Volume VIII, Number 7

£314“: 5, :,:‘2‘.1~
‘H .. ‘ ‘

October 1 993

Jane Spahr, Renowned Lesbian L

Presbyterian Minister

Eric Nichols

Although in 1991, 90% of the members
of the Downtown Presbyterian Church
in Rochester N.Y. approved of the Rev-
erend Jane Spahr becoming their pas-
tor, a group of ministers from other
Presbyterian churches in the area ve-
hemently protested the appointment of
a lesbian and brought Reverend Spahr’s
case to trial. Months later, after two
victories for Reverend Spahr at suc-
cessively higher levels, the decision to
allow her call to serve was overturned
by a 12:1 vote in the Permanent Ju-
dicial Commission of the General As-
sembly, the highest authority of the
Presbyterian Church. Since that de-
ClSl0n, Reverend Spahr, supported by
the Downtown Church, has been travel-
mg throughout the country speaking
about the need for change within the
Presbyterian Church and in the world.

Because Reverend Spahr is not only an
excellent and highly dynamic speaker
(She gave a rousing charge to a packed

 

, to Visit

large downtown Washington D.C.
Presbyterian Church on the morning of
this year’s Gay Pride March) but a fo-
cal person in the struggle for equal
rights for all people, her visit to Ver-
mont should serve as another gal-
vanizing force as the lesbigay com-
munity and its supporters strive for
justice and equality.

While in Vermont, she will speak on
two different occasions. On Saturday,
October 16, at 7:30 P.M. in Burling-
ton’s Unitarian Church, she will speak
about “When Communities Listen: The
Abundance of Gifts from Gay, Lesbian
and Bisexual People”. Intended for
people of all orientations, her address
will be followed by desserts and in-
formal conversation in the Church Par-
lors. Sponsored by Outright Vermont
and P-FLAG (Parents and Friends of
Lesbians and Gays), tickets, priced on
a self-selecting sliding scale from $5 to
$10, are available through Outright
Vermont (865-9677), Burlington—’s Peace
on Earth Store, or at the door.

She will also co-celebrate and give the
sermon on Sunday, October 17, at the
9:30 A.M. worship service of Christ
Church Presbyterian on the Redstone
Campus of UVM. All are welcome to
attend. Attire is informal. For ques-
tions or directions, call 862-1898. V

 
  

:|'orie Osborn to
7"Speak in Burlington

DotBrauer

Torie Osborn is coming to Burlington! Do
you realize that Ms. Osborn once attended
UVM and holds a degree from Middlebuiy
College? That’s right and she will be speak-
ing at both campuses this October, Middle-
bury College on Monday the .11th and
UVM on Tuesday the 12th.

In case the name is not familiar, Torie Os-
born, the current Executive Director of the
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the
nation’s largest lesbian and gay organiza-
tion, is the woman who was making such a
splash last April on McNeil Lehrer and oth-
er interviews about the March on Washing-
ton. She is also largely responsible for or-
ganizing the meeting that took place
between gay community leaders and Pres-
ident Clinton before the March.

Sound interesting‘? It will be. Osborn has
27 years of activist experience in the gay
community and has a growing national
reputation. The New York Times says
“She looks a bit like Doris Day,,but Torie
Osborn is closer to tougher cinematic her-
oines, like those played by Sigoumey
Weaver.” Los Angeles Times says “Os-
born is a bundle of contradictions: Part
Doris Day with an MBA, part raging
rebel operating by her own standards.”
Don't miss her evening appearance Tues-
day October 12 at 7:30 pm in the Billings
Theater on the UVM campus, free and
open to the public. V

The Hawaiian Marriage Case:
What Does it Mean for Us?

David L. Chambers

Something amazing happened in Hawaii this spring. In May, a majority of the.I-Ia-
waiian Supreme Court came very close to saying that, so long as men are permitted
to marry women, women must be permitted to marry women. The Court stopped
short of ordering that same-sex marriages be permitted now. They decided instead
that same-sex couples can still be denied the opportunity to marry if, but only if,
the state can demonstrate that limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples furthers

Continued on Page 8