This Way Out; 73

It's not enough to show that treatments are effective. We have to go the next step and make sure that people who can benefit from them will actually get them. Now, it's much more insidious, it's much more sophisticated, the way people oppress others by throwing a few dollars into the minority communities and saying, there, there's your program. How come all these people come together? I mean, Latinos and Black people and Asian people and guys, the whole point is to interact together to bring everybody together. One thing I've learned from being a writer is that no matter what you say, X number people are going to approve, and X number people aren't. See, Mezel, say what you want to say. Welcome to this way out, the International Lesbian and Gay Radio Magazine. I'm Lucia Chappelle. And I'm Greg Gordon, the home of Compound Q calls for AIDS quarantine. People of color confront the failure of anti -discrimination enforcement. And early AIDS whistleblower defends radical action. All that and more, because you've discovered this way out.

I'm Sandy Dwyer, and I'm Donald Herman. With Newswrap, a summary of some of the news in and affecting the gay and lesbian community for the weekend in August 20th, 1989. China has passed legislation, which allows state health authorities to order HIV antibody tests for any citizen they believe to be at risk, and to quarantine people who have AIDS. Chinese citizens whose jobs bring them into contact with foreigners are already being tested in Beijing, Shanghai, and Canton. Four years after John Chadborne died of AIDS, the California Court of Appeals recently ruled that he was illegally fired from his job at Raytheon Corporation. The Court upheld an earlier decision of the California Fair Employment and Housing Commission, which said that AIDS was a handicap. Employment discrimination against the handicap is illegal in California.

Raytheon, a significant US defense contractor, has not said whether they will appeal the ruling, which also requires them to pay Chadborne's estate and estimated $6 ,000 in back pay with interest. New research indicates that alpha -interferon may be more beneficial to HIV -positive people before they develop AIDS. From AIDS and focus, Mary Van Clay reports. Alpha -interferon hasn't been tested on a large scale, but early data show it may slow the onset and progression of AIDS in some HIV -positive people. Don Abrams, with AIDS Research Program at San Francisco General Hospital, explains that Interferon boosts the immune system and attacks the virus directly. The alpha -interferon blocks the packaging and assembly of the virus so that it doesn't create new young viruses which will then cause the cell to burst. Interferon is an FDA -approved drug, but it suffered from negative press, first as a disappointing fighter against cancer, and later as a highly expensive anti

-AIDS drug that produced bad side effects. But it's much cheaper and less toxic in the low doses used in recent studies. Kevin Armington is the editor of Treatment Issues, the newsletter of the New York -based gay men's health crisis. He urges continued tests of Interferon on people in various stages of AIDS infection. It's not enough to show that treatments are effective. We have to go the next step and make sure that people who can benefit from them will actually get them. I don't think it makes sense to take a promising drug and just test it in the sickest populations. And in a couple of years, start testing the drug and people at earlier stages of the illness. Researchers add that updating and improving the drug's image will be part of the struggle in getting it out to those whom it could benefit. In San Francisco, I'm Mary Van Clay. The names project AIDS Memorial Quill will be displayed in Washington, DC, possibly for the last time in its entirety, over the weekend of October 6 through 8. Over 10 ,000 individual three -foot by six -foot panels now make up the quilt, which is three times larger than when it was first displayed at the National March

on Washington for lesbian and gay rights in October 1987. Panels are still being accepted and will continue to be displayed, but in smaller, more manageable numbers. The Hungarian gay and lesbian group, Homeros Lambda, has received an apology from the Budapest Police Headquarters for the behavior of their police officers. Last March, police entered the group's offices, knocked down the receptionist, and seized two gay men who were subsequently released. The police now say subordinate district policemen acting without authorization were responsible for the raid. Homeros Lambda gives credit for the apology to the letter -writing campaign conducted on their behalf by the International Lesbian and Gay Association. The will of a woman who designated that her lesbian lover have custody of her son was upheld by a Vermont judge on July 25. After Susan Hamilton was killed in an automobile accident last May, her parents challenged the will, claiming that their daughter was unduly influenced, and that the will was not properly executed. But probate judge John Cain

rejected those arguments, declaring the will valid. The ruling sets no precedence in terms of gay and lesbian parental rights since it was the validity of the will, not the individual that was challenged. For the first time, a gay man has been nominated for the Hartford Connecticut City Council. Long -time gay activist John Benelli is running on the slate of the independent People for Change Party. Two years ago, two of the party's candidates won seats on the council. The party was also instrumental in electing Juan Figueroa to the Connecticut General Assembly, as Hartford's first Puerto Rican state representative. And finally, usually the only requirement for being served a beer anywhere is that the person be of legal age and have the money to pay for it. But at the Sun pub in Bradford, Northern England, the new owner had an additional requirement, one that caused rather a flap when one customer was unable to comply. When Terry Scott, the proprietor of another pub dropped in to have a beer and meet the

new owner, he was informed that he would first have to declare he was 100 % gay. Scott lodged a complaint declaring nobody should be turned away from a pub in those circumstances. As a result, the Sun pub has dropped its gays -only rule after all. Beer doesn't discriminate, only people do. That's News Wrap for the weekend in August 20, 1989, written by Sandy Dwyer of the News, serving the greater Los Angeles area. With contributions from other gay and lesbian publications and broadcasts throughout the world. Remember, an informed community is a strong community. Find out what's happening in your area by monitoring your local gay and lesbian media. For this way out, I'm Sandy Dwyer. And I'm Donald Herman. The following commentary is dedicated to fruity Iranians everywhere. Stay tuned and I'll explain why. You are listening to naming names, a regular broadcast of the gay

and lesbian alliance against defamation that alerts listeners to instances of public anti -lesbian and anti -gay bigotry. You may want to have pen and paper handy, as in a minute I'll give you names and addresses where you can write to express your opinion about the incidents described here. The newly revised 1988 edition of Webster's Collegiate the Soros gives these synonyms for the word homosexual when used as an adjective, gay, homoerotic, homophile, inverted, queer, and uranium. Synonyms listed for homosexual when used as a noun include fag, faggot, fruit, homo, invert, queer, and uranium. Related words include fairy, nance, nancy, pansy, swish, and dike. We wondered if it is Webster's policy to list derogatory, stereotypical words as synonyms for all minority groups. A policy that, while unfortunate, would at least at some level be fair. But no derogatory terms for blacks, Jews, and others were not listed at all.

In other words, this the story singles out gays and lesbians for bigoted treatment, conveying the message that insulting stereotypes of gay people are acceptable. Don't let yourself or the gay people you know blindly be referred to as inverted fags or fruity editor. Webster's collegiate thesaurus, marium, webster, ink, post office box, 281, Springfield, Massachusetts, 01102. That's John Morse, editor, webster's collegiate thesaurus, marium, webster, ink, post office box, 281, Springfield, Massachusetts, 01102. Naming names is a project of the gay and lesbian alliance against defamation. If you see or hear instances of anti -lesbian or anti -gay bigotry, please let us know. Write to us at 80 Varick Street, number 3e, New York, New York, 10013, or call us at 212 -966 -1700.

This is Craig Davidson for naming names. You're listening to this way out, the International Lesbian and Gay Radio Magazine. With Lucia Chappelle, I'm Greg Gordon. In 1979, tensions were running high in the silver lake section of Los Angeles between the areas primarily ethnic populations and gay and lesbians who were moving into these neighborhoods in greater numbers, establishing businesses and becoming a visible part of the community. Gay and lesbians approached various minority community service organizations in the area to propose a weekend festival with food, drink, handcrafts, and entertainment to bring the diverse elements of the community together, and the sunset junction street fair was born. Held for the past nine years, along several cordoned off blocks of sunset boulevard, and this year around Echo Park Lake.

This is Gabrielle and Tolovich in Los Angeles, bringing you the sunset junction street fair, one of the most unusual fairs in the whole of America. I'm Samoan, and I've just seen so many, it's unbelievable how there's so many different kind of cultures here. Do you like it or do you feel awkward? Oh no, I like it because it just makes me feel like everybody's like a big family, you know, everybody's together and it's not segregation, you know. How do you think that happens? Bringing people together? I don't know, I just think, you know, it's just a good time, everybody having a good time. I think it's great. Why do you think it's great? Why do I think it's really nice to see people get along?

Do you think it's right for guys and straights to mix together and open street fair like this? I think it's okay, actually I would prefer if it was just like all gay, but that's just my preference. As straight people, how do you feel about all these guys being out in the streets here? Doesn't bother me at all, there are people who have a right to live their life. I have my sex preference, they have theirs. Do you feel that way too? Yeah, I don't mind, it's okay with me. How did you develop these attitudes, you know? It's because we were born in a different country. Oh, which country were you born in? Ah, so the attitudes are very different there. What about you, were you born in Germany too? No, no, I was born here in America in New York and I don't know, I guess just as long as I can approve of me in my actions, you do what you want with your life. It's your life, it's not mine. I realize there are a lot of people like it very offended, bygays and

that's, I think that's, you know, that's something they have to work on. They have to look at themselves, what fear do they have? They are the just people and as long as a person is loving and caring, I don't care who they sleep with. This is like my second time here. So you know then that this is a fair of multicultural people including guys, right? That's right. And how come all these people come together? I mean, Latinos and black people and Asian people and guys, how do they feel about mixing together? That's the whole point is to interact together, to bring everybody together, because there's no difference. What do you mean there's no difference? I mean, people, heterosexuals think that there's a big difference between gay people and heterosexuals. And I think the heterosexuals, to me here today, they feel really comfortable. I mean, they look pretty comfortable here. Us gay people feel comfortable with them around too. It seems very possible on a social level out in the streets of Los Angeles

for all the different races and cultures and sexualities to mix together. Let's hope it can happen in the political arena very soon. Gabrielle and Tilevich reporting for this way out. And all the lots of things that we can see, we can't be anywhere we'd like to. All those happy people we could meet, just do that. On a Sunday afternoon. And

now, from AIDS and Focus, here's Mike Alkalin. The third national conference on AIDS among racial and ethnic communities took place in the nation's capital. As the reported number of AIDS cases in the US passed 100 ,000 last month, of greatest concern is that 26 % is occurring among African Americans and 15 % among Latinos. Verna Avery Brown attended the week -long event, first talking with DC Health Commissioner, Reed Tuckston, and later attending a workshop on AIDS discrimination. She files this report. Washington DC Commissioner of Public Health Reed Tuckson believes the problem requires multiple strategies. People of color, he says, need to be reminded that AIDS is not a disease that affects gay white males only. And according to Tuckson, young black males need to learn to feel good about themselves without relying on behavior that puts them into the high -risk category for transmitting AIDS. Young black men need to know that they can feel good about themselves as men without having to have a lot of different sexual

partners, that they have, in fact, the chance to go to school, to get a job, to be in charge of their environment, their community, and that there are other ways of feeling good. The workshop on HIV anti -discrimination activities began with a show of hands from everyone in the room full of about 40 people who had ever been called a nasty name or discriminated against for any reason. Almost everyone's hand went up. The purpose of the exercise was to have the audience recall their personal feelings of humiliation and have them imagine what it would be like to be living with AIDS and to have to face that same feeling of discrimination. Representatives from human rights commissions around the country addressed the status of anti -discrimination laws to date. Most agreed that while the laws are in place in most states to protect the handicapped and HIV -infected persons, what's lacking is the level of enforcement. Chris Sunderval is with the San Francisco Department of Public Health. He's a Latino, a practicing Roman Catholic and a gay man. A combination he says is guaranteed to offend

somebody. Sunderval is frustrated with what he sees as a lack of enforcement. I'm tired of the lack of ethical attitudes of people in positions of authority. The people who please and who watchdog these processes. When I look at the state of California and I see that they've got one person overseeing the enforcement responsibilities for the Western region, unconcerned, that is a quality question. That's injustice. During the civil rights movement, you could see the macro issues, the large issues of discrimination, you could see them, you could taste them. Now it's much more insidious, it's much more underhanded, it's much more sophisticated, that the way people oppress others by throwing a few dollars into the minority communities and saying there's your program or having one person enforce the rules rather than having a whole slew of folks to safeguard our civil rights. 42 of the 50 states have HIV enforcement legislation and there are five places in the country set up to take in and act on such complaints. Those centers exist in Harlem, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, California, Washington

State and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A number of states have addressed the AIDS discrimination problem with legislation despite the federal law, which protects handicapped persons with AIDS. Those who usually end up falling through the gaps tend to be blacks and Hispanics. In New York City, home of the largest AIDS population in the country, over 60 % of the complaints of discrimination are from blacks. If there was one theme that evolved, it was that fear, misinformation and prejudice usually translate into discrimination, but that irrational fears should not be allowed to set the nation's policy. Verne Avery Brown, Washington. Things to go with if you're going anywhere.

Stand for the things you know all right. If the truth got the truth, makes me so alive. Stand for the things you want all real. You have you to complete and there is a deal. Everybody. All this playwright Larry Kramer of Faggots and the Normal Heart fame talks about how governmental apathy leads to radicalized citizenry in the first part of an interview with Alan Ross of WXPN, Philadelphia. Larry was aware of the AIDS epidemic very early in the 80s and because he was so vocal so early, he was labeled an alarmist by gay activists. But now to set the record straight, he has written his own book, reports from the Holocaust, the making of an AIDS activist. Well, I don't think I'm an alarmist. I don't

think I say anything that doesn't make a lot of sense and I don't think I'm doing anything special. But in terms of what got me involved in fighting AIDS, namely the death of friends very early on, AIDS, or what came to be known as AIDS struck very close, very early on in the community, which I was a part of in New York City. My generation, my group that went to Fire Island and partied in New York and socialized in New York, I should say. And I think that was basically it. Along with some very strong prodding from several of the doctors who were involved, Dr. Friedman Keane, and NYU and Dr. Linda Loudenstein, who my uses a character in the normal heart, also from NYU. You contend that New York mayor Ed Koch was a major factor in causing the spread of AIDS by malicious negligent on his part. Could you explain that?

Well, when you have the mayor of a city in which something health emergency is obviously existing and that mayor refuses to not only address the emergency but meet with the people or even talk about it or acknowledge the emergency and the emergency gets worse and worse and worse until it subsequently gets completely out of control, which it still is. That to me is a malfeasance or cause for blame. It's also been said that perhaps mayor Koch was more to blame simply because he has a certain kinship to the gay community. Well, I mean, I've made no bones about the fact that he's gay and that I'm tired of being his victim because he's ashamed of being gay and I'm proud of being gay and he's making me suffer. I think we have turned a corner in our attitude toward the so -called protection of gay people who are our enemies. You know, in the old age, you would never bring anybody out of the closet, so to speak, but I think what we've learned with AIDS is that so

many people in it, Koch, it's certainly not the only one, are destroying us, our own people and we are protecting them and we cannot do that anymore. And I think people act up certainly is an organization that makes no bones about it. We're proud of being gay and we're not going to protect you if you're putting the knife in our back. And that applies to a lot of people. The late Terry Dolan in Washington, National Political Action Committee, I understand the Mark Hatfield, the Oregon Senator act up in Portland is making a big deal out of that now. Gary Studs and Barney Frank, both and we're now out of the closet. We're both re -elected in their constituencies as openly gay people by wider margins than they ever were elected to before when they were in the closet and there's a lesson we learned in all of that. So you don't feel that people in public places have a right to privacy. Not if they are going to punish me, not if they are going to not do what I put them in put them in office to do. It is no longer

a slanderous or liableist to call a person in public office gay. Do you feel more can be gained from outrageous civil disobedience than could be lost? No. I think civil disobedience, I don't know what you mean by outrageous. What do you mean by that? What I mean by outrageous is headline grabbing because civil disobedience in and of itself may grab an article on page three of the municipal section of a newspaper but outrageous civil disobedience might conceivably make the front page of every major newspaper in the country. That's wonderful and I pray that it does. Many of the world's great philosophers, political philosophers, Hannah Aaron, Gandhi have all felt very strongly that civil disobedience is an exceedingly valid tool to get your message across. It doesn't make any difference whether civil disobedience either offends or is supported by the general public. You are making a point.

You are you are letting the world know and there will be many people who will support you and many people who won't and as I say in my book reports from the Holocaust the one thing I've learned from being a writer is that no matter what you say X number of people are going to approve and X number of people aren't. See my as I'll say what you want to say because you can't please everybody and we're up against the wall the epidemic is out of control we're facing destruction of ourselves as a community we have to fight and a lot of people will sympathize with our fight and with our civil disobedience a lot of people won't but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't do it that's that that way lies even further death that way they'll lies madness that way lies closeness that way lies cowardice. it is nice to block the doorway it is nice to go to jail there are nicer ways to

do it but the nice ways always fail it is a nice it is a nice you told us once you told us twice but if that is freedom's price we don't mind we'll hear more from Larry Kramer next time I love being a gay person I'm exceedingly proud of being a gay person and I want so much for us to have our place in the corridors of power and in history and and I get very frustrated because we don't that's next time on this way out it is nice to block the doorway it is nice to go to jail where are nicer ways to do it but the nice ways always fail it is a nice it is a nice well thanks for your advice but if that is freedom's price we don't mind we don't mind

thanks for choosing this way out the International lesbian and gay radio magazine this week Sandy Dwyer and Donald Herman Mary Van Clay Graham Underhill Craig Davidson Mike Alcole and Verna Avery Brown Alan Ross and Gabrielle Antalovic contributed program material Chicago the rascals sly and the family stone and Melvina Reynolds performed some of the music you heard and Kim Wilson composed and performed our theme music satellite distribution of this way out is made possible through a grant from the Chicago Resource Center we'd like to hear from you with any comments suggestions or questions you might have addressed to this way out post office box 38327 Los Angeles California 90038 this way out is produced by Lucic Appel and Greg Gordon and we thank you for listening on

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