Date: Mon, 24 Jun 1996 15:36:18 -0700 From: glaad@glaad.org (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) Subject: GLAADAlert 06.24.96 GLAADALERT June 24, 1996 The GLAADAlert is the weekly activation tool of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation DISNEY SCOFFS AT MICKEY MOUSE BOYCOTT The Walt Disney Company is standing by its gay-friendly company policies in the face of a threatened boycott from the Southern Baptist Convention and its more than 15 million adherents. Rejecting the notion that a company with a tradition in "family" products should be hostile to gays and their families, Disney officials have issued a statement saying, "We find it curious that a group that claims to espouse family values would vote to boycott the world's largest producer of wholesome family entertainment." Angry at the company's provision of health insurance to the domestic partners of gay employees, as well as the use of Disney theme parks for "gay days," the Southern Baptist Convention told its members "to give serious and prayerful reconsideration to their purchase and support of Disney products and to boycott the Disney theme parks and stores if they continue this anti-Christian and anti-family trend." In response, Disney said, "We question any group that demands that we deprive people of health benefits and we know of no tourist destination in the world that denies admission to people as the Baptists are insisting we do." Many attending this month's "gay day" at Disneyworld in Orlando, Florida, report that park officials were enthusiastic in welcoming the large crowds of lesbians and gay men, and showed no signs of wilting in the face of the threatened Baptist boycott. Let Disney know that we appreciate its willingness to stand up for its gay and lesbian employees, customers and their families even when threatened with economic losses. Contact: Michael Eisner, CEO, The Walt Disney Company, 500 South Buena Vista Street, Burbank, CA 91521, phone: 818.560.1000, or e-mail through Disney.com at http://www.disney.com/Mail. FLYING THE UNFRIENDLY SKIES AT MEXICANA AIRLINES Mexicana Airlines has chosen to defend a decision by one of its pilots to have two lesbians forcibly removed from a flight because they were holding hands. According to the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (ILGHRC), captain Arturo Trujillo Vizcarra charged Livit Callentine and Holly Babe Faust with "immoral behavior" after a passenger complained that the women were holding hands before takeoff on a Mexicana flight from Guadalajara to San Francisco. Mexicana Customer Services official Reni Soukup defended the forcible removal of the women by six security guards on the grounds that "it is the captain's responsibility to secure the aircraft and assure the comfort and security of all the passengers." According to Soukup, a female passenger had complained to the captain that "she felt the intimacy shown was not appropriate for public conveyance." Please let Mexicana Airlines know that innocuous displays of affection must be tolerated for all couples, not just opposite-sex couples. Contact: Ms. Reni Soukup, Customer Services Department, Mexicana Airlines, 9841 Airport Blvd., Suite 200, Los Angeles, CA 90045, phone: 800.353.8245, fax: 310.646.0433; Fernando Flores, President, Mexicana Airlines, phone: 011.525.227.0260, or 011.525.687.8786. NET SURFING On June 14th, Associated Press devoted an article to online gay men and lesbians, who are described as "among the most avid, loyal and numerous commercial users of the Internet." While some commercial Internet service providers have been around for years, it is only recently that the gay and lesbian market has become duly recognized. Quirk, manager of America Online's Gay and Lesbian Community Forum (GLCF), recalled the difficulties it encountered starting its gay area. It has now become the largest online gay and lesbian community on the Net, and the most popular space on AOL. "We do close to 1.8 million hits a month," stated Quirk. America Online, CompuServe and Microsoft Network all claim gay and lesbian forums. So large is the gay and lesbian market on America Online that PlanetOut, a second gay and lesbian community forum, will launch this fall. PlanetOut currently resides on Microsoft Network. Please thank these providers for acknowledging the gay and lesbian community as an important part of the Internet. Contact: Steve Case, President, America Online, 8619 Westwood Center Drive, Vienna, VA 22182-2285, e-mail: SteveCase@aol.com, Robert Massey, President, CompuServe, Inc., 5000 Arlington Center Boulevard, Columbus, Ohio 43220, e-mail: 70006.101@compuserve.com, Bill Gates, CEO, Microsoft Corporation, 1 Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052, e-mail: askbill@microsoft.com LIFE IN THE CASTRO San Francisco public broadcasting station KQED has announced the production of a documentary on the Castro, San Francisco's most famous gay and lesbian neighborhood, which it describes as "an internationally known symbol of gay liberation and culture." The Castro is the third in a series celebrating the history and diverse neighborhoods of San Francisco. "The program will examine how the Castro's lifestyle and personalities, such as Harvey Milk, gained national prominence in the 1970s, as the neighborhood became the epicenter of a newly confident and influential community of gays and lesbians," states the KQED press release. Celluloid Closet and Common Threads producers Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman will be creative consultants on this documentary. The program will premiere in March of 1997. Please encourage KQED to continue with its production of this documentary and thank them for acknowledging the importance of the gay and lesbian community to the history and culture of San Francisco. Contact: Mary Bitterman, President, KQED, 2601 Mariposa Street, San Francisco, CA 94110-1400, comment line: 415.553.2100, e-mail: tv@kqed.org from GLAAD/SFBA OFF THE MARK Conservative syndicated columnist Mona Charen has once again painted a false and hateful picture of the gay and lesbian community. In her June column, run in papers across the country, Charen asks, "if we grant recognition to homosexual marriage, by what principle can we deny it to polygamists or those who enrage in bestiality, incest or necrophelia?" The column is entitled "What Do Homosexuals Really Want?" Charen insistes we wish to "shock and offend." She adds, "Gay writers have difficulty finding 'clear answers' to the question of whether sex between adults and children is always so bad," concluding that there is some sort of relationship between being gay and child molestation! Please let Mona Charen know how her view affect you. Contact: Mona Charen, Creators Syndicate, 5777 West Century Boulevard, Suite 700, Los Angeles, CA 90045. LOOSE LIPS DON'T SINK SHIPS The cover of the June 17th issue of The New Yorker gives a Nineties spin to a famous Life magazine photograph. The original is shot of a World War II sailor kissing a nurse in Times Square on V-J Day. The New Yorker cover portrays two sailors locked in a passionate embrace in a sketch by cartoonist Barry Blitt, and is entitled "Don't Ask." Please thank The New Yorker for its cutting edge, on-the-cover commentary. Contact: The New Yorker, Newhouse Properties, 20 West 43rd Street, 17th Floor, New York, NY 10036, phone: 212.840.3800, fax: 212.536.5735 BREAKING THE SURFACE USA Network is planning to co-produce a film based on the life of Olympics diving gold medalist Greg Louganis. It will stem from Louganis' best-selling autobiography. The film will share the book's title, Breaking the Surface: The Greg Louganis Story, and will feature Louganis' "tumultuous personal life, including his homosexuality and HIV-positive diagnosis." The film is set to broadcast in the second quarter of 1997. Please encourage the USA Network to continue with its plans in making this biopic. Contact: Rod Perth, President, USA Network, 2049 Century Park East, #2550, Los Angeles, CA 90067, phone: 310.277.0199 The GLAADAlert is the weekly activation tool of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. GLAAD is a national organization that promotes fair, accurate and inclusive representation of individuals and events in the media as a means of combating homophobia and all forms of discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity. Copies of articles referred to in the GLAADAlert are available to our members by contacting GLAAD. Contact GLAAD by e-mail at glaad@glaad.org or by phone at 213.658.6775 (Los Angeles), 212.807.1700 (New York), 413.586.8928 (Northampton), 503.224.5285 (Portland, Oregon), 202.986.1360 (Washington, DC) or 415.861.2244(San Francisco). 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