Out in the Mountains

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With the first issue of Volume V of Out
in the Mountains, bisexuals had their ranks
listed in the masthead alongside gays and
lesbians. What we thought was a small
change proved two things: 1. People acui-
ally READ the masthead, and 2. The
change was not as small or innocent as we
presumed. At meetings and in the mail, we
have heard strong words spoken about the
inclusion of bisexuals in the paper's target
audience.

Obviously, we should have explained
the change more fully in our last issue, but
with only four pages to work with, there
wasn’t much of an opportunity. Recent
conflicts in the gay and lesbian communi-
ties concerning the rights of bisexuals to
join in events such as Pride Day have
shown us the significance of the issue, even
here in the Green Mountain state.

The decision to include bisexuals here
in OITM was ngt made at the whim of a
member of the editorial staff; it was agreed
toatthe first open meeting ofthe paper - a
meeting to which an interested gays and
lesbians were invited. To claim, as a recent
letter protested, that there was no input
from the gay and lesbian community on the
decision would be to overlook the outpour-
ing of support this newspaper received after
it was announced that the paper's folding
was imminent.

Some of that support came from the bi-
sexual community; hence the change to
recognize that effort. As a matter of fact, at
least two members of the current produc-
tion staff claim alliance with the bisexual
community as well as with the gay and/or
lesbian communities.

A few readers questioned the place-
ment of the word “bisexuals” in the mast-
head, and it has since been changed. No

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DESKTOP PUBLISHING STUDIO
TYPE 8: DESIGN/WORKSHOPS/SELF-SERVICE

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prioritizing was intended in the previous
wording, but now that atlention has been
called to the wording any claims to impar-
tiality must be defended: We have reverted
to the original masthead, adding the “b”
word fi_¢lesbians and gay men.

By including bisexuals, Out in the
Mountains hopes to increase and/or ac-
knowledge the outreach of the paper and
thus draw strength from the diversity of its
audience. It is not our goal to be exlusive of
those who identify with gay or lesbian
issues. It is, however, our goal to challenge
prejudice and discrimination wherever and
whenever it occurs, even if it is to be found
in our own ranks.

We encourage continued discussion
on this matter, especially from the bisexual
perspective (since some readers don't be-
lieve such a thing exists). Thanks to all of
those who have expressed their views so far
on the matter; we will soon be asking for
your input on a number of other potential
changes to the paper (the inclusion of per-
sonal advertisements, for example, which
has engendered more debate than the “bi-
sexual” issue at recent meetings).

One change of special note: we have
decided to put out a mid—summer issue in
July to keep you posted on the many events
happening in the warmer months of the
year. We also hope to reach out to the great
numbers of summer people who continue
to support the paper by subscribing year-
round. We will resume monthly production
with the September issue.

There are still some staff positions
available, so if you’re looking to become
more actively involved with the paper, send
us a note or join us at our next meeting on
Saturday, April 21, at 1:00 p.m. in our
Elmwood Avenue office in Burlington.

863-1884

187 sr PAUL smear