"
Skillful and touching is the author's handling of the impact
of Lorena Hicok on the life of E.R. Long "suspected" as a
lesbian affair, Blanche Wiesen Cook, with intuiti"e accuracy,
discusses the realities of the relationship. Gently reminding the
reader that physical intimacy is never the be-all and end-all of
love shared between women, Blanche Wiesen Cook elevates
the decency of privacy. There are no •'scandal sheet'' details
spewed forth here. There needn't be.
A few months ago, I saw Blanche Wiesen Cook interviewed on C-SP AN. She was rather unassuming and very witty
at times. Yet, when asked a difficult or seemingly trivial detail
about E.R., she at once let the audience know they were in the
presence of the world's leading authority on the life and times
of Eleanor Roosevelt. Close to the end of the interview Cook
was asked about the dedication she gives very humbly at the
beginning of the book. She replied that the book is dedicated
to Clare M. Coss, her life-partner of more than 20 years.
(Stirrings of pride and shrieks of joy rattled the rafters in my
living room at that nonchalant reply!)
I wish Cooks' E.R. Vol. II was already in print. Perhaps it
will be by nextMother'sDay. You can betl'll letyouknow.D
2109 S. AiR DEpor
Midwm CiTY, OK 7 ~ l l 0
(405 )7H -0496
AiR DEpoT ANiMAl HospiTAl
CAil loR AppoiNTMENT
6 Berland Voice August, 1993
JOY HUSKA, D.V.M .
HOUSE APPROVES
DISEASE AND VIOLENCE
PREVENTION BILLS
With an overwhelming majority supporting the measures,
the House easily passed three bills in June authorizing funds for
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to
administer programs important for women's health. On June
14, the House passed the Breast and Cervical Cancer Amendments of 1993 (H.R. 2202) and the Injury Prevention and
Control Amendments of 1993 (H.R. 2201). The following
week, on June 21, the House approved H.R. 2203, legislation
reauthorizing a program for the prevention and control of
sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).
H.R. 2202 extends for five years the Breast and Cervical
Cancer Mortality Prevention Act which authorizes state programs to provide mammograms and pap smears for lowincome women. Currently, 12 states have funding for comprehensive screening programs and an additional 18 states are in
the planning stages. The bill authorizes $135 million for the
program in fiscal 1994, nearly $50 million above President
Clinton's request for the program.
Included in H.R. 2202 are several new provisions to
improve and expand the breast and cervical cancer prevention
programs. Due to concerns that Native American women are
not being adequately served by this program, language in the
bill allows tribes and tribal organizations to apply for funds. In
addition, H.R. 2202 sets aside $3 million in 1994 for three
demonstration projects to provide to women additional preventive health services. Such additional services include screening
for high blood pressure, cholesterol, and sexually transmitted
diseases.
The Injury Prevention and Control Amendments add provisions to the current CDC injury control program designed to
improve the treatment and prevention of domestic violence and
sexual assault. Modeled on legislation introduced by Reps. Jim
McDermott, Constance Morella, andMike Kreidler, H.R. 2201
authorizes CDC to collect data, evaluate prevention efforts, and
establish hospital-based demonstration projects to identify and
treat victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. In
addition, the bill calls for public education projects on the
health consequences of domestic violence. Speaking in support
ofH.R. 2201, Rep. Kreidlernoted, "among the people who do
not understand the connection between violence and public
health are our health care providers. It is time to break the
silence surrounding these issues of victimization and get women
the help they need.'' H.R. 2201 authorizes $50 million for the
program for FY 94.
The SexuallyTransmittedDiseasesAmendmentsof 1993,
funds states to continue providing STD prevention and control
programs which primarily screen for STDs, such as chlamydia
and gonorrhea. Authorized at $80 million in fiscal 1994, the
program is of particular importance to women and infants who
are athighriskof suffering infertility, infant mortality and birth
defects because of STDs.
Reprinted from Update On Women and Family Issues In
Congress, VOL. 13 NO. 6, June 29, 1993.
D
AUGUST
19 9 3
Doc Herland says, Ohmigosh, we 1 ve got Alix Dobkin coming in September, a Harvest Moon Ball in October, and then
just guess who'll be here November 18th! Well, Doc's not telling, but save the date; you'll be glad you did.
Sunday
Monday
2
Tuesday
3
\Wednesday Thursday
5
4
Friday
7
6
Simply Equal
7 PRl
Zoom Beach
CoDA, 7 pm
Tri an Elle
Associates
8
9
10
Simpl:y Equal
7 pm
Herland
11,-.,
Saturday
MARY
REYNOLDS
tilt
Rose Stale
Tom Steed
Center
pm
e
12
13
CoDA, 7 pm
HISS BROJWN
TO YOU
at
vzo·s
8:45 p.m.
15
16
HERL AND
BOARD
MEETING
4:30 pm
22
17
18
19
20
21
Simpl:y Equal
CoDA, 7 pm
7 PDI
Herland
23
24
25
26
Simpl:y Equal
7
pm
27
MARY
REYNOLDS
at the
Country
Coffee
in Tyler, TX
..
Her land
CoDA, 7 pm
29
30
2
~~:.f.:•:
'?":!l· 'J
~ · ·.1::
PEG·c°f'
JOHNSON
9 Pl1 at the
Grateful Bean
31
Simpl:y Equal
7
Piii
Herland
Lucy Stone, August 13, 1819 - 1893. US reformer, campaigner for
women's rights, and fervent abolitionist. She helped to found
the American Woman Suffrage Association in 1869 and edited its
magazine .Wanan's Journal from 1870 -1893 .
HERLAND SISTER RESOlJRCES, INC.
2312 N\\I 39th Street
Oklahoma City. Oklahoma 73112
405/ 521-Q6Q6
Hours: Saturdays 10 - 6: Sundays 1 - 6
l
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-
-
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- - -
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NonProfit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Oklahoma City, Okla.
Permit No. 861
2312 N.W. 39th Street
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73112
ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED
RETURN POSTAGE GUARANTEED
NEVADA SODOMY LAW
REPEALED
Nevada Governor Bob Miller signed into law a bill to
repeal Nevada's sodomy statute on June 16, 1993. This marks
the first legislative repeal of a sodomy law since 1986 when the
U.S. supreme Court ruled in Bowers v. Hardwick that homosexual sodomy is not constitutionally protected.
First-year Nevada state senator Lori Lipman Brown introduced the bill to repeal the sodomy law in the state senate on
May 13, 1993. The 82-year-old law was previously amended
in 1977 to apply to sexual activity between members of the
same sex only.
Judy Corbisiero of Nevadans for Constitutional Equality
said, •'This effort proved that when the gay community in
northern and southern Nevada pull together we can make things
happen.''
After a grueling lobbying effort, the repeal measure passed
both chambers by more than a two to one ratio. Lee Plotkin, a
member of the Law Vegas Lesbian and Gay Pride committee
who also lobbied for the repeal, said •'We developed a formula
to make this effort work. If it can work in Nevada, it can work
anywhere.''
Cl
GLAAD NOTES
The Right Fight: To assist in the fight against bigotry, People
for the American Way has published An Abridged Guide to
Right Wing Activity in 1993 at the Grassroots Level. This
concise intelligence guide is a state-by-state listing of targets
in the "Religious" Right's war on civil liberties. Many of the
listings highlight anticipated attacks on multicultural textbooks, sex and AIDS education programs, and •'anti-family''
school board policies. The entertainment industry is also on the
hit list, as are art exhibits and other forums for creative
expression. For more information, write to People For the
American Way, 2000 M Street, N. W ., Suite 400, Washington,
DC 20036.
Cl
Published by: Herland Sister Resources, Inc. 2312 N.W .
39th, Oklahoma City, OK 73112
Newsletter Committee: Margaret Cox, Deborah Fox, Vivien
Ng, Pat Reaves
Circulation: 1100
Advertising Rates: Business card $15; 1/4 page $35;
1/2 page$60; full page $100. Deadline for ads is the 15th of the
month preceeding publication date.
The Voice is offered as an open forum for community discourse.
Articles reflect the opinions of the author and not necessarily
those of Herland Sister Resources. Unsolicited articles and
letters to the editor are welcomed and must be signed by the
writer with full name and address. Upon request, letters or
articles may be printed under a pseudonym or anonymously.
Subscriptions to The Voice are free upon request.
WOMEN'S HEALTH
J
A new report from the Nurses' Health Study found that
women who quit smoking quickly lower their risk of having a
stroke (Journal of the American Medical Association, Jan 13.,
1992: 232-236 ). Based on a twelve-year survey of the health
of 117,006 women, the researchers found that within two to
four years of quitting, former smokers have the same relative
risk of developing a stroke as women who have never smoked.
About half of all deaths from stroke in women under the age of
65 are estimated to be caused by smoking.
Info from Women's Health Now. Volume 1, No. 2. Cl
GooD NEws FROM
COLORADO
The State Supreme Court of Colorado has upheld a temporary injunction of Amendment 2 that prevents Amendment 2
from taking effect until the trial on the constitutionality of the
Amendment can be heard in October in Judge Jeffrey Bayless'
District Court in Denver. Judge Bayless had issued an injunction in February, saying there was a right •'not to have the state
give sanction to private biases."
The State Supreme Court also upheld Bayless' criterion
that the State must show a compelling interest in order to
discriminate by enforcing Amendment 2. This is the strictest
criterion the U.S. Supreme Court allows for any kind of
discrimination (usually reserving it for race and religion), and
makes it highly unlikely that the Amendment will be found
Constitutional.
The State Supreme Court, according to news reports,
agreed that it is unlikely that Amendment 2 can meet the strict
test of compelling interest. The Colorado Supreme Court
would be the court to which the loser in Bayless' upcoming
decision will try to appeal.
Colorado State Attorney Gale Norton is appealing the
injunction to the U.S. Supreme Court and has asked Judge
Bayless to postpone the trial on the constitutionality of Amendment 2 while the U.S. Supreme Court considers the injunction.
The filing would be in mid-September with a ruling possible
in July, 1994. If Bayless refuses to postpone his trial, the state
will likely appeal that refusal to the Colorado Supreme Court.
A legal expert said the chances might not be good because
Amendment 2 hasn't had a full trial. ''That's a strong factor
against the likelihood of review," said Richard Collins, a
University of Colorado law professor and constitutional law
specialist.
What the state seems afraid of is that they are required to
prove "compelling governmental interest" in enacting and
enforcing Amendment 2. Except for the American Constitutional Law Foundation (ACLF), the conservative legal group
that helped write Amendment 2 and claimed that the language
will pass Constitutional muster, many legal experts are saying
that the state burden of proof is overwhelming. Cl
The Voice is printed on recycled paper.
Her/and Voice August, 1993
7
r-----------------------------------------,
1
JI tJI. I. l~'l IN Jlct1llll)
Thanks to all the Porthole family for
a great "Christmas in July"
benefitting the Legal Defense Fund.
Classified: Single working mother of 10year old daughter wishes to share housing
with non-smoking woman or women in
similar circumstances in Putnam City or
Yukon school districts. I value shared
expenses as well as my own privacy.
Experienced in community living. Please
leave message at Herland, 521-9696.
The 3rd International Conference on Sexual
Assault on Campus will be held October
7-9 in Nashville, Tennessee. Sponsored
by the Safe Schools Coalition, the conference seeks to bring individuals, campus
organizations and community institutions
together to address efforts to reduce the
magnitude of sexual assault; programs for
meeting the needs of survivors; school
policies, government, and law enforcement needs. For information: Sexual
Assault Conference, P.O. Box 1338,
Holmes Beach, FL 34219; phone 1-800537-4903.
The White House is moving into the Information Age. President Clinton and VicePresident Gore now have e-mail addresses.
The Internet address for President Clintion
is PRESIDENT @WHITEHOUSE.GOV
and for Vice-President Gore is VICE.
PRESIDENT@WHITEHOUSE.GOV.
Electronic mail can be sent to Internet
addresses from Compuserve and almost
all online communications services. Check
with your service to find out how to send
mail to the Internet.
Submissions of poetry and line drawings
by black lesbians and gay men sought by
Kuumba, Box 83912, Los Angles, CA
90083; (310)410-0808.
According to the Los Angles Times, Barbara Streisand and Glenn Close are producing a made-for-TV movie based on the
true story of Col. Margarethe
Carnrnermeyer, who servedfor26years as
one of the highest- ranking women in the
armed services before being expelled fouryears ago after revealing she was a les.bian. The movie, which will star Glenn
Close, is scheduled to air in the fall of
1994.
The Family Next Door, a national newsletter to help lesbian and gay parents celebrate the joys .and conquer the challenges
of parenting, is coming out in August.
Each edition will include information
about education, health , family planning,
social and legal issues and much more. To
subscribe call (510)482-5778 or write Next
Door Publishing, P.O. Box 21580, Oakland, CA 94620.
~----------------------~------------------J
Herland Sister Resources presents
1993
FALL RETREAT FOR WOMEN
SEPTEMBER
24-26
LAKE MURRAY STATE PARK
Single Person's Annual
Income
Retreat Pre-registration
per person
Household Annual
Income
under $6,500
$15
under $13,300
$6,500- $13,250
$25
$13,300- $18,000
$13,250-$19,500
$35
$18,000 - $26,000
$19,500 - $30,000
$45
$26,000 - $30,000
over $30,000
$60
over $50,000
Please choose the registration fee most appropriate for you based on these suggested guidelines. On-site registration will be $60 and
with no exceptions. The deadline for preregistration is September 20, 1993. Registration is non-refundable after September 22.
Complete and return the pre-registration
form to Herland, 2312 N.W. 39, Oklahoma
City, OK 73112.
Name
Phone
------------------------~
Address
City: _____________________ St ate _____ Zip______
---------------------------------------------------------------
Registration fee enclosed: _$15
_$25
_$35
_$60
_
I need a scholarship to attend.
_
I'm enclosing an additional $ ___ to provide retreat scholarships.
_
I'm bringing
~
children.
I would like to ride with someone.
_I can help provide rides to the retreat.
-
io~HERLAND ~
August, 1993
.
ICE
MILITARY POLICY
AL1x Is
DENOUNCED
The Herland Fall Retreat scheduled for September 24-26
will feature entertainer Alix Dobkin. The irrepressible Alix
Dobkin, "goddess of womyn' s music", is an international
women's folk singer who consistently demonstrates hWnor,
compassion, and intelligence.
A "feminist folkie" with impressive vocal agility,
Dobkin celebrates the diversity of international lesbian culture ·
in songs interspersed with witty political banter. Those who
know her through her music and reputation are delighted that
she will be Herland' s guest performer at the September 25
retreat, and those in the community who were privileged to
spend an evening of dinner and storytelling with her some years
ago are thrilled at the prospect of her return to Oklahoma.
Alix will perform Saturday evening, September 25, at the
Herland Fall '93 Retreat at Lake Murray. Entry to the concert
is included in the Retreat Registration price. For those not
registered at the retreat, concert-only admission is $10.00.
The 1993 Fall Retreat will be held at Lake Murray State
Park near Ardmore, OK. In addition to the performance by Alix
Dobkin , there will be plenty of opportunity for women to have
fun together, learn from each other and build community. Any
one who is interested in presenting a workshop or leading a
discussion is encouraged to come prepared. The workshop
sign-up and schedule will be done at the retreat.
Favorite activities from previous retreats will also be a part
of this retreat. Bring your musical instrument, poetry, or other
talent to share in the open mike time. Saturday night will
feature the famous potluck with our (and your) favorite foods.
There's sure to be a campfire and campfire songs.
Send your registration now to guarantee your spot at the
retreat -- it's sure to fill up fast. A registration form is included
in this issue of The Voice . Pre-registration is required for all
scholarship requests. Advance registration is also required for
children. All girls and boys under 10 are may attend with their
parent without additional registration costs.
Wat ch for the September Voice for more retreat details. D
Simply Equal of Oklahoma City joined with lesbian and
gay advocacy groups nationwide condemning the
Administration's new policy on lesbians and gays in the
military and pledging to continue the struggle for a complete
lifting of the ban.
Simply Equal has announced plans for a town meeting to
discuss the Administration's new policy and further actions to
support complete lifting of the ban on lesbians and gays in the
military. The town meeting will be held August 3 at 7 :00 P .M.
at Triangle Associates, 2136 N.W. 39, Oklahoma City.
''Simply Equal of OKC feels that the ban is unacceptable,
unconstitutional, and unjust. This policy is based solely on
stereotypes, prejudices, and ignorance .... Simply Equal of OKC
calls for an end to the ban so that all patriotic Americans have
the opportunity to serve their country,'' according to a statement released by chapter spokespersons, Peggy Johnson and
Terry Gatewood.
Thomas Stoddard, Coordinator of the Campaign for Military Service, called the new policy, " 'let's pretend' -- 'lets
pretend' gay people don't exist." He said the policy provides
no advance for lesbian and gay service members. "In short,
under the new policy, lesbian and gay service members may be
gay only in the abstract -- only in their private unarticulated
thoughts."
Torrie Osburn, NGLTF executive director, denounced the
new policy as an unworkable codification of the current
discriminatory policy. ·'This policy is simply a re-packaging
of discrimination. It enforces the closet, which is an exhausting
exercise in half truths and blatant lies.''
The announcement of the new policy, "don't ask, don' t
tell, don't pursue," prompted protests in dozens of cities. In
Washington, D.C., lesbian and gay veterans and leaders of
several national organizations were arrested outside the White
House following a demonstration.
Tanya Domi, a former Army captain and current director
of the NGL TFMilitary Freedom Initiative, participated in civil
disobedience for the first time. She said, "I've played by the
rules all my life. But today, it is my duty as a veteran and as an
advocate for gay and lesbian people to engage in this act of civil
disobedience.''
Lesbian and gay leaders continue to call for a complete
lifting of the ban. ·'Nothing less than a complete lifting of the
ban can uphold the high constitutional standard of our country,
that all people are created equal,'' according to Simply Equal.
COMING!
(continued page 5)
Volume IO Number 8
Herland Sister Resources
2312 N.W. 39, OKC, OK 73112
ST. SYBIL
St. Sybil is an occasional contributor to this space. She welcomes
questions, yearnings, befuddlements, unspecified nebulous
ponderings, deep queries, deep thoughts, ridiculous questions - any
inquiry at all upon which an observer from a distant time station
might shed illumination.
Dear St. Sybil,
A hot topic in our community these days is ''outing" - the
ethics thereof, etc. What do you think about outing?
Sincerely,
Wanda Duright
Dear Ms. Duright,
Well, I try not to think about it, but when I have to, I have
a lot of concerns about it. For instance, who does the outing,
who is outed, what is the purpose, what is the result, who wins,
who loses - that kind of thing.
When I first learned about outing, and realized that people
were not talking about a picnic at Grandmother's house or a trip
to the museum, I assumed that it was the vicious work of
rampant homophobes, designed to destroy the lives of gay and
lesbian people of fame and achievement - because I have
noticed that the comer grocer or friendly low level public
employee seldom achieves the dubious distinction of being
outed.
Imagine my surprise to discover that outing of '' lesbigay''
people is inevitably (not counting the military witch hunts, of
course) the work of other lesbigays. Imagine also the surprise
of many of those here with me who were earthly victims of
deadly pogroms and persecutions. Harriet Tubman, Matron
Saint of the Ferociously Brave, assures me that she doesn't
know of a single case during her lifetime where· 'the white side
of the family,'' as former mayor of Atlanta and Ambassador to
the United Nations Andrew Young described some of his
relatives, were exposed - outed - as black by other blacks.
What is the purpose of outing? Allegedly it is to gain
greater support for gays and lesbians by showing the straight
world how many upstanding, mainstream people are gay; this
to me is a twisted use of the valid insight that if all of the gays
and lesbians in the world were to come out, the straight world
would be impressed, amazed, and robbed of the capacity or
desire to pass mean, malicious, homophobic laws. ·
But, dear Ms. Duright, everyone is not coming out en
masse, and the fact is that actors who makes a living as sex
objects will have their earnings and opportunities seriously
impaired by the public perception of them as gay or lesbian.
Politicians aspiring to high office, or low for that matter, will
likely have their ambitions stifled by the public's knowledge of
their homosexuality.
People in favor of outing sometimes use the argument that
the closet is a miserable, unhappy place, and that people will be
better off once they are out and can breathe free. Puhleeze, this
is paternalistic rubbish at its oiliest. Let's let people determine
their own fate, their own progress, their own agenda, their own
lives. It's one thing to throw yourself on a grenade to save your
buddies, and another to throw someone else on it.
The way it looks from here, and putting the best light on it,
outing is a tactic of terrorism, designed to improve the Ii ves of
many at the expense of one. (Though many here with me think
it's just meanness, pure and simple). Does anyone in your time
continuum really still believe that the end justifies the means?
I hope not.
By the way, did you hear the one about the plane load of
lesbians and gays that ran into trouble? The pilot came on the
PA and announced that they were running short of fuel, and the
bad news was that they were going to have to jettison five
people; and the really bad news was that they had no parachutes, and needed volunteers to jump. After a moment a lanky
gay Texan in a cowboy hat stood up, shouted " Remember the
Alamo, ' ' and jumped out. Next, an Oklahoma lesbian stood
up, shouted ''Viva Amelia Earhart,'' and jumped out. After a
few moments of stunned silence and appreciation, a Queer
Nation member from New York stood up, shouted "No more
hiding in closets!'' - and tossed ounwo movie stars and a US
Senator.
Best wishes for being happily and voluntarily out,
Sybil
Dear St. Sybil,
I'm involved with a wonderful woman, warm, passionate,
kind, funny and smart, and we are thinking of moving in
together and committing to each other, but there's one thing
that really bothers me: I never get to touch the tv remote
control. She seems to think that control of the damn thing is
her birthright or something. Can you give me some good ideas
on how to change this situation?
Thank you,
Patsy
Dear Patsy,
· Well now, honey, I suggest that you just get over it, right
now. There are only two kinds of people in the world, you
know, those who are alw;iys going to control the remote and
most everything else, and those who like you are basically
along for the ride. (You never got to control the remote even
when it was just you and your kids, did you now.) So you have
two options: you can fret and bum and harbor little resentments
and one day kick her and the damn remote and the horse she
rode in on out the door and down the street, or you can relax,
put your feet up (she might rub them) and save your energy for
more important things; like running for the school board,
organizing anew chapterof Simply Equal, or figuring out what
to get her for her birthday. Be glad you found each other.
Love and kisses,
Cl
Sybil
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2 Her/and Voice August, 1993
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BACKLASH
by Vivien Ng
I have been in New York for three full weeks already. ·I
have seen three movies and one Broadway play (Angels in
America), been to three museums and a botanical garden, so
I should be in a good mood today. But I am not. Current events
have overwhelmed me.
A friend from DC came to visit and brought with her a
copy of the Private Eye Weekly, a Salt Lake City newspaper.
The front page told a stark and frightening story: ''Farr From
Over,'' about the firing of a professor at Brigham Young
University because of her politics. According to the report,
Cecilia Konchar Farr incurred the wrath of Mormon church
elders and the university adminstration with her "anti-abortion but pro-choice political stance'' and her advising a group
of student feminists on the BYU campus.
A call this morning from a women's studies professor at
Penn State deepened my sense of doom and gloom. She
related a harrowing tale of two years of relentless harassment
and out-of-context attacks on her and the Women's Studies
Program by a well-funded conservative student-run newspaper. The university administration had been at b~st only
lukewarm in their support for Women's Studies and women on
campus. She asked: "Isn't there something the National
Women's Studies Association can do to fight this backlash?''
The New York Times reports that two Clinton nominees
are in trouble with the right wing. Dr. Tara J. O'Toole's
confirmation by the Senate as Assistant Secretary for Energy
is no longer assured, because she has come under intense
scrutiny for her membership in a study group, Northeast
Feminist Scholars. Dr. Joycelyn Elders, Surgeon-General
designate, has come under increasingly hostile attack from the
religious rightfor her pro-choice views and outspoken support
for school-based clinics and sex education. Her confirmation
hearing has been postponed. (I hope that by the tim:e this issue
of the Voice reaches your mailbox the Senate has come to its
senses and moved to confirm both of them.)
This litany of feminist woes continues: The House of
Representatives voted to reauthorize the Hyde Amendment,
even though pro-choice activists had expected a very different
outcome. So, although the Amendment was modified slightly
to make exceptions for rape or incest, poor women in the U.S.
will continue to be denied the same access to abortion as their
middle-class sisters.
Much of the backlash has been in evidence for years;
there's even a national bestseller on the subject, so why am I
feeling so blue? Like so many of my fellow travelers, I was
ecstatic over the results of the election last November. Finally, I have voted for a winner for a change and, more
important, someone whose position on many key issues is
(read was) compatible with mine. I have allowed myself to
dream about greater changes to come: passage of the lesbian
and gay civil rights act; the end to sinister exploitation of
racism, sexism, and homophobia; the repeal of the Hyde
Amendment; the passage of a "clean" Freedom of Choice
Act, etc., etc.
What has happened since is nothing short of betrayal. The
about-face with regard to Haitian boatpeople, the timid handling of the ban on lesbians and gays in the military, the long
delay in appointing an AIDS czar, the abandoning of Lani
Guinier, etc., etc. all spelled unprincipled politics as usual. I
have since scraped off my Clinton/Gore bumper sticker.
There is enough blame to spread around. When Lani
Guinier was nominated, for example, mainstream women's
groups did not immediately mobilize to support her. Unlike the
quick response to the nominations of Robert Bork and Clarence
Thomas to the U.S. Supreme Court, when grassroots activists
were immediately contacted to lobby against them, there had
been only a disturbing silence. The unexpected vote to
reauthorize the Hyde Amendment, according to a number of
irate Congresswomen, was a result of failure in Congressional
leadership, which did not recognize the latent class bias of
many of the so-called pro-choice lawmakers.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg pointed out on the first day of Senate
hearings to confirm her nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court
that after the landmark Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, prochoice groups became complacent. How true. Mainstream
groups did not mobilize when the Hyde Amendment was first
passed. Their middle class bias clouded their vision and
allowed the religious right to chisel away at a woman's right to
have an abortion until almost too late. I do hope that we have
learned a hard lesson from history and not fall prey to easy (and
seductive) complacency.
[J
WE SHARE A DREAM
The 30th Anniversary of the 1963 civil rights March on
Washington, which featured Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s
historic ''I Have A Dream'' speech, will be marked by another
March on Washington, to take place on August 28, 1993. The
New Coalition of Conscience will convene a massive march
and rally at the Lincoln Memorial to renew the call for jobs,
justice, and peace. NGLTF is one of the co-conveners of the
March, and is coordinating a contingent of gay and lesbian
marchers to join this unprecedented coalition.
To find out more about the March on Washington Mobilization, call their Southeast office at 404-526-8995 or 404-5241956. To participate in the lesbian and gay contingent, call
Linda Yanney at 202-332-6483.
[J
OKLAHOMA NOW NEWS
Oklahoma NOW is organizing a phone tree to be used
during the legislative session when bills of critical importance
to women come before Congress and the Oklahoma state
legislature. Six to eight times a year, the phone tree will be
activated to inform members of important legislative votes or
other important events, so that calls and letters from their
constituents will get their elected officials' attention. If you
would like to be a member of this phone tree, send your name
and telephone number to Laura Rhodes, NOW Legislative
Coordinator, 1009 Missouri Avenue, Norman OK 73071). [J
Her/and Voice August, 1993
3
DEAR B1LL:
So WHAT HAVE
You DoNE FOR
Us
LATELY?
by Carol Wheller and Abby Hirsch
Well, quite a lot, come to think about it. But why, then,
have so many of us felt so bitterly disappointed? We've seen
retreats here, concessions there. But maybe we're looking at
this wrong. Maybe we're at fault. Maybe we've been sitting
back and expecting one man to change a whole Congress and
a whole country.
Maybe we're playing into the hands of the Doles and the
Nunns and the Borens and the editors of The New York Snides
when we put you down.
It's been a long time since anyone has taken on the issues
you have. They're incredibly complicated, divisive, important
issues and it's no surprise you haven't won them all.
Actually trying to make the economy work for anyone but
the rich, for instance--when was the last time anyone did that?
The previous twelve years saw even Democrats raising taxes on
the middle class and letting the rich get away with untold
boodle. They said you didn't fight hard enough for your plan.
(Meanwhile, what did we do?)
Taking on the banks: You dared to suggest that banks
shouldn't be making money on young people's struggle for
education. And it looks like enough in Congress might be
persuaded to agree to help lower the burden of debt on the
nation's graduates.
And the issue of gays in the military--because you pushed
the issue from the beginning, the level of public consciousness
about homosexuality has risen enormously, as has acceptance.
In fact, it looks like people are beginning to come around on the
issue, beginning to wonder just what the big deal is. Didn't
these guys know there were going to take a lot of showers and
spend a lot of nights with other guys when they joined up? Is that
maybe one reason they did join up (but they would rather not
think about it)?
Things you've been able to do with the fabled stroke of the
pen, you've done, and fast: repealed the gag rule; approved the
importation of RU486; reversed the Mexico City policy that
restricted aid to international family planning programs; lifted
the ban on fetal tissue research and the ban on women having
abortions in military hospitals abroad; appointed the first
woman attorney general and nominated the second woman
associate justice of the Supreme Court.
Other things we have now that we'dalmost given up hope
for: The Family Leave Act and the NIH Reauthorization Act
(with the historic provisions on women's health research) and
the Motor Voter Bill--you fought for them and you signed them
into law.
Pamela Maraldo, president of the Planned Parenthood
Federation of America, says you've "launched a new era in
~erican health care." Texas Governor Ann Richards says,
We have not had a leader in Washington for more than a
decade that understands the obvious fact that 'Women' s
Issues' are the issues that affect a majority of Americans.
President Clinton not only understands ...he has acted upon it."
Could it be that DeeDee Myers is right when she says of
your adminstration, ''We have done more for women s rights
in the last 100 days than happened in the last twelve years.
Sometimes our achievements get lost in a wave of negativity.
And then there are the not-so-little things, like the White
House dress code: ' 'They let us wear trousers to work now; it
makes a big difference,'' says Kim Wood, White House intern.
And the White House club code unequivocally demands that
staffers resign from organizations with the slightest taint of
discrimination. And, of course, the White House correspondence code; it's kind of disarming, Bill, that when you answer
a letter, you start it, "Dear Carol and Abby".
So What's Bugging Us? The way you sometimes raise
our hopes only to let them come crashing to the ground.
Whenever you nominate a "first woman" --or a second or a
third--for Justice or another high office, all of us shine with
reflected glory. Then sometimes you or your staff let her down,
-, or worse, blame her for other's errors, or worst, attack her
writings for things they didn't say or that you should have
known. Then we are all humilitated, because these women are
our champions. (We feel sorry for Judge Breyer, but we view
the constituency as less vulnerable.)
If you'll take this to heart, we'll try to stop carping, stop
saying you' re not fighting hard enough, and pick up our rolling
pins and join the battle. And then, dear Bill, maybe we can say
All is forgiven (for now).
Reprinted from Getting It Gazette.
Talking frankly woman-to-woman is what the Getting lt Ga_
Wk does best. All current contributors of$35 or more receive
all 1993 issues. Send contributions to: Getting It Gazette, 451
West 24th Street, New York, New York 10011. Telephone 2121
229-0763 Fax 0758.
[J
'Ifie
AfcAfow Sisters
Mowing · Fertilizing · Trimming
·Light Hauling
"We are Insured"
Nancy
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4 Her/and Voice August, 1993
rDf.ta.homa. {!uy, rD!J(
73120
FUNDING FOR PROGRAMS
IMPORTANT TO WOMEN
Three bills providing international assistance were approved by the House of Representatives in June. All three -- the
foreign aid authorization and foreign operations appropriations bills and the State Department authorization bill -- contain
provisions aiding women in developing nations.
One of the key provisions would provide funding for the
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The largest multilateral provider of family planning services in the developing
world, UNFPA has not received U. S . funds since 1985. The
Reagan Administration withdrew funding because UNFPA
operates in China, which has been accused of involuntarily
sterilizing women and performing coercive abortions. The
Clinton Administration supports refunding UNFPA, and asked
for $50 million for the program in its fiscal 1994 budget.
Under the State Department authorization bill, which was
approved June 22, UNFPA would be eligible for $50 million.
However, nearly $14 million of that amount would be withheld
unless UNFPA withdraws from China. The foreign operations
appropriations bill, approved June 17, includes the additional
stipulation that none of the funds for UNFPA be released until
March 1, unless UNFPA ends its operations in China before that
date.
The foreign aid authorization bill, approved by the House
on June 16, authorizes $395 million for family planning and
population programs, while the appropriations bill provides
$392 million in actual spending, $42 million more than last
year, and only slightly less than President Clinton's request of
$400 million. The appropriations bill funds the migration and
refugee assistance program at the Department of State at $670
million, up from $620, and includes language supporting staff
training programs for staff who work with refugees identifying
and addressing the needs of refugee women.
Included in the State Department authorization bill is
language, authored by Rep. Olympia Snowe, Co-Chair of the
Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, addressing women's
human rights and the needs of female refugees. The bill urges
the State Department to designate a senior level official to
promote the issue of international women's human rights
within the overall human rights policy of the U.S. In addition,
the bill requires the State Department to address specific
concerns of refugee women, including protection of women
refugees, maternal and child health, education and training for
refugee women, staff training programs on women refugees,
and involving women refugees in planning and implementing
the delivery of services. An estimated 80 percent of refugees
around the world are women and children.
The Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Terrorism, Narcotics and International Operations approved its version of the State Department bill on June 29, but without the
refugee or human rights language. However, such language is
likely to be added as an amendment when the full Foreign
Relations Committee takes up the bill in July.
BAN DENOUNCED
(continued from page 1)
Stoddard pledged, •'The debate will continue. The struggle
will endure. And the ultimate goal will be realized: eventually,
completely and universally, lesbians and gay men will achieve
their right to equal treatment in the armed forces of the United
States.
"This issue will not go away, and the gay and lesbian
movement will not go away,'' Domi said. "This capitulation to
bigotry will not deterour struggle for equality and fairness. The
'don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue' policy is completely
unacceptable. We will fight the policy in the streets, in the
courts, and in Congress. We will not end this battle until we
attain justice.''
The Senate Armed Services Committee has included policy
to continue the ban on lesbians and gays in the military in the
$262 billion defense budget under consideration. The legislation includes language opposing homosexuality and providing
for discharge of a service member who engages or attempts to
engage in a homosexual act, states verbally ornon-verbally that
they are homosexual or marries or tries to marry someone of the
same sex. The full Senate is expected to consider the defense
budget before it leaves for summer recess on August 9.
IJ
CREATING CHANGE
UPDATE
Scholarships for NGLTF's Creating Change Conference,
to be held in Durham, North Carolina, are available to assist
limited-income activists, activists of color, and activists with
disabilities. The scholarship application deadline is September
10 (student deadline is September 24). To receive an application, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to Creating
Change 1993 at NGLTF, 1734 14th St. NW, Washington DC
20009. Apply early. Funds are limited.
To make a contribution to the Creating Change Scholarship Fund or for any other information about Creating Change
1993, contact Ivy Young, Directorof Creating Change, at 202332-6483, ext. 3304.
1J
Leaf It To Us!
732-4258
Floral Designs
Silk and Fresh
Tropical Plants
Sales and Maintenance
Thank you Her/and for your help after
our loses during the May 8th flood.
Pam & Chris
Reprinted from Update On Women and Family Issues In
Congress VOL. 13 NO. 6, June 29, 1993.
IJ
Her/and Voice August, 1993
5
El..EANoRROOSEVELT-VOL 1: 18U1933
by Blanche Wiesen Cook
Published by Penguin Books
Reviewed by Carol White
For Mother's Day this year I received three pair of men's
gold toe socks, an ancient coin to add to my collection, and my
veryownpaperbackeditionof Eleanor Roosevelt- Voll: 18841933 by Blanche Wiesen Cook. I won't share my socks, I'll let
you see the coin (no touching), but I want to let everyone share
in appreciating Eleanor Roosevelt!
Cook presents by far the most thoroughly researched look
at E.R. (Eleanor Roosevelt) to date. Don't be put off by it's
length of 500 pages or the $14.00 price sticker. The book is
most worthy of your investment of time and money. Wrapped
in an intriguingly warm style, Cook's writing flows with candor
and savvy.
With great ease I could give a lengthy litany on each
chapter of the book. Briefly, among the most notable are the
relationships E.R. had with Marie Souvestre (founder of
Allenswood,a progressive feminist •'finishing'' school in England), Ester Lape and her life-partner Elizabeth Read (impressive political activists), and Nancy Cook and her life-partner
Marion Dickerman (Cook was a potter, jeweler, photographer,
and carpenter; Dickerman was an educator and political activ~Q.
"
Skillful and touching is the author's handling of the impact
of Lorena Hicok on the life of E.R. Long "suspected" as a
lesbian affair, Blanche Wiesen Cook, with intuiti"e accuracy,
discusses the realities of the relationship. Gently reminding the
reader that physical intimacy is never the be-all and end-all of
love shared between women, Blanche Wiesen Cook elevates
the decency of privacy. There are no •'scandal sheet'' details
spewed forth here. There needn't be.
A few months ago, I saw Blanche Wiesen Cook interviewed on C-SP AN. She was rather unassuming and very witty
at times. Yet, when asked a difficult or seemingly trivial detail
about E.R., she at once let the audience know they were in the
presence of the world's leading authority on the life and times
of Eleanor Roosevelt. Close to the end of the interview Cook
was asked about the dedication she gives very humbly at the
beginning of the book. She replied that the book is dedicated
to Clare M. Coss, her life-partner of more than 20 years.
(Stirrings of pride and shrieks of joy rattled the rafters in my
living room at that nonchalant reply!)
I wish Cooks' E.R. Vol. II was already in print. Perhaps it
will be by nextMother'sDay. You can betl'll letyouknow.D
2109 S. AiR DEpor
Midwm CiTY, OK 7 ~ l l 0
(405 )7H -0496
AiR DEpoT ANiMAl HospiTAl
CAil loR AppoiNTMENT
6 Berland Voice August, 1993
JOY HUSKA, D.V.M .
HOUSE APPROVES
DISEASE AND VIOLENCE
PREVENTION BILLS
With an overwhelming majority supporting the measures,
the House easily passed three bills in June authorizing funds for
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to
administer programs important for women's health. On June
14, the House passed the Breast and Cervical Cancer Amendments of 1993 (H.R. 2202) and the Injury Prevention and
Control Amendments of 1993 (H.R. 2201). The following
week, on June 21, the House approved H.R. 2203, legislation
reauthorizing a program for the prevention and control of
sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).
H.R. 2202 extends for five years the Breast and Cervical
Cancer Mortality Prevention Act which authorizes state programs to provide mammograms and pap smears for lowincome women. Currently, 12 states have funding for comprehensive screening programs and an additional 18 states are in
the planning stages. The bill authorizes $135 million for the
program in fiscal 1994, nearly $50 million above President
Clinton's request for the program.
Included in H.R. 2202 are several new provisions to
improve and expand the breast and cervical cancer prevention
programs. Due to concerns that Native American women are
not being adequately served by this program, language in the
bill allows tribes and tribal organizations to apply for funds. In
addition, H.R. 2202 sets aside $3 million in 1994 for three
demonstration projects to provide to women additional preventive health services. Such additional services include screening
for high blood pressure, cholesterol, and sexually transmitted
diseases.
The Injury Prevention and Control Amendments add provisions to the current CDC injury control program designed to
improve the treatment and prevention of domestic violence and
sexual assault. Modeled on legislation introduced by Reps. Jim
McDermott, Constance Morella, andMike Kreidler, H.R. 2201
authorizes CDC to collect data, evaluate prevention efforts, and
establish hospital-based demonstration projects to identify and
treat victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. In
addition, the bill calls for public education projects on the
health consequences of domestic violence. Speaking in support
ofH.R. 2201, Rep. Kreidlernoted, "among the people who do
not understand the connection between violence and public
health are our health care providers. It is time to break the
silence surrounding these issues of victimization and get women
the help they need.'' H.R. 2201 authorizes $50 million for the
program for FY 94.
The SexuallyTransmittedDiseasesAmendmentsof 1993,
funds states to continue providing STD prevention and control
programs which primarily screen for STDs, such as chlamydia
and gonorrhea. Authorized at $80 million in fiscal 1994, the
program is of particular importance to women and infants who
are athighriskof suffering infertility, infant mortality and birth
defects because of STDs.
Reprinted from Update On Women and Family Issues In
Congress, VOL. 13 NO. 6, June 29, 1993.
D
AUGUST
19 9 3
Doc Herland says, Ohmigosh, we 1 ve got Alix Dobkin coming in September, a Harvest Moon Ball in October, and then
just guess who'll be here November 18th! Well, Doc's not telling, but save the date; you'll be glad you did.
Sunday
Monday
2
Tuesday
3
\Wednesday Thursday
5
4
Friday
7
6
Simply Equal
7 PRl
Zoom Beach
CoDA, 7 pm
Tri an Elle
Associates
8
9
10
Simpl:y Equal
7 pm
Herland
11,-.,
Saturday
MARY
REYNOLDS
tilt
Rose Stale
Tom Steed
Center
pm
e
12
13
CoDA, 7 pm
HISS BROJWN
TO YOU
at
vzo·s
8:45 p.m.
15
16
HERL AND
BOARD
MEETING
4:30 pm
22
17
18
19
20
21
Simpl:y Equal
CoDA, 7 pm
7 PDI
Herland
23
24
25
26
Simpl:y Equal
7
pm
27
MARY
REYNOLDS
at the
Country
Coffee
in Tyler, TX
..
Her land
CoDA, 7 pm
29
30
2
~~:.f.:•:
'?":!l· 'J
~ · ·.1::
PEG·c°f'
JOHNSON
9 Pl1 at the
Grateful Bean
31
Simpl:y Equal
7
Piii
Herland
Lucy Stone, August 13, 1819 - 1893. US reformer, campaigner for
women's rights, and fervent abolitionist. She helped to found
the American Woman Suffrage Association in 1869 and edited its
magazine .Wanan's Journal from 1870 -1893 .
HERLAND SISTER RESOlJRCES, INC.
2312 N\\I 39th Street
Oklahoma City. Oklahoma 73112
405/ 521-Q6Q6
Hours: Saturdays 10 - 6: Sundays 1 - 6
l
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NonProfit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Oklahoma City, Okla.
Permit No. 861
2312 N.W. 39th Street
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73112
ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED
RETURN POSTAGE GUARANTEED
NEVADA SODOMY LAW
REPEALED
Nevada Governor Bob Miller signed into law a bill to
repeal Nevada's sodomy statute on June 16, 1993. This marks
the first legislative repeal of a sodomy law since 1986 when the
U.S. supreme Court ruled in Bowers v. Hardwick that homosexual sodomy is not constitutionally protected.
First-year Nevada state senator Lori Lipman Brown introduced the bill to repeal the sodomy law in the state senate on
May 13, 1993. The 82-year-old law was previously amended
in 1977 to apply to sexual activity between members of the
same sex only.
Judy Corbisiero of Nevadans for Constitutional Equality
said, •'This effort proved that when the gay community in
northern and southern Nevada pull together we can make things
happen.''
After a grueling lobbying effort, the repeal measure passed
both chambers by more than a two to one ratio. Lee Plotkin, a
member of the Law Vegas Lesbian and Gay Pride committee
who also lobbied for the repeal, said •'We developed a formula
to make this effort work. If it can work in Nevada, it can work
anywhere.''
Cl
GLAAD NOTES
The Right Fight: To assist in the fight against bigotry, People
for the American Way has published An Abridged Guide to
Right Wing Activity in 1993 at the Grassroots Level. This
concise intelligence guide is a state-by-state listing of targets
in the "Religious" Right's war on civil liberties. Many of the
listings highlight anticipated attacks on multicultural textbooks, sex and AIDS education programs, and •'anti-family''
school board policies. The entertainment industry is also on the
hit list, as are art exhibits and other forums for creative
expression. For more information, write to People For the
American Way, 2000 M Street, N. W ., Suite 400, Washington,
DC 20036.
Cl
Published by: Herland Sister Resources, Inc. 2312 N.W .
39th, Oklahoma City, OK 73112
Newsletter Committee: Margaret Cox, Deborah Fox, Vivien
Ng, Pat Reaves
Circulation: 1100
Advertising Rates: Business card $15; 1/4 page $35;
1/2 page$60; full page $100. Deadline for ads is the 15th of the
month preceeding publication date.
The Voice is offered as an open forum for community discourse.
Articles reflect the opinions of the author and not necessarily
those of Herland Sister Resources. Unsolicited articles and
letters to the editor are welcomed and must be signed by the
writer with full name and address. Upon request, letters or
articles may be printed under a pseudonym or anonymously.
Subscriptions to The Voice are free upon request.
WOMEN'S HEALTH
J
A new report from the Nurses' Health Study found that
women who quit smoking quickly lower their risk of having a
stroke (Journal of the American Medical Association, Jan 13.,
1992: 232-236 ). Based on a twelve-year survey of the health
of 117,006 women, the researchers found that within two to
four years of quitting, former smokers have the same relative
risk of developing a stroke as women who have never smoked.
About half of all deaths from stroke in women under the age of
65 are estimated to be caused by smoking.
Info from Women's Health Now. Volume 1, No. 2. Cl
GooD NEws FROM
COLORADO
The State Supreme Court of Colorado has upheld a temporary injunction of Amendment 2 that prevents Amendment 2
from taking effect until the trial on the constitutionality of the
Amendment can be heard in October in Judge Jeffrey Bayless'
District Court in Denver. Judge Bayless had issued an injunction in February, saying there was a right •'not to have the state
give sanction to private biases."
The State Supreme Court also upheld Bayless' criterion
that the State must show a compelling interest in order to
discriminate by enforcing Amendment 2. This is the strictest
criterion the U.S. Supreme Court allows for any kind of
discrimination (usually reserving it for race and religion), and
makes it highly unlikely that the Amendment will be found
Constitutional.
The State Supreme Court, according to news reports,
agreed that it is unlikely that Amendment 2 can meet the strict
test of compelling interest. The Colorado Supreme Court
would be the court to which the loser in Bayless' upcoming
decision will try to appeal.
Colorado State Attorney Gale Norton is appealing the
injunction to the U.S. Supreme Court and has asked Judge
Bayless to postpone the trial on the constitutionality of Amendment 2 while the U.S. Supreme Court considers the injunction.
The filing would be in mid-September with a ruling possible
in July, 1994. If Bayless refuses to postpone his trial, the state
will likely appeal that refusal to the Colorado Supreme Court.
A legal expert said the chances might not be good because
Amendment 2 hasn't had a full trial. ''That's a strong factor
against the likelihood of review," said Richard Collins, a
University of Colorado law professor and constitutional law
specialist.
What the state seems afraid of is that they are required to
prove "compelling governmental interest" in enacting and
enforcing Amendment 2. Except for the American Constitutional Law Foundation (ACLF), the conservative legal group
that helped write Amendment 2 and claimed that the language
will pass Constitutional muster, many legal experts are saying
that the state burden of proof is overwhelming. Cl
The Voice is printed on recycled paper.
Her/and Voice August, 1993
7
r-----------------------------------------,
1
JI tJI. I. l~'l IN Jlct1llll)
Thanks to all the Porthole family for
a great "Christmas in July"
benefitting the Legal Defense Fund.
Classified: Single working mother of 10year old daughter wishes to share housing
with non-smoking woman or women in
similar circumstances in Putnam City or
Yukon school districts. I value shared
expenses as well as my own privacy.
Experienced in community living. Please
leave message at Herland, 521-9696.
The 3rd International Conference on Sexual
Assault on Campus will be held October
7-9 in Nashville, Tennessee. Sponsored
by the Safe Schools Coalition, the conference seeks to bring individuals, campus
organizations and community institutions
together to address efforts to reduce the
magnitude of sexual assault; programs for
meeting the needs of survivors; school
policies, government, and law enforcement needs. For information: Sexual
Assault Conference, P.O. Box 1338,
Holmes Beach, FL 34219; phone 1-800537-4903.
The White House is moving into the Information Age. President Clinton and VicePresident Gore now have e-mail addresses.
The Internet address for President Clintion
is PRESIDENT @WHITEHOUSE.GOV
and for Vice-President Gore is VICE.
PRESIDENT@WHITEHOUSE.GOV.
Electronic mail can be sent to Internet
addresses from Compuserve and almost
all online communications services. Check
with your service to find out how to send
mail to the Internet.
Submissions of poetry and line drawings
by black lesbians and gay men sought by
Kuumba, Box 83912, Los Angles, CA
90083; (310)410-0808.
According to the Los Angles Times, Barbara Streisand and Glenn Close are producing a made-for-TV movie based on the
true story of Col. Margarethe
Carnrnermeyer, who servedfor26years as
one of the highest- ranking women in the
armed services before being expelled fouryears ago after revealing she was a les.bian. The movie, which will star Glenn
Close, is scheduled to air in the fall of
1994.
The Family Next Door, a national newsletter to help lesbian and gay parents celebrate the joys .and conquer the challenges
of parenting, is coming out in August.
Each edition will include information
about education, health , family planning,
social and legal issues and much more. To
subscribe call (510)482-5778 or write Next
Door Publishing, P.O. Box 21580, Oakland, CA 94620.
~----------------------~------------------J
Herland Sister Resources presents
1993
FALL RETREAT FOR WOMEN
SEPTEMBER
24-26
LAKE MURRAY STATE PARK
Single Person's Annual
Income
Retreat Pre-registration
per person
Household Annual
Income
under $6,500
$15
under $13,300
$6,500- $13,250
$25
$13,300- $18,000
$13,250-$19,500
$35
$18,000 - $26,000
$19,500 - $30,000
$45
$26,000 - $30,000
over $30,000
$60
over $50,000
Please choose the registration fee most appropriate for you based on these suggested guidelines. On-site registration will be $60 and
with no exceptions. The deadline for preregistration is September 20, 1993. Registration is non-refundable after September 22.
Complete and return the pre-registration
form to Herland, 2312 N.W. 39, Oklahoma
City, OK 73112.
Name
Phone
------------------------~
Address
City: _____________________ St ate _____ Zip______
---------------------------------------------------------------
Registration fee enclosed: _$15
_$25
_$35
_$60
_
I need a scholarship to attend.
_
I'm enclosing an additional $ ___ to provide retreat scholarships.
_
I'm bringing
~
children.
I would like to ride with someone.
_I can help provide rides to the retreat.
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