Out in the Mountains Gay Rights in Alaska Amy Young On January 19, 1993 the Anchorage Mu- nicipal Assembly passed into law the first gay rights bill in Alaska. The bill amends the municipal civil rights code to protect municipal employees and in- dividuals working for private municipal contractors with over 35 employees from discrimination based on sexual orienta- tion. The January l9 vote of 8-3 fol- lowed 5 weeks of heated public hearings and overrode a veto issued by the mayor of Anchorage the week before. This bill was a compromise bill; the original bill would have protected all Anchorage cit- rzens. Strong opposition to the amendment has been spearheaded by the religious right. In response to the passage of the bill, a group calling itself “Citizens to Repeal the Homosexual Ordinance” circulated a petition and collected enough signatures to put the issue to a public vote in the April elections. Their campaign is de- signed to fan the flames of fear and hate with misleading information. Already Anchorage has experienced a rise in hate crimes. Most recently two gay men were attacked with baseball bats by a group of teenagers in the parking lot of a local restaurant. At present gay activists and allies are preparing a campaign to defeat the ref- erendum proposed by the religious right, but we need your help. The election is April 20th so we need to act fast. How- ever, since we exhausted many of our 10- cal resources attempting to pass the in- itial amendment protecting gays and lesbians in Anchorage, we are asking all our friends in the lower 48 for help. Please send donations to Alaskans for Civil Rights, PO Box 20143, Anchor- age, AK 99520 or for more information contact Kathleen Metcalf, campaign manager at (907) 258-3439. V Wellness Consultation 1‘ Walter I. Zeichner, M.A., N.C.C., Certified Clinical Mental Health Counselor Psychotherapy ~ BodyWork ~ Massage Therapy Gay & Lesbian Positive ~ Gender Issues Educational Consulting ~ Workshops & Trainings: 323 Pearl St. ,Burlington, Vt. 05401 0 Education law B LACKWOOD A N D Eileen M. Blackwood Pamela Kraynak ATTORNEYS AT LAW -Employment law 0 Wills, Relationship Contracts 0 Commercial & Residential Real Estate 84 Pine Street P.O. Box 875 Burlington, VT 05402 (302) 363-5510 - Small Business (802) 863-2517 Where to Find OIT M Bennington East Bar-net Northfield Bennington Free Library Innwood Manor Brown Public Library Bennington College East Hardwick Norwich Bennington Library Greenhope Farm Social Alternatives for Gay Men Record Rack Fair Haven Plainfield Southern Vermont College Fair Haven Free Library Woman's Study Program Brattleboro Hardwick Putney Brattleboro Food CoopCahoots Buffalo Mountain Coop Putney Library - Common Ground Galaxy Books Randolph Everyone's Books Lyndonville Kimball Public Library Burlington Jon's Automotive Rutland Burlington College Project EXCEL, Lyndon State College PFLAG Chassman & Bem Manchester Center Rutland Free Library Fletcher Free Library Northshire Bookstore St. J ohnsbury Partners in Recovery & Growth Middlebury LUNA/NEVGALR c/o Umbrella Peace & Justice Center Middlebury Natural Food Coop Natural Provisions Pearls Montpelier Regional Library Plarmed Parenthood Bear Pond Books St. Johnsbury Athenaeum Castleton Horn of the Moon Cafe Stowe STEP Learning Center Rivendell Books Food for Thought Chester Woman Centered White River Junction Misty Valley Books Chester Morrisville WRJ Books Craftsbury Monistown Centennial Library Upper Valley Coop Craftsbury Public Library Newfane Williamstown, MA Center Rutland Moore Free Library Wild Oats Co-op Rutland Area Gay/Lesbian Connection Newport Or by Subscription mailed right to your door! Northeast Kingdom AIDS Coalition J