Volume VIII, Number 11

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February 1994

Strike One:

Dean Bypasses Curt

Paul Olsen

Governor Howard Dean recently an-
nounced the selection of Burlington res-
ident Judith Stephany to replace Edward
Granai who resigned from the Vennont
Senate as a result of chronic back problems.
Many members of Vermont's lesbian and
gay community were optimistic that Dean
would appoint David Curtis as the first
openly gay member of the Vermont Senate.

Governor Dean expressed his willingness .

to appoint openly gay men and lesbians to
public office and state commissions at a
November 7, 1993 meeting with lesbian
and gay Democrats. At the Chittenden
County Democratic Committee caucus
three people were nominated to fill the va-
cant Senate seat. Attorney and former De-
fender General David Curtis got the most
votes followed by former state Repre-
sentative and Kunin legislative aide Judith
Stephany. Radio personality and former
Vemwm‘ This Week host Jack Barry was the
third nomination sent to Dean for con-
sideration. Chittenden County Republicans
nominated businessman Otto Engelberth.

David Curtis was not surprised that Dean
selected Judith Stephany over him. “Judy
was a much safer and predictable choice
given our divergent positions on many pub-
lic matters” said Curtis. Curtis expressed
confidence in Dean's selection of Stephany
stating that “Judy will do well in the Sen-
ate”. Curtis also indicated that he will run
for a Chittenden County Senate seat in
1994. Vermont Coalition of Lesbians and
Gay Men (VCLGM) Board Member and
National Democratic Comrnitteeman Terje
Anderson expressed his disappointment
that Curtis was not selected adding that
“while David deserved consideration, it’s
the Governor's prerogative to name whom-
ever he wants to the seat”.

  

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Govemor Dean’s spokesperson, Glenn Ger-
shaneck, stated that Dean recognized the his-
toric significance of this appoinunent to Ver-
mont’s gay and lesbian community.
Gershaneck added that Dean ultimately
made this difficult decision by selecting the
person he thought was the most suited for
the position. Judith Stephany also under-
stands the disappointment of the lesbian and
gay community and hopes that Curtis will be
a Senate candidate in 1994. In response to
questions about adoption refonn, Stephany
stated that “the overriding concern should be
the best interest of the child as determined by
the Courts and Child Services Agencies”.
Stephany added that the legislature should
not be involved in interfering with those de-
terminations. Stephany indicated that she
isn’t familiar enough with the pending do-
mestic partnership legislation to make an in-
formed decision at this point

Position on the political spectrum, stance on
health care and welfare reform, ability to
work with the Govemor, and experience
surely entered into Dean's selection process.
While no one would suggest that Dean
should make appointments solely on the ba-
sis of sexual orientation, his decision not to
appoint Curtis marks a missed historic op-
portunity for Vermont [it should be noted
that the selection of Stephany means the six
member Chittenden County delegation is
now all female which is in itself historic]. As
evidenced by his commitment to passage of
the Gay Rights Bill, there's little doubt that
Governor Dean was sincere when he ex-
pressed his willingness to increase the vis-
ibility of Vennont's lesbian and gay com-
munity. However, it’s unfortunate that
visibility in the Vermont Senate will not
come as quickly as many had hoped. V

      

UVM & ROTC:

2 1994 Walking the Talk

  Olsen

While many remained optimistic that
President Clinton would (or could) put an
end to the n1ilitary's discrimination
against gay men and lesbians, the “com—
promise” reached with Congress and the
Department of Defense (DOD) fell short
of Clinton's pledge to lift the ban com-
pletely. As a part of the DOD and a train-
ing ground for future leaders, Reserve
Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) pro-
grams are required to abide by the little
changed DOD ban on openly gay men
and lesbians. The ongoing presence of
ROTC programs continues to generate
controversy on college campuses through-
out the nation. Vermont does not appear
to be immune from this debate.

As a state institution, UVM receives
state financial support. Many are ques-
tioning whether this support is con-
sistent with the spirit of Vermont’s anti-
discrimination law prohibiting dis-
crimination on the basis of sexual or-
ientation. Additionally, members of the
UVM community question whether the
presence of ROTC is consistent with
UVM's internal policy prohibiting dis-
crimination on the basis of sexual or-
ientation. “If UVM prides itself on ex-
ploring ideas and setting an example, the
presence of ROTC on campus is yet an-
other issue that UVM should address”
says UVM student Kelly Brinkema.
UVM student Annie Condon is not sur-
prised at UVM's “nondiscrimination” in-
consistency and feels that it is appropri-
ate for the UVM Board of Trustees to
address the UVM and DOD policy con-
flict. Gene Barfield, Vermont chapter
President of the Gay, Lesbian & Bi-
sexual Veterans of America, believes that

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