Date: Fri, 20 Sep 1996 17:42:23 -0700
From: glaad@glaad.org (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation)
Subject: GLAADAlert 09.20.96

GLAADALERT

September 20, 1996
The GLAADAlert is the weekly activation tool of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance
Against Defamation

GLAADAlert UPDATE: T.J. Maxx and Ad Agency Make Apologies
=46ollowing protests from GLAAD over a commercial for T.J. Maxx that ran
nationally last week-in which an effeminate fashion designer in a caftan
becomes hysterically enflamed over the company's low prices-both T.J. Maxx
and the creators of the ad, Ingalls, Quinn and Johnson, have made public
apologies for perpetuating a worn-out and denigrating stereotype about gay
men. As Bob Hoffman, president and creative director of the ad agency
Gearon Hoffman said in a September 16 Adweek story, "I was surprised at the
stereotype of the pouty, effeminate, gay fashion designer. It was about as
stereotypical as it gets."

In a September 12 letter to GLAAD, T.J. Maxx President and CEO Ben
Cammarata stated that he "sincerely regrets any misrepresentation or
offense that [the ad] may have caused. Never was there an intent to
stereotype or dishonor any group or individual. The commercial is no longer
airing and we will not air it in the future. T.J. Maxx recognizes the
importance of achieving sensitivity through our advertising." A day later,
Bink Garrison, chairman of the board and CEO of Ingalls, Quinn and Johnson,
told GLAAD that he "sincerely regrets any offense that this particular ad
may have caused. We certainly never intended to demean anyone."
Contact: Bernard Cammarata, CEO, TJX Companies, Inc., 770 Cochituate Road,
=46armingham, MA 01701, fax: 508.390.2199; Bink Garrison, CEO and Chairman o=
f
the Board, Ingalls, Quinn and Johnson, One Design Center Place, Boston, MA
02210, fax: 617.295.7514.

Let Ellen Out Of The Closet!
According to the September 28 TV Guide, Ellen Degeneres' title character on
her hit ABC sitcom Ellen will make television history this season by
announcing that she's a lesbian. This would be first time in a network
sitcom that a lead character would be openly lesbian or gay. Unfortunately,
a barrage of negative comments and a threat by radical religious groups to
boycott the show have erupted at the Web site for Touchstone and Buena
Vista Television. The producers of the show, including Ellen herself,
reportedly plan for the coming out to be a gradual process over the first
nine episodes of the season. Alan Klein, GLAAD's National Communications
Director, noted that this positive and courageous coming out process
"reflects Hollywood's commitment to diversity. This would be a major
cultural milestone."

Let Touchstone know that this groundbreaking move has your full support.
Additionally, assure Touchstone that the lesbian and gay community, their
friends and families have a long history of loyalty
to advertisers who support the lesbian and gay community. Don't let
small-minded bigots and homophobes decide what you can see on TV. Your
prompt response is critical!
Contact:  Dean Valentine, President of Network TV and Television Animation,
Walt Disney and Touchstone Television, 500 South Buena Vista Street,
Burbank, California 91521-0001, phone: 818.560.5000 or go to Touchstone
TV's comment page on the World Wide Web at http://www.tvplex.com/Note.

Boston Magazine Busts Open Finkelstein's Closet: On Newsstands September 30
The October Boston Magazine includes an article about high-ranking GOP
political consultant Arthur J. Finkelstein that notes the apparent
dissonance between his orchestrated victories for archconservative anti-gay
politicians and his "semi-out status" as a gay man with a partner and two
adopted children. Journalist Stephen Rodrick draws a careful portrait of
=46inkelstein, a media-shy operative that prefers to work from the shadows i=
n
masterminding his own "ruthless brand of political warfare." "He has become
a millionaire by working for politicians whose policies attack a very
important and intimate part of his life," Rodrick writes, "Specifically,
four of Finkelstein's clients in the Senate-Jesse Helms of North Carolina,
Bob Smith of New Hampshire, Don Nickles of Oklahoma and North Carolina's
Lauch Faircloth-form the core opposition to nearly all gay issues before
Congress." On September 18, the Washington Post noted that Finklestein is
still working for Smith, who opposes gay adoption, but that Smith "did not
return calls seeking comment on Finkelstein as the adoptive father of a
9-year-old girl." While confirming that he is gay, Finklestein formally
issued a statement that "I keep my private life separate from my business
life-something my friends and clients understand, appreciate and respect."
Despite that comment, Newsweek and the New York Daily News also found his
sexual orientation relevant to the larger story of his politics and
business.

There is a new trend of "outing" in journalism. Many journalists now seem
to agree that reporting a political personality is gay is not an invasion
of privacy but merely the accurate coverage of an important aspect of that
person's life. A person's sexual orientation may be a crucial part of the
story, particularly when the person shapes policies that effect the lesbian
and gay community.  The media's more free-wheeling response to "outing"
attempts to represent the hypocrisy associated with the political closet.

One thing is certain, though-speaking about Finkelstein's homosexuality
does illuminate the sad and greedy hypocrisy of his business life, and
Boston Magazine should be applauded for making it part of the public
discourse. Thank them for a well-researched and informative story that may
reveal just how critical a person's sexual orientation is to understanding
the full picture of his politics.
Contact: Art Jahnke, executive editor, Boston Magazine, 300 Massachusetts
Avenue, Boston, MA 02115-4598, fax: 617.262.4925.

GLAAD About Mad About You
The season premiere of NBC's "Mad About You" had a lesbian-positive plot
line and further developed the character of Paul's lesbian sister Debbie.
As Jamie and Paul search for a gynecologist, Debbie suggests her
girlfriend, Joan. Jamie goes to see Joan, but tells her she is still
looking around for other options. In the interim, Debbie brings Joan to
meet her parents for the first time. Jamie figures that since Joan is
Debbie's lesbian lover, the mother will dislike her, and while Jamie feels
bad about it, she looks forward to finally getting off of the "bottom of
the family totem pole." But Joan is so intelligent , funny and warm that
the parents both love her, and take it personally that Jamie and Paul
haven't jumped at the chance to name Joan Jamie's gynecologist. "Joan is
your sister-in-law, practically," the mother says. The father adds that
since she's a lesbian, she has added expertise. They accuse Jamie and Paul
of homophobia, which is clearly not the issue, and Joan comes to their
defense. In typical sitcom fashion
it all gets diffused and, in the end, Jamie chooses Joan.

Please thank NBC for a smart, funny plot line which is an excellent example
of how affirming, realistic lesbian and gay characters and issues can be
woven into a show without being sensationalized or canonized.
Contact: Warren Littlefield, President, NBC, 3000 West Alameda Avenue,
Burbank, CA 91523-0000, fax: 818.840.3247, e-mail: nbc@aol.com.

A Morning Edition of Hate
National Public Radio, which has served a long-standing tradition of
informed and educational programming, shocked listeners on the September 10
Morning Edition by airing anti-gay David Frum's homophobic commentary which
insulted and trivialized lesbian and gay relationships. He claimed that
"when things that aren't marriage at all start being treated as if they
were just the same as marriage, marriage loses power and significance, and
that, of course is what gay marriage would do....If marriage today was as
vital and meaningful as it was 40 years ago, the idea of issuing marriage
licenses to pairs of women and pair of men would seem as bizarre as it did
then." Frum goes on to dredge up a number of hackneyed myths and
stereotypes, stating that, "gay marriage can only accommodate children by
taking them away from at least one of their parents....Gay marriage
destabilizes society by coupling men and women in temporary unions....Gay
marriage makes sex its central organizing principle."

Mr. Frum's harkening to the state of marriage 40 years ago fails to note
that there were still states which banned interracial marriage; that in
many states, rape within a marriage was not considered criminal; that
lesbians and gay men were routinely rounded up and jailed for simply
gathering together in bars and other meeting places. Times have changed,
and, fortunately, so have many people's understanding of the complexity and
legitimacy of gay relationships. Many same-sex couples live in lifelong
unions, regardless of the lack of state sanction. Sex is no more the
organizing principle of gay relationships than it is in straight ones.

The fact that Mr. Frum is willing to display his ignorance and prejudice so
openly does not excuse NPR from the responsibility of allowing him to use
them as a platform for hate. Demand that the producers of "Morning Edition"
apologize for Mr. Frum's commentary.
Contact: Bob Ferrante, Morning Edition, National Public Radio, 635
Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20001-3753, fax: 202.414.3040,
e-mail: bbuzenberk@npr.org.

Dubba-Dubba-Doubly Offensive Show on WB
The September 11 episode of the WB show The Wayans Brothers contained
several repugnant remarks and gestures. The plot revolves around the two
brothers, Marlon and Sean, trying to hit on the same woman. At one point
when the woman asks where Sean is, Marlon says he is "getting ointment for
his lesions," as if to imply that Sean has AIDS and is thus both
undesirable and someone to avoid. Later, she asks Marlon if he is
bilingual, he vehemently replies, "No, I just like girls," waving his hands
and shaking his head as if being bisexual would be a really bad thing.
=46inally, in a subplot, when one of Pops' female friend's wants to lose
weight for her high school reunion, he suggests his own diet, saying, "When
I get done with you, you'll have every guy giving you their number-and some
freaky girls, too!" From his inflection, it is clear that he does not mean
"freak" in the Rick James sense.

Write the WB and tell them that this kind of hateful mocking of lesbians,
bisexuals and people with AIDS is never funny, and The Wayans Brothers
cheap jokes not only fall flat, they contribute to the marginalization of
gays, bisexuals and people with AIDS.
Contact: Jamie Kellner, president, The WB, 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank,
CA 91522, fax: 818.972.0864.

Anti-Lesbian Surfing is a Total Wipeout
The November Surfing magazine, currently on the stands, has a section
called "Flashback: A Few Personal Memories by Jamie Brisick" which
celebrates pro surfer Kim Mearing by slamming lesbians with vulgar
stereotypes. "California's golden girl added grace and form to a women's
pro tour that, at the time, was poisoned by a bunch of manly she-hims that
resembled mud wrestlers more than goddesses of the sea," Brisick writes.
"Mearing oozed femininity and athletic sex appeal while all around her a
herd of lesbians deflated the marketing potential for the package called
'women's pro surfing.' Harsh, but true."

This is a vitriolic and hateful attack on lesbians. Brisick and Surfing
magazine try to imply that lesbians, not his sexism and homophobia, are to
blame for a society that does not value women's pro sports as much as
men's. With dehumanizing and demonizing accusations that "a herd of
lesbians" "poisoned" women's surfing, he clearly privileges femininity over
athleticism, and makes the absurd claim that in order to be a "real"
professional women surfer, one needs to be athletic, but still be a "golden
girl."

Tell Brisick that this kind of misogynist and anti-gay language and
attitude make him look like a small-minded sexist dolt, and do a disservice
to all women athletes of all sexual orientations. Harsh, but true.
Contact: Nick Carroll, editor, Surfing, P.O. Box 3010, San Clemente, CA
92674, fax: 714.498.6485, e-mail: surfing@netcom.com.
 Big Blue Says "I Do"
In a history-making move, IBM announced on September 19 that it would
extend health-care coverage to the same-sex partners of its employees. In
doing so, it has become the largest U.S. business to offer domestic
partnership benefits, and has joined a progressive trend of a few hundred
major American businesses who have extended such benefits over the past few
years. "These eligibility criteria changes will help us meet the crucial
needs of our current workforce and, at the same time, attract new
employees, as many of our competitors offer these benefits," said Jill
Kanin-Lovers, Vice President, Human Resources, IBM USA. "Most important,
these changes continue our long-standing tradition of providing benefits
plans for all employees." Microsoft, Apple, Intel, Xerox and
Hewlett-Packard offer similar benefits.

Please write to IBM and let them know that by recognizing the legitimacy of
lesbian and gay relationships, especially in the face of the impending
Defense of Marriage Act(DOMA), they send a necessary and appreciated
message to not only the lesbian and gay community, but the corporate
culture and broader community of mainstream America.
Contact: Louis V. Gerstner, Jr., Chairman & CEO, IBM Corporation, Old
Orchard Rd., Armonk, NY 10504, e-mail: askibm@ibm.com.

Anti-Gay Lies From the Windy City
A September 18 syndicated column by the regularly homophobic Linda Bowles
which appeared in the Chicago Tribune entitled, "A Case Against Same-Sex
Marriages," has a bizarre and groundless premise: First, she claims that
the historic 1973 decision by the American Psychiatric Association to take
homosexuality off the list of emotional disorders happened because of "the
homosexual lobby." She opines that, "their reasoning was unique. There was
no new information. There were no new 'studies.' They simply substituted a
new standard based on the incredible theory that it isn't what people do
that is the problem but how they feel about it." Later she says that even
if sexual orientation is biologically determined, "this is a chromosomal
cop-out. [Humans] have instincts, but we have the capability of overriding
them. If basic nature and genetic dictates were in full control of human
behavior, there would be no homosexuality, Nature programs survival, not
dead-end relationships."

Ms. Bowles is either lying or inept. The 1973 decision came after a long
series of well-documented studies, including the most famous ones by Dr.
Evelyn Hooker, throughout the fifties and sixties that proved what gay
people knew all along-the problem was society's homophobia, not
homosexuality. If her own hatred of gay people prevents her from
understanding the overwhelming documentation and support for this, it is
not surprising that she discounts all contemporary psychology. It is the
case of a small-minded, bigoted ostrich with her head planted firmly in the
sand. And while it may be politically expedient to her hateful agenda to
call gay relationships "dead-end" because she wrongly assumes the
relationships don't bear children, many lesbians and gay men parent both
biological and adopted children. Nothing about being gay prevents an
individual from reproducing.

Let the Chicago Tribune know that while it is their prerogative to feature
a writer opposed to same-sex marriage, they should at least make sure that
the person has a base level of intelligence and factual accuracy in which
to ground her case. Otherwise, the paper is just spouting nasty, uniformed
anti-gay rhetoric.
Contact: Howard Tyner, editor, Chicago Tribune, P.O. Box 4041, Chicago, IL
60611-4041, fax: 312.222.3143, e-mail: tribletter@aol.com.

Hawaii Paper Profiles Gay Lawyer from the Big Island-Manhattan
As the defense in Baher v. Miike began its case this week, the Honolulu
Star-Bulletin carried an excellent profile of Lambda Legal Defense and
Education Fund Marriage Project Director Evan Wolfson, the star lawyer for
the defense. In the first week, in which state prosecutors tried to offer a
compelling reason why gay marriages should be illegal based on the concept
that gay people make bad parents, the Star-Bulletin wrote that Wolfson,
"the openly gay New York attorney, has used the state's witnesses to
reinforce his position that gays and lesbians make good parents." The story
even quotes Mike Gabbard, chairman for the anti-gay marriage Alliance for
Traditional Marriage PAC, saying that "he's doing a great job for the other
side. My concern is how weak the state's case is and he keeps exposing it."
In describing Wolfson's upbringing, the paper says that, "his parents were
loving and supportive, qualities some state witnesses agreed were more
important than biology."

Please thank the Star-Bulletin for the wholly positive profile of Wolfson
that, in addition to showing his strengths as a lawyer, also reveals the
absurdity of the state's case.
Contact: John Flanagan, editor and publisher, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, P.O.
Box 3080, Honolulu, HI 96802, fax: 808.523.8509, e-mail: davidf@aloha.net.

More Marriage Media Round-Up: The Good, the Bad and the Evil
With the Hawaii case ending its second week today, same-sex marriage
continues to be a hot topic nationwide. Following are a handful of
editorials from around the country:
=85 On September 15, San Francisco Examiner columnist Stephanie Salter penne=
d
a satirical piece which drew out to its logical end the idea of civil
marriage as defined by religious radicals: A byzantine marriage law that
only allows a handful of "morally pure" Americans to be wed.
=85 The New York Times' Joe Bob Briggs, best known for his drive-in movie
criticism, wrote an articulate attack on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
by saying that "We're talking about civil marriage, which can be done
WITHOUT EVER BRINGING GOD INTO IT. In fact, this is the reason hetero
couples frequently get married at the courthouse-so they don't have to
'talk to God.' Yet the Senate tries to justify their decision, they always
invoke the Almighty."
=85 The Cleveland Plain Dealer came out against same-sex marriage and the
Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) in a September 18 editorial
entitled, "Marriage Defended," with the same worn-out claim that the
nuclear family, a family model not popular until midway through this
century, is the bedrock of civilization.
=85 A truly hateful and offensive September 19 column by Monsignor S.J. Adam=
o
in the Philadelphia Daily News claims that "Gay people cannot beget
children together. They can adopt, but it is not the same thing. [In a
heterosexual marriage] the child is the living, continuous evidence of
their love....Marriage distinguishes people from the animal kingdom....But
let's be honest about it: Homosexuality and marriage do not mix."


The GLAADAlert is the weekly activation tool of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance
Against Defamation.

GLAAD is the lesbian and gay news bureau and the only national lesbian and
gay multimedia watchdog organization.  GLAAD promotes fair, accurate and
inclusive representation as a means of challenging 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
=46rancisco).

Report defamation in the media by calling GLAAD's Toll-Free AlertLine!
1-800-GAY-MEDIA (1-800-429-6334)
Visit GLAAD's Web Site at http://www.glaad.org
"GLAADAlert," "GLAAD" and "Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation" are
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~=
~~
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GLAAD is the nation's lesbian and gay news bureau and the only national
lesbian and gay multimedia watchdog organization.  GLAAD promotes fair,
accurate and inclusive representation as a means of challenging
discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~=
~~
"GLAAD" and "Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation" are registered
trademarks of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, Inc.