Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 17:03:58 -0800 From: Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Subject: GLAADLines March 8, 1999 GLAADLINES - March 8, 1999 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Jerry Weinstein (212) 807-1700 x18 weinstein@glaad.org http://www.glaad.org News and Breaking Stories about the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Index: 1) GAY MAN VICIOUSLY MURDERED IN CENTRAL ALABAMA 2) POLICE SEARCH FOR KILLERS OF DECAPITATED RICHMOND, VIRGINIA MAN 3) INTERNET--THE SMOKING GUN OF THE 90s 4) JUSTICE BLACKMUN, DEFENDER OF GAY CIVIL RIGHTS, DIES 5) VIRGINIA LAW ENFORCEMENT ARRESTS COLLEGE STUDENT FOR ONLINE SOLICITING 1) GAY MAN VICIOUSLY MURDERED IN CENTRAL ALABAMA: On February 19, Billy Jack Gaither, 39, was bludgeoned to death with an axe handle at the hands of Charles Monroe Butler, Jr., 21, and Steven Eric Mullins, 25. Following the commission of this crime, the pair moved Gaither's corpse to a remote location and set it afire. This past week, each confessed to the murder, freely admitting that Gaither's sexual orientation was their motive. GLAAD has released a media advisory suggesting tactics for coverage and examining early reports which used a "homosexual panic" justification. While Alabama has a hate-crimes law, it does not extend to crimes related to sexual orientation. State Rep. Alvin Holmes, moved by Matthew Shepard's killing, has filed a bill that would extend Alabama's law to cover crimes against sexual minorities. For more information as well as a copy of GLAAD's advisory, please contact Wonbo Woo at (212) 807-1700, or via pager at (800) 689-0196. 2) POLICE SEARCH FOR KILLERS OF DECAPITATED RICHMOND, VIRGINIA MAN: A young couple discovered the severed head of one Henry Edward Northington on Monday, March 1. Northington, a sometimes homeless man, was known to the local lesbian and gay community and was perceived as a troubled man. This murder, whether or not a hate crime, is not Richmond's first such homicide. There have been several unsolved slayings involving gay men, and homeless men and women, as well. With the rise of hate speech has come a concurrent increase in violence against the gay and lesbian community. For more information, please contact Director of Community Relations Cathy Renna at (202) 986-1360, or via pager at (888) 842-9276. For local comment, contact Virginians for Justice at (804) 643-4816. 3) INTERNET--THE SMOKING GUN OF THE 90s: Sixty million Americans, double the number from 1998, regularly use electronic communication. But corporations are cracking down on personal Internet usage and must balance protecting their interests with restricting free expression of their employees. Twenty percent of all companies used some variation of monitoring software that tracks and detects "unseemly electronic messages," rationalizing that staff surveillance is warranted since e-mails can be used as evidence in libel and sexual harassment lawsuits. At the same time, corporations such as Intel and Microsoft have been questioned for technology that could severely invade the privacy rights of online consumers, regardless of their sexual orientation. In the wake of this and other tempests, the Clinton administration has appointed Ohio State professor Peter Swire as Chief Counselor for Privacy. "So many in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community depend on the anonymity of the Internet for important resources necessary for day-to-day survival and many people only have access to the Web via their company accounts," said Loren Javier, GLAAD's Interactive Media Director. "We hope that Mr. Swire will use his influence to protect personal data on the Internet by pushing forward tighter regulations." For more information contact Loren Javier at (415) 861-2244 or by e-mail at javier@glaad.org . 4) JUSTICE BLACKMUN, DEFENDER OF GAY CIVIL RIGHTS, DIES: Although best known for authoring the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, Supreme Court Justice Harry A. Blackmun's eloquent dissenting opinion for Bowers v. Hardwick, which upheld Georgia's sodomy law, presaged Romer v. Evans, wherein the Court struck down a Colorado ballot initiative that prevented discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund Executive Director Kevin M. Cathcart reflected that Justice Blackmun's "words gave us hope that someday we would find justice in the Supreme Court." [Note: Blackmun's passing coincides with the reappearance of the former "Jane Roe," speaking in Dallas as a pro-life advocate and "ex-lesbian."] For more information, please contact Peg Byron (LLDEF's Communications Director) at (212) 809-8585, or via pager at (888) 987-1984. 5) VIRGINIA LAW ENFORCEMENT ARRESTS COLLEGE STUDENT FOR ONLINE SOLICITING: In an ongoing sting to arrest prostitutes, Roanoke police arrested Christopher Wyatt, 25, after answering a personal ad he placed on the Internet. Wyatt contends that he was unfairly targeted because of his sexual orientation. Recent police initiatives, however, make his accusations deserving of scrutiny. While police dispute entrapment, for example, last fall 18 men were charged with soliciting undercover police officers to commit felony consensual sodomy. For more information please contact Virginians for Justice at (804) 643-4816. GLAAD is the nation's lesbian & gay multimedia advocacy organization. GLAAD promotes fair, accurate, and inclusive representation as a means of challenging discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity. To subscribe contact Wonbo Woo at (212) 807-1700 or at woo@glaad.org . "GLAAD" and "Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation" are registered trademarks of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, Inc. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) glaad@glaad.org TO REPORT DEFAMATION IN THE MEDIA - Call GLAAD's Alertline at 1.800.GAY.MEDIA or go to the GLAAD Web Site at www.glaad.org and report through our Alertline Online. TO JOIN GLAAD AND RECEIVE GLAAD's QUARTERLY IMAGES MAGAZINE, call 1.800.GAY.MEDIA or join on the Web today at www.glaad.org/glaad/join/join-about.html TO SUBSCRIBE TO GLAAD-Net, GLAAD's electronic mailing list, send e-mail to majordomo@vector.casti.com with the message "Subscribe GLAAD-Net" (without the quotation marks). Make sure that you turn off all signatures and extraneous text. TO UNSUBSCRIBE, send e-mail to majordomo@vector.casti.com with the message "Unsubscribe GLAAD-Net" (without the quotation marks). Make sure that you turn off all signatures and extraneous text. 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 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.