Out in the Mountains . February 1986 . Page 4 Governor Kunin hears Iesbian/ In a historic first, five Burlington area lesbians and gay men met with Governor Madeleine Kunin and her chief of staff Elizabeth Bankowski last July. The meeting, which was initiated by the Governor’s office and co-ordinated by Vermonters for Lesbian and Gay Rights (V L G R) , "misunderstandings" around the Governor’s came about after failure to issue a statement for the 1985 Lesbian/Gay Pride Celebration. The delegation asked Kunin to appoint a lesbian and a gay man to act as co-liaisons to her office. The Governor readily agreed to this proposal. The role of the liaisons will be to help build dialogue with the Kunin administration concerning lesbian/gay issues and to assure community access to the Governor's office. As of this date, the interm co-liaisons are Beth Dingman of Norwich and Terje Anderson of Burlington. Final nomination of individuals for these positions will, hopefully, be decided at the February 16th lesbian and gay men's statewide meetings (see calendar). Other issues discussed with the Governor include the high level. of violence and discrimination against Lackowski honored lesbians and gay men in Vermont, the failure of state government to document this discrimination, and the lack of legal recourse to challenge discrimination. It was suggested that one avenue to be explored would be the use of the Attorney General’s office to monitor and document cases of discrimination against lesbians and gay men in order to gather further information on its nature and extent. This option is currently being gay concerns discussed with the Attorney General's office. Those attending felt it was a positive meeting with a very frank sharing of ideas. "I see this as an important step in the long process of making our voices heard and eventually rectifying the lack of civil rights protection for lesbians and gay men in Vermont," commented Howard Russell of VLGR, one of those attending the meeting. Congressional lobbying groups merge Two major Washington based national lesbian/gay political groups have merged. The Human Rights Campaign Fund (HRCF), which has specialized in raising funds for Congressional candidates who are supportive of lesbian/gay rights, has taken over the operations of the Gay Rights National Lobby (GRNL), which has co- ordinated Congressional lobbying. "The goal of both organizations is to encourage Members of Congress to support Local politician recognized by national group Burlington Peter Lackowski was among those honored at Alderperson the November 22nd New England Banquet of the Human Rights Campaign Fund in Boston. Lackowski was one of six New England legislators to receive recognition for their support of lesbian/gay rights. The banquet was keynoted by Washington, D.C. Mayor Marion Barry and poet May Sarton. HRCF is the only national political action committee which supports candidates for federal office on the basis of their support for lesbian/gay rights. our issues," said Nancy Roth, former GRNL Executive Director, "It makes sense for these complimentary efforts to share the same roof." GRNL's lobbying work will be carried out by a new division of HRCF known as the "Gay Rights National Education Project." The project will seek to build a grassroots national lobbying network on lesbian/gay rights and AIDS issues. GRNL, which has been facing severe financial difficulties for several years, earlier this year was engaged in serious merger talks with the National Gay Task Force. Those talks fell apart when the two organizations were unable to reach agreement on a number of key issues. The HRCF/GRNL merger happened quickly, and took many observers by surprise. Pointing to "very full, very challenging political agenda" in light of the AIDS crisis and rightwing backlash, Vic Basile, Executive Director of HRCF said "I am more confident than ever that this newly-strengthened organization will be able to meet those challenges."