HerlandVoice-2002-03-v20-no03_ocr.pdf
- Title
- HerlandVoice-2002-03-v20-no03_ocr.pdf
- extracted text
-
tl
March 2002
Volume 20, Number 3
WOMEN'S HERSTORY MONTH
* World Neighbors, 4127 NW i22nct, Oklahoma City, is
hosting a Celebration of Women in honor of International
Women's Day, on Friday, March 8, from 11 am to 1 pm (come
and go) . Music by Edgar Cruz - Shop at Market Day!
Sample international food - See the WOW! (Work of
Women) video - Hear personal stories - Learn how women
live in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
"WOW! ls a
Partnership Investing in the Power & Potential of Women
Around the World."
* Herland has a large lending library of books primarily by
and/or about women; many of which cannot be found at the
public library, e .g. Lesbian Nuns: Breaking Silence - a seminal
work from 1985; we have 2 copies, the Public library? None.
Herland is open Saturday afternoons and during board
meetings (3rd Sunday of each month at 4:30) and occasionally
at other times ..
* The Public Library does have many books we don't have,
of course, and their hours are better - Make March 2002 your
Women's Herstory Month too.
Herland Board Goals Retreat
The Herland Board will hold a planning retreat from 10 am
to 4 pm on Sunday, March 24. We intend to look at where we
are, where we ' ve been, and where we want to go. These are
challenging times for Herland. We have a rash of new
volunteers and Board members bringing new ideas and energy;
at the same time, our financial resources are decreasing.
All past, present, and future board members and volunteers
are invited and encouraged to attend this goal setting meeting,
and help us set our direction for the next twenty years. We
will send out for pizza during the day. We hope to see you
then.
The Berland Book Club met on Saturday, Feb. 16 to talk
about our first book selection, What You Owe Me, by Bebe
Moore Campbell. There were seven of us and we had a lively
discussion about what we liked and disliked about the book.
The Book Club will meet on the third Saturday of each
month at 5 :00 at the Her land center. Our book to read for
March is Crocodile Soup by Julia Darling. There are five
copies available through the public library. If you can't find a
copy, call Herland and one of tile book club members will get
back to you.
Chainsaw Heaven - Herland is having a Spring Cleaning
work day on Saturday, March 30, starting at 10 am and
continuing until???. Bring your tools and your initiative and
your strong willing arms and join the fun.
www .herlandsisters.org
Herland Women of Color
Women of Color met on Feb. 10th at Herland. Shirley
Darrell came to speak to our group, and we had a great tum
out. Our next meeting will be a potluck on March l 0th at 4
pm. Please contact Jacqueline at 842-3464 or email her at
jscottross_42@hotmail.com for directions.
Women of Color is a Black Lesbian Support group that
meets the 2nct Sunday of every month. If you are interested
in being more involved in the community, please join us!
Thank You, Volunteei:s!
Herland would like to thank the women who have so
generously donated their time on a Saturday afternoon to staff
the Herland Bookstore. Your assistance is "priceless." We
could not keep going without you. If any of you would like to
be a part of keeping the only woman-centered library and
bookstore/resource center in Oklahoma City going, please call
Louise at the Herland phone number and we will gladly show
you the simple procedures to become a volunteer for our store.
Fundraiser Report
Mary Reynolds and Louise Goldberg lent their sensational
talents to a house party on February 9, and helped raise over
$1,200 toward Herland and Herland Legal Defense Fund
expenses. Our sincere thanks to Mary and Louise, to Pam and
Chris of Leaf It To Us who supplied the gorgeous flowers, to
Sandy and Nina for the great wine, to our host, and to all those
who contributed their time and generous checks. What a fun
way to raise some money!
Homosexuality and Scripture Conference
March 1-2 weekend at Open Arms UCC, 3131 N. Penn.
Beginning on Friday evening, March l, at 7:00 p.m., and
continuing until mid-afternoon on Saturday March 2. For
more information, call COA at 405-525-9555.
Herland Supper Club and Road Trip
Saturday, March 16th, 6:30 pm
Potluck Dinner at Marty's in Enid
This month the Herland Supper Club gets back on
the road with a trip to the great city of Enid. The Enid folks
will host a potluck dinner at Marty's restored Victorian house
and then we will enjoy a little nightlife at a new gay bar
opening in town.
OKC folks will meet at Herland at 5:00 pm to
carpool to Enid. Call Laura (if in OKC) at 943-4070 or Marty
(if in Enid) at (580) 234-6997 for more details.
Herland Sister Resources, 2312 NW 39, Oklahoma City, OK 73112
-
405-521-9696
SAINT SYBIL
Dear Saint Sybil,
A darling child at the school where I teach gave me an
Eskimo Joe shirt to thank me for helping her mother with
something to benefit our school. I smiled and hugged the girl
and thanked her very much.
What should I do with this
shirt? ·
a) Cut the shirt into rags so that its shocking racist images
will not be seen again?
b) Give the shirt to the United Cerebral Palsy collectors
when they come on MLK day picking up household goods?
c) Wear the shirt to school once so she knows I appreciate
the gift before I do a) orb) above?
I have discussed this with a friend and we think a) is the
only right answer but agreed to consult with you.
P.S. The shirt is not just an Eskimo Joe shirt. It is a shirt for the
Lake Hefner Streak benefiting OKC Beautiful featuring
Eskimo Joe and his dog riding a bike/trotting around the
lake.
Sincerely, Ima Notsher
Dear Ima,
What a dilemma. It is particularly hard because such a
large number of lovely, essentially non-racist people in
Oklahoma wear the shirt all the time . They just put it on and
think fondly of brewskis and panty raids and the good old
college days. A lot of our readers right now are sitting
scratching their heads with chagrined expressions of shock
on their faces . . . "Eskimo Joe??? Racist???"
Heck, Ima,
even a lot of full-blown racists don't get a charge out of the
Eskimo Joe logo. It is not like the "stars and bars", which no
one would ever wear or fly who was not quite comfortable
with a certain degree of racism.
And yet you are so right. It is a shocking racist image.
Eskimo Joe is a perfect example of ingrained, thoughtless,
self-perpetuating racism. Surprisingly, the logo of a cartoon
Eskimo with buck teeth so large they take up more than half
his face was created as recently as 1975. It is quite likely
that if "Joes" had opened twenty years earlier that its cartoon
logo would be of an Al Jolsen type minstrel. All for fun, of
course; no harm meant, no offense intended. Right. For
today's corresponding image, look to Hooters.
Still, Ima, I was thinking about just suggesting that you
give up on this issue , that maybe the racism was unintended
and therefore, though not harmless, and certainly not
innocuous, at least maybe bearable?
Then I surfed the
website - Joe's has a photo gallery with maybe a hundred
pictures of people wearing Eskimo Joe clothing. I looked at
every goofy picture, and there is not one racial minority
wearing the Eskimo Joe logo. Not one. Now, there have
been tons of minorities drinking many kegs of beer at OSU,
home of Eskimo Joe, over the years .... and not one sent in a
proud picture wearing the shirt?
This I call pretty good
empirical evidence that even if white people can't tell it's
racist, everyone negatively affected by racism certainly can.
And of course what this means is, it's time for people to wake
up and demand better of themselves. Well-intentioned folk
who strive to be non-racist need to take a good hard look at
Eskimo Joe and put that t-shirt down for good.
As for the sweet little girl - I'm sure you have written her a
nice thank-you card, and that will have to do. As for what to
do with the shirt - I have an inflammatory suggestion - bring
that ugly thing to Roman Nose on May 17 and bum it on the
Herland bonfire. It'll be fun, and do the world good.
Hugs & Kisses, Sybil
MUSIC REVIEW: Kris Delmhorst - Five Stor ies
byfill Garner
A couple of years ago I wrote about a new CD I had
recently ordered by Kris Delmhorst called Appetite that I
was very impressed with. About a week ago, I got the latest
CD by Delmhorst and I'm just as happy with it as her first.
Delmhorst has been known around the Boston area
for awhile playing bluegrass and old-timey music with the
Vinal Avenue String Band. However, her solo releases have
earned her a new respect as a singer and songwriter in her
own right. She has sold 8,000 copies of Appetite from the
stage, and has been selling out acoustic venues across the
Northeast. She also plays the guitar, piano, fiddle and cello
and on both releases shares her talent on all of these.
Her beautiful voice combined with a knack for
writing songs makes a combination I can't stop listening to.
Most of her songs are in her lower voice range but she's able
to switch easily to her higher range when needed ("Gave it
Away", "Lullaby 10 l "). Both are equally good and the
quality of her voice gives me goosebumps.
I also love the depth of her songs. She does a
mixture of the slow, more sparsely backed ballads like
"Damn Love Song" and "Words Fail You" with a combination
of more jaunty songs like "Cluck Old Hen" with a full band to
a blues-tinged "Honeyed Out''. and a full-blown bluegrass
song called "Mean Old Wind".
"Damn Love Song" describes the fear of fully
committing to a relationship. The first lines are, "How can I
carve your name in the trunk of a tree that'll be here long
after we're gone? I can't even write it in the steam on the
mirror."
Still feeling the pain of a relationship four years
ended she sings in "Broken White Line", "It's been 4 years
and now I find I been living all this time, built myself a little
world of rhythm & of rhyme, but sometimes I take your
picture and I tum it to the wall, cause you are still a cliff and
baby I still know how to fall. It was almost fine, you were
almost mine." I think it's the best song on the CD by far, I
think because of the emotion the song portrays, and the
strength of her voice on it.
"Yellow Brick Road" explores the longing to see
someone as they really are . "Don't say that it's not lonely up
above the crowd. Don't tell me you don't find yourself
longing for the ground. When I asked him one more time
won't you tear the curtain down, he said don't you know
there's nothing here but me" And I said baby who'd you
think I came to see?"
Maybe because of my love of gardening, or maybe
just because it's a good song, I love the metaphor of a rose
wanting to be a wildflower to the longing for freedom and the
fear of it at the same time in "Garden Rose" . "Then tell me
one good reason a rose should not become a weed by & by.
Cause don't the sunshine lay the brightest on the shoulders
of the wild? And don't the breeze blow the sweetest on the
face of its own child?"
The song that really showcases the musicians on the
CD is the bluegrass of "Mean Old Wind" featuring the
Resophonics, (a band from the Boston area) complete with
banjo, mandolin and dobro, and I love the sparse,
percussion-laden blues of "Honeyed Out". She has a number
of good musicians on the CD, and also gets help on a number
of songs with backup vocals by Catie Curtis and Jennifer
Kimball.
This CD moves me emotionally, as good music can.
And those who like that combined with the beauty of good
writing will love this CD.
You can order it from
www.folkweb.com or www.krisdelmhorst.com.
I highly
recommend you do, and I hope you love her music as much
as I do.
Also, on March 22nd, I hope you go see Kate
Campbell at the Blue Door. I saw her there a few months ago
and I tell you, it doesn't get much better than that. I love her
music, but to get to hear her stories (and in that wonderful
southern drawl!) too w~s great. She's very personable, and
highly talented! Please treat yourself to this show and don't
let someone this good pass through Oklahoma City again
without stopping by to listen.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR!
The Herland Spring Retreat will be at Roman Nose State Park
in Watonga, OK on May 17th - 19th. Our friend Nancy Scott
from Austin, TX will be performing the Saturday evening
concert, after the pot-luck dinner.
We have several
interesting and fun workshops planned. If you would like to
lead a workshop (you can use your imagination here!) please
contact a board member or phone 843-7993. We'll have
more details in the next Voice.
SOUL FORCE OKC
By Karen Weldin - February 5, 2002
Dear Friends,
It has been 24 hours since we were vigiling outside
Village Baptist Church in Oklahoma City. I am still filled with
many thoughts and feelings as I reflect on our second vigil.
I keep seeing your faces and hearing your voices as we stood
reverently singing songs of the heart. I am so awe stricken at
your commitment and dedication to do what we can do to
stop the violence against our gay, lesbian, bisexual, and
transgender sisters and brothers. You stood so willingly, so
compliantly, so earnestly in the cold. It was obvious to me
that you stood with a message in your heart that you were
trying to communicate to all of those who walked passed us
and who drove by that we are God's children too. We are
worthy of acceptance, love and inclusion. You all are so
beautiful to me. I am so grateful to each and everyone of you
- your stand for justice does not go unnoticed. The press
conference was so moving. We focused this month on
sharing stories. Mike, I am so sorry for your pain of having
lost a sister to suicide because she could not reconcile her
sexuality with her spirituality and could not stand the
pressure of the condemnation and rejection of her Southern
Baptist childhood religion. Nancy, your tears streaming down
your face were almost too much for me to handle as you
shared in public the pain of losing custody of your three
children because you chose to be honest about your
sexuality. Moira, I listened to you talk about living with fear
about your son being gay. You worried about his safety. I
was saddened at this reality for all parents of GLBT. Eric, you
shared about your friend who is gay who was determined to
stand outside his church relentlessly if they would not allow
him in. I ache for all people who are shunned by their
churches for who they are. At the same time, I am so proud of
allies like you who are willing to stand with us simply
because it is the right thing to do. Suzy and Mary, I share
your pain as we all cry each time I read the letter that my
niece wrote to President Bush about what it was like to be
taken away from her Mother because her Mother is gay.
Debbie, my heart aches for what you have had to go through.
It still hurts to remember the pain and suffering caused by
fear and ignorance. I am sad for the Mother who came up to
Mary who was standing with us holding a sign that said, "I
love my gay daughter," and said, "I have a gay son. I pray for
him daily." She was obviously hurting and angry. She came
out of VBC. She is taught that her son is an abomination. I
ache for this Mother and all parents who are taught to reject
their children. I am sad for the VBC member who dialogued
with Paul who kept insisting we are wrong and that we have a
gay agenda. I hope and pray that she could hear some of
what Paul was trying to share with her. Most of all, I am sad
for the seventeen-year-old teenager who was with us Sunday
whose Mother, while a member of Village Baptist Church,
kicked him out of his home because he came out to her. All of
these are true stories that we experienced during our vigil
this past Sunday. All of these stories and experiences are
reasons we do what we do to confront this kind of violence.
While we were on break a van circled the church several
times. It finally stopped and a man got out and handed Paul,
and the VBC member he was talking to at the time, a piece of
literature. It was a very derogatory piece of literature against
GLBT. It saddens me that people continually use God and
scripture to condemn and reject us. I learned this morning
that the Church of the American Knights had called Rev.
Kersh last month and offered their assistance. I am grateful
Rev. Kersh asked them not to come. Some day, some day as
Kathy said to us in our spiritual preparation Sunday morning,
we are going to look back and be amazed that sexual
minorities were treated differently than other people.
Someday people will be amazed that we were oppressed
and treated violently because of who we love. We must
persevere in order for someday to become a reality.
There were thirty-eight of us who stood in the cold outside
Village Baptist Church Sunday morning. To each of you, I say
again, thank you for your dedication and commitment, thank
you for your willingness to experience some voluntary
redemptive suffering for justice. For those of you who were
not able to be with us, thank you for your thoughts and your
prayers.
Being an activist, confronting the bigotry of the
church, is not popular or glamorous. It is hard work and only
for the courageous. I keep hoping that more of you will join
us. To my friends who are reading this, please search your
heart and consider standing with us March 3rd. We need
you. If we could all move past our fear and stand for justice
we could end this oppression so much quicker. It's tiring to
do what we do. All thirty-eight of us went home tired,
exhausted and hungry. But, we also went home with our
hearts a little fuller, our minds a little more determined to
continue our own soul force journey. We can't adequately
describe or explain our experience. It is something each
person must experience for themselves. It is also a different
experience for each person. I know for me, each time I
participate in a soul force event, I understand my purpose a
little more clearly.
May the Spirit of Truth and Justice reign in all of our hearts,
direct all of our thoughts and actions, and lead us on our
journey.
In love and peace, Karen
Ed. Note: The training for new participants will be
Saturday March 2, from 4- 8: 15 pm at Church of the Open Arms.
The vigil will reconvene on Sunday morning, March 3, outside
Village Baptist Church. Vigilers will carry large posters of Gays and
Lesbians who have died because of hate violence perpetuated by
religious policies and teachings
The Voice is published by: Herland Sister Resources, Inc. 2312 NW 391h,
Oklahoma City, OK 73112. 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 although a donation is requested to meet publication and
distribution costs.
Herland Sister Resources
2312 NW 39
Oklahoma City, OK 73112
NonProfit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Oklahoma City, OK
Permit No. 861
Address Service Requested
Singer's Wanted! Even if
you have little or no formal
training or experience, if you
like to sing and you're a
woman, we want you!
Rehearsals are at Epworth
United Methodist Church
(1901 N. Douglas - between NW 17th and NW 18th)
every Thursday evening, from 7:30pm to 9:30pm.
Contact us at Singalot3@aol.com for more info.
•
REBECCA R. HOLT, Ph.D.
Clinical Psychology
Barnes Gift & Book, Inc
9:30 AM - 6:00 PM Monday- Saturday
2717 NW 50, Oklahoma City, OK
We specialize in Psychology, Recovery, Education,
Gifts, World Religions and Special Orders
ilebsite of the Mo11 ~
www. okprog ressive .org
405/321-2148
P.O.Box 5119
Norman, Okla. 73070
Individual- Couples
Family Therapy, Retreats
A thoughtful compendium of local,
progressive, activist, opinion.