Vol. 1, No. 1

free

7 S.
'0 77

   

February 1986 I

I
HTLV-3 Bill

introduced in Montpelier

 

Rep. K. Micque Glitman Sponsors HTLV Anti-discrimination Bill

Statewide meetings slated

An informal statewide lesbian and gay
working group has scheduled open
meetings of lesbians and gay men for
Sunday, February 16th.

Women will caucus at 1 pm in South
Royalton, and men will caucus at 1 pm
at Noble Hall, Vermont College in
Montpelier.

The meetings spring from a December
15th statewide gathering of nearly 50
lesbians and gay men held in White River
Junction. At that meeting, it was agreed
to meet again to discuss possible
directions for statewide lesbian and gay
activities and organization.

Topics likely to be covered at the
February meetings include the choice of
male and female liaisons to the

Governor's office, the challenges of
lesbians and gay men working together,
and the level of interest in developing a
statewide lesbian and gay men's network
or organization.

On Sunday, March 2nd, there will be
a statewide meeting of both lesbians and
gay men to discuss the results of the
February 16th meetings and further
explore future directions. That meeting

will be held at the South Royalton House ‘

at Vermont Law School at 1 pm, and is
being hosted by the Vermont Law School
Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild.
For further information on the

meetings or organizing efforts contact
Louise at 763-7112, Susan at 234-9589, or
Terje at 658- 0883.

Legislation which would prohibit
discrimination on the basis of HTLV-3
antibody test results has been introduced
in the Vermont House of Representatives
by Rep. K. Micque Glitman (D -
Burlington) and 14 co-sponsors.

According to Glitman, the bill is
designed to "ensure that our policy is
based on sound medical facts,common
sense and respect for individual civil
rights, not hysteria."

The legislation, similar to laws already
passed in Wisconsin and California, covers
employment and housing, and refers
educational matters to guidelines being
developed by state health and education
authorities. Unlike the Wisconsin and
California laws, Glitman’s bill does not
deal with the problem of health insurance
discrimination.

Glitman cites medical evidence that
the HTLV-3 virus is not transmitted
through casual contact, the high incidence
of false— positive results in the ELISA
test, and the threat of widespread
discrimination against high risk groups as
reasons for the legislation.

Rep. Toby Young (D - Westminster),
chair of the House Health and Welfare
Committee, has promised that the bill will
receive "full and fair hearing and
consideration" by the committee.

According to Terje Anderson, who is
informally co-ordinating lobbying on the
bill, "we are working to line up support
from medical, legal and social service
authorities for the committee hearings."

Anderson emphasized the importance
of making contact with state legislators
by mail or phone to urge their support
for the bill. "There is a good chance that
we can get this bill passed," according to
Anderson, "but only if people concerned
about civilliberties get actively involved
in lobbying their legislators."

Anyone interested in working on the
bill should contact VLGR at Box 281,
Hinesburg, Vermont 05401, or call
Anderson at 658- 0883.

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