VERMONT’S NEWSPAPER for LESBIANS and GAY MEN

1 Vol.2, No. 7

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October, 1987 ,

March on Washington to Send a Message

"Depriving individuals of the right to
choose for themselves how to conduct their
intimate relationships poses a far greater
threat to the values most deeply rooted in
our nation ’s history than tolerance of
nonconfomtity could ever do." U.S.
Supreme Court Justice Hany Blackmun,
dissenting from the Court’s 1986 ruling that
upholds sodomy laws

WE OF THE U.S. LESBIAN AND
GAY COMMUNITY urgently need to bring
a message to this nation and its leaders - it
is not we, but the threats to us, that
endanger the entire nation and its values.

The agenda of our enemies is all too
familiar. It’s an agenda of hatred, of fear,
and of bigotry - against us, against freedom,
and against love.

Lesbians and gay men are denied the
rights to make love, even in the privacy of
our own homes. Lesbians must survive in a
society that renders us invisible and which
denies equitable compensation for a woman's
labor. We're told we're unfit to nurture our
own children, or to adopt otherwise
unwanted ones. Young lesbian and gay
people are taunted and beaten, or rejected
by their families. Many of us have been

victims of violent attacks; some are even

 

driven to suicide by the hostile and
alienating society - all in the name of
"morality."

The AIDS crisis is manipulated to
advance this agenda. The public is
frightened by irresponsible voices in the
media and by lack of accurate information
from health officials. Politicians pander to
misguided fears, disregarding the plain facts
of both science and justice. The federal
government plunders already-underfinanced
social programs, pitting victim against victim,
as it offers too little too late to combat
AIDS. Meanwhile, though medical evidence
continues to show that AIDS is not
transmitted through casual contact, the
Justice Department sanctions discrimination

against people with AIDS and people with
ARC.

Vermont Organizes for March

The Vermont Organizing Committee for
the March on Washington is in f11ll swing,
preparing for what looks to be a major
historical event in Washington, D.C. on the
weekend of October 11, 1987. Estimated
crowds for the lesbian/gay march range from
100,000 to 250,000!!

Successful events thus far for the
Vermont contingency include a "shopper’s
bargain" garage and bake sale, and a
M.O.W. dance at Pearls. The primary goal
of these fundraisers was to raise money for
transportation to Washington. With
help from G.L.B.A. at UVM, the cost for
those in need of cheap transportation has
been greatly reduced. A round‘trip seat in
a van will be $15.00.

"People who have helped with these
events can feel good about providing a way
for some others who otherwise might not
have attended," commented Philip Roberts
of VLGR, a group helping to organize the
march.

At press deadline (September 18), there
.are seats available for
Burlington to Washington, DC. Two fifteen
passenger vans will be leaving the Peace and

Letters to the Editor 2
AZT Questions 4
Donating Blood 4
March on Washington 6
AG’s Office “9
Letters Home 10
Dear Gert & Alice» ., 11
people from Calendar 11
Happy Halloween
, -

The United States is in danger of
becoming a place where everyone’s privacy
and freedom yield before the prying eyes of
a fearful, lunatic fringe. The "LaRouche
Initiative" in California would, if not soundly
defeated, set the stage for forced HTLV-III
testing, identification cards and detention
camps. The chill of a dreadful deja vu
permeates the air as a community is
scapegoated to divert the society from
dealing with its real problems.

The escalating attacks on our
community are part of a pattern of assaults
on human rights. As the rights of lesbians
and gays are threatened, racist attacks
increase; the hard-won civil rights of People
of Color are dismantled. The Federal
government gathers intelligence for the

continued, page 7

Justice Center, 186 College St., Burlington
on Saturday, October 10, 6:45pm.

A third van leave at 2:00pm, Friday,
October 9, from the Billings Center at
UVM. Cost will be $15.00 for a round trip
seat. The UVM van will give first priority
to UVM students. ,

There will be no-cost, or low-cost
lodging for those who need it in
Washington. Deadline fog registration for
van transportation is Monday, October 5th.

For further information, call Terje at
Vermont CARES, 863-2437. Let’s have a
huge, enthusiastic group from Vermont in
Washington!!

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