he rest of our world... TIIIIBS 0llIl0I' IIIBS NEW YORK — A leading editor of the New York Times frequently responsible for design of the front page has died from AIDS complications. J. Russell King was deputy - news editor at the Times when he died from pneumonia. He was 45. Russell taught high school for a year before becoming a journalist. He worked briefly at the Wichita Eagle and the Miami Herald before joining the Times as a copy editor in 1982. — . - King spent the past decade on the news desk, refining the content and style of major sto- ries and their accompanying headlines. Often King laid out Page 1 in consultation with the paper’s top editors. King was a member of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association and served as mentor for many new Times staff members. canatla “BIS CIOSBI‘ Canadian legislation that would provide same-gender couples many of the benefits of marriage has made it through the House of Commons. Parliament's lower chamber passed Bill C-23, An Act to Modernize the Statues of Canada in Relation to Benefits and Obligations, on April 11 by a 172-74 vote. Seventeen mem- bers of the ruling Liberal party took the unusual step of voting against their caucus. The legislation grants same- gender couples access to bene- fits in such areas as tax and immigration. It also defines marriage as exclusively hetero- sexual. The bill now moves to the Senate for final approval. Euronean Ilrnteclion ATHENS, Greece — The European Parliament is calling on members of the European Union to grant same-sex cou- ples equal rights to heterosexu- al couples. The Parliament’s non-bind- ing resolution urged the 15 EU nations to extend rights enjoyed by traditional couples to one-parent families, unmar- ried couples and same-sex cou- ples. That resolution prompted criticism from the leader of Greece’s Orthodox Church. During a religious service, Archbishop Christodoulos said granting gay partners marriage status would be “legalizing a sin” but urged compassion for all human “weaknesses.” Greece’s official state Orthodox Church has recently reaffirmed its conservative views on sex while appealing to young people to follow the church’s teachings. Last year, the church publicly reiterated its opposition to premarital sex. — Nazi documents lllslllallell BERLIN — The German people increasingly are coming to grips with the Nazi persecu- tion not only of Jews, but of gay men. A two-part exhibition about gays persecuted under the Nazis has opened at museums in Berlin and in a former con- centration camp where many ofthe victims were killed. The exhibits of documents, photos, drawings, and other objects collected during 10 years of research is the largest on_ the subject ever mounted in Germany, project organizers said. It documents the fate of 700 individuals who suffered under the Nazis’ draconian anti-gay laws and tells 60 per- sonal stories. “We want to return to the gay victims of the Nazis their names and to show their lives, as far as possible, so as to at least symbolically liberate them from the dehumanizing barbarity of the Nazis,” said Andreas Sternweiler, project director at the Gay Museum in Berlin, where part of the exhib- it is being shown. — The other half opened at th Sachsenhausen concentration camp, where many gay men — labeled with a pink triangle — ended up because of the camp’s proximity to the capi- tal. Some 600 homosexuals were killed there between 1939 and mid-1943 alone, according to the researchers. SIOIIIIIIIQ I8I‘|‘0I‘ ATLANTA — A conference focused on combatting hate crimes was capped by a call by Martin Luther King 111 to pro- tect those victimized because of their race, religion, or sexu- al orientation. King spoke to about 750 youth at the crypt for his father, the late civil rights leader. “Every time that someone’s life is lost through hate crimes and violence, we have got to stand up,” King said, speaking at the fountain at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. Hundreds came from across the country and Canada to march the half-mile from downtown Atlanta to the King memorial. Many spent the day at “Stop the Terror,” an all-day summit dedicated to prevent- ing hate crimes, which was sponsored by the Atlanta-based Center for Democratic Renewal. The march also served as a memorial service for 15 young people in particular who orga- nizers said had been victims of hate crimes. Among those memorialized were Matthew Shepard, the 21- year-old gay University of Wyoming student who died in October, 1998, after being beaten into a coma and tied to a fence, and Amadou Diallo, the 22-year-old African immi- grant shot to death by four New York City police officers in February, 1999. Iletorm Jews all unions GREENSBORO, N.C. — Reform Jewish leaders have authorized rabbis to officiate at same-sex commitment cere- monies. The decision makes the Central Conference of American Rabbis the most influential U.S. religious group to sanction same-sex unions. The resolution applies to the 1,800 members of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, who serve at least 1.5 million Reform Jews. Reform Judaism is the largest and most liberal of Judaism’s three major branches in North America. Rabbi Charles Kroloff, CCAR’s president, said the resolution shows the confer- ence’s belief that “gay and les- bian Jews, and the committed relationships they form with their partners, deserve the recognition and respect due to people created in the image of God.” “It is not sinful to be a gay and lesbian,” said Rabbi Paul Menitoff, executive vice presi- dent of CCAR. “It is sinful to have these prejudices and act out on them.” Mayoral Iiaelilinne LONDON — The leading candidate for mayor of London “ says he’d support setting up a register for gay couples, a move widely seen as paving the way for gay weddings. May 2000'_'f0ut inlthe_Mounta‘i_ns 3 \ “I want gay people to have the right to register their rela- . tionships to stop discrimina- tion,” Ken Livingstone, 54, told The Times of London. Unveiling a campaign poster later, Livingstone argued that his register would encourage stable relationships. Gay marriages are banned in Britain, and Prime Minister Tony Blair’s Labour Party gov- ernment has publicly opposed any change in the law. Livingstone also said that if he wins the May 4 election, he would deny London contracts to companies he considers homophobic or racist. HAVERFORD, Pa. — Gay stu- dents may be helping to inte-- grate, at least in terms of gen- der, dormitories at Haverford College. The college will allow men and women to share bedrooms next school year in the col- lege’s apartment-style dormi- tories. “There are a number of men and women who are friends and who would like to live together, just as there are gay and lesbian students who have difficulty finding people they’re comfortable living with,” said Robin Doan, the college’s director of student housing. Mixed-gender groups of three students will be allowed to share two-bedroom units at the Haverford College Apartments, which house a third of the school’s 1,118 stu- dents. The new rules will not apply to one-bedroom apart- ments or to dormitories for freshmen. Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn., and Hampshire College in Amherst, Mass., already allow men and women to share dor- mitory rooms. Killian Kroell, a member ofthe Bisexual, Gay and Lesbian Alliance, said gay students fre- quently prefer to share housing with someone of the opposite sex, but typical college hous- ing regulations prevent such arrangements. ll0|1MG!I|alI elllllifllflll OSLO, Norway —- Norway’s ll Lutheran bishops are going to get a few lessons on sex. The leaders of the country’s Lutheran Church have to understand how modern and liberal Norwegians relate to sex. Homosexuality will be an important topic, since it has led to a bitter split among Norwegian Christians, church officials said. “We want to have more con- tact with the real world,” said Odd Bondevik, head of the bishop’s council. “The debate on homosexu- ality could easily become a war in the trenches,” he said. “We need to see the homosex- uality debate in a broader per- spective.” The church has been split over whether homosexuals can hold religious posts. The debate flared last year when Norway’s only female bishop, Rosamarie- Kohn, allowed lesbian clergywoman Siri Sunde to return to the pul- pit even though she married a woman. DES MOINES, lowa — A college scholarship program has been established in the name of Matthew Shepard. The program was announced last month by Gov. Tom Vilsack and Judy Shepard, Matthew’s mother. Shepard, a gay University of Wyoming student, was fatally beaten in Laramie, Wyo., in 1998. “These scholarships will add meaning to a life cut short,” Vilsack said Thursday. Since her son’s death, Mrs. . Shepard has traveled the coun- try, campaigning against hate crimes involving gays. “We must change these atti- tudes and we must take a stand,” she said. She said the scholarships would help win acceptance of gays. Three scholarships a year will be given to gay high school graduates who want to attend one of Iowa’s three state universities. The scholarships will cover tuition, fees and books at the University of Northern Iowa, Iowa State University or the University of Iowa. Funding comes from a char- itable foundation established by openly gay Des Moines businessman Rich Eychaner. Enlseonalians Illlllflll LAKE ARROWHEAD, Calif. — The Episcopal Church can find common ground on the issue of gay marriage. 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