Out in the Mountains Join The Fight Suppon The Vermont Coalition of Lesbians and Gay Men in their work to pass legislation guaranteeing equal rights to Lesbians and Gay men in Ver- mont and insuring protection for People With AIDS and HlV+ persons. Contribute to our cause and add your name to our mailing list. We need your hem. [:| Yes, I want to be a part of making Vermont safer for Gays and Lesbians. Add my name to your mailing list [:]Accept my contribution of to help with expenses and general coalition building eflons. See Address on VT Resources Page Name Address Phone THANK YOU! Senate Rejects Homophobic Amendment The lesbian and gay community won its second major national victory in less than a month when an anti-gay amendment offered by Sen. William Armstrong (R- CO) met with defeat in the senate on March 1, 1990. The amendment was drafted broadly and would have allowed all institu- tions that serve children in D.C. to bar any lesbian or gay man from serving as a “role model, mentor, or companion to any mi- nor” in venues such as schools, hospitals, or volunteer organizations. Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) offered alternative lan- guage that would allow organizations to deny positions to heterosexuals, gays, and bisexuals who have been charged or con- victed of sexual offenses with minors. “Sen. Kennedy struck a blow against the anti-gay bigotry of the Annstrong amendment...'Ihe Senate rejected the false notion that lesbians and gays cannot be appropriate role models or that we pose a threat to children,” said Stephen Smith, legilsative director of the Campaign Fund. “Being Gay is Not Just About Sex” In an important ruling, the Iowa Su- preme Courtrecently rejectedatrialoourfs order that a gay father be restricted to visi- tation with his children only so long as “no unrelated adult" was present. In lifting the restriction, the court stated that “(t)his un- usual provision was obviously imposed on accotmt of (the man’s) homosexual life- style.” Though his former wife conceded that he is a good and loving father who should have frequent visitation, she claimed to be concerned for the children because of his “gay lifestyle.” The trend in the courtroom is clearly in favor of gay parents. However, it is still not unusual for trial courts to impose restric- tions that the children not be exposed to other lesbians or gay men. ''In rejecting the restriction, the Iowa court seemed to recognize that children who spend time with gay parents and their partners are no more ‘exposed’ to their ‘pri- vate sex lives‘ than they would be to that of a non—gay couple,” stated Evan Wolfson, Lambda Staff Attorney. “Being gay is not just about sex.” Hell No, We Won’t Go NGL'I'F will boycott the Sixth Interna- tional Conference on AIDS, scheduled for June 20-24 in San Francisco, because of the US Govemment’s discriminatory AIDS, gay, and lesbian immigration and visitation policies. Under current law, any person testing HIV -positive may be excluded from entering the US. NGL'I'F is calling on others to boycott as well. “It is with mixed emotions that we armounce our decision to boycott,” said David Lemos, Acting Executive Director of the NAMES Project Foundation, ex- plaining that "our action is prompted solely. by these governmental policies and is not intended to indicate any lack of support for the conference organizers.” The American Association of Physi- cians for Human Rights (AAPHR) has also released a position statement which op- poses the immigration policy and describes the regulations as “medically uninfonned.” (continued on next page)