From lang@igc.apc.org Sun Dec 19 20:19:51 1993 Subject: Anti-gay Violence: Interview /* Written 6:18 pm Nov 30, 1993 by greenleft@peg.UUCP in igc:greenleft.news */ /* ---------- "Green Left #125, December 1, 1993" ---------- */ Anti-homosexual violence on rise in US A resurgent religious right in the United States is again contesting old hard-won rights. Youth are a particular target of homophobes. The insinuation of religious bigots onto school boards has led to censorship of textbooks and library books and the forced invisibility of homosexual youth. Violence is the inevitable next step. LAURIE FALIK, lawyer and board member of the San Francisco Bay Area chapter of Gays and Lesbians Against Defamation, spoke with Green Left Weekly's CATHERINE BROWN and FRANK NOAKES about the attacks on the gay, lesbian and bisexual community in San Francisco. San Francisco enjoys a popular image as the most liberal of cities on gay, lesbian and bisexual issues. Is this still the case? ``It is definitely the case; there's no doubt about it. By some estimates the voting population in San Francisco is as much as 40% gay, lesbian and bisexual. That is both a function of the fact that more of the population here is gay, lesbian and bisexual, but also the fact that the community here is very politically active and does vote. ``I don't think there's any doubt that San Francisco is the most liberal city in America, particularly when it comes to these issues'', says Falik. ``That's not to say we don't have our problems. It's certainly not an easy matter for a gay couple to adopt a child in San Francisco. Gay people still can't get married anywhere in the United States, although they can register as domestic partners in San Francisco and dozens of other cities. The benefits of domestic partnership are extraordinarily limited compared to the panoramic benefits of legal marriage. ``So while San Francisco is a very comfortable place to live compared to other cities, we still experience anti-gay violence, we still experience prejudice, we still experience all the things that other cities do.'' That includes similar levels of violence. ``I believe there may even be more violence here than in other cities, because bashers know where to go in San Francisco to find a large crowd of gay and lesbian people.'' A recent report by the San Francisco-based Community United Against Violence bears out Falik's assertions. It found a rise of 11% in violence against the gay, lesbian and bisexual community between 1990 and 1991 in San Francisco. Nationally, between 1988 and 1991, these hate crimes have risen 161%. The formation of gay patrols (such as the Pink Panthers) in New York and San Francisco has been one response to these attacks. GLAD leads its response with education, striving to put positive, accurate images of gay, lesbian and bisexual people into the mainstream media. Employment and housing discrimination is an ongoing issue too, with very few states having explicit protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation, notes Falik. ``California, which is thought of as being so progressive, had a governor three years ago veto legislation that would have explicitly protected gay, lesbian and bisexuals from discrimination in housing and employment. More recently a watered-down version of that bill has been passed, to apply to employment only; but it's still a huge struggle to ensure safety and freedom from discrimination.'' President Bill Clinton is quoted as describing these issues as ``bean counting''.