Date: Mon, 18 Oct 1999 14:54:40 -0700 From: Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Subject: GLAADLines - October 18, 1999 GLAADLines - October 18, 1999 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Wonbo Woo GLAAD Communications Manager (212) 807-1700 x24 woo@glaad.org http://www.glaad.org News and Breaking Stories about the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community 1) AS SHEPARD TRIAL APPROACHES, ANOTHER ANTI-GAY ATTACK OCCURS IN WYOMING 2) CONNECTICUT SCHOOLTEACHER PROCLAIMS VICTORY IN LIBEL LAWSUIT SETTLEMENT 3) MAINE POLITICS HEAT UP AGAIN 1) AS SHEPARD TRIAL APPROACHES, ANOTHER ANTI-GAY ATTACK OCCURS IN WYOMING: According to reports released by the Casper (Wyo.) Star-Tribune, the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP) and United Gays and Lesbians of Wyoming (UGLW), openly gay 44-year-old Lester Shuler was attacked at his home in Douglas, Wyo., on Oct. 9. Shuler was allegedly approached by 32-year-old Jody Hoving, at a local bar called the Waterhole. Shuler states that he was repeatedly propositioned by Hoving, who later appeared at his home, where he sexually assaulted and attacked Shuler with a baseball bat, striking two blows to his head, at least four blows to other parts of his body and knocking Shuler unconscious. When he regained consciousness, he called a neighbor who took him to the local hospital and insisted that officials contact the police. Nearly 40 stitches were required to close the wounds to Shuler's head, and doctors reportedly told him that the blows came within a quarter inch of being fatal. He was released from the hospital following treatment. Police reports filed at the hospital differ from Shuler's account, indicating that sexual activity between the two men was described as being consensual. Following the filing of the police report, police took Hoving into custody, and subsequently released him on his own recognizance. Charged with felony aggravated assault, Hoving will have an initial appearance in Converse County Court tomorrow morning, where further trial procedure will be determined. Referring to last year's murder of Matthew Shepard and the ongoing proceedings in the trial of one of two men charged in that murder, UGLW Executive Director John Little said, "It's a cruel irony that the attack against Shuler comes now, with the national spotlight again focusing on our state surrounding issues of hate-motivated violence. What else does the State Legislature need to prove we need hate crime legislation in Wyoming?" NCAVP Steering Committee member Jeffrey Montgomery told the Casper Star-Tribune: "Anyone who looks at the crimes - Matthew Shepard, James Byrd and Les Shuler, who has 36 stitches in his head - understands clearly that if it wasn't for sexual orientation and race, those three men and thousands of other women and men wouldn't have been in harm's way to begin with." The NCAVP also reports that at least 20 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons have been murdered in the year since Matthew Shepard's death last October. For more information, contact UGLW's Little at (307) 778-7645 or NCAVP's Montgomery at (313) 537-3323 or by e-mail at trijeffm@aol.com . 2) CONNECTICUT SCHOOLTEACHER PROCLAIMS VICTORY IN LIBEL LAWSUIT SETTLEMENT: Retired 70-year-old schoolteacher Veronica Berrill of Danbury, Conn., and Katie and Neal Houdes, parents of a former student in Berrill's Brookfield High School, settled a lawsuit last week filed in 1996 by Berrill and alleging she was libeled and defamed after she posted a pink triangle declaring her classroom a "safe zone" for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students. Berrill had posted it in 1995, and told students that anti-gay epithets would not be tolerated in her classroom. The Houdes allegedly wrote letters to the Board of Education and to local newspapers in the weeks that followed, accusing her of "homosexual recruiting" and advancing a "homosexual agenda." While financial compensation was not revealed (in accordance with a confidentiality agreement attached to the settlement), a "revocation" statement released by Berrill and signed by the Houdes, said: "We revoke in their entirety all statements by us that may be construed as a personal attack against Mrs. Berrill. We also revoke in their entirety all statements by us suggesting that Mrs. Berrill circumscribed the rights of our daughter or any other students to speak openly in her classroom about their political, religious or moral views." At a press conference held Oct. 13, Berrill said the case was motivated by larger issues than libel, calling the letters sent by the Houdes "an attempt to silence me and all teachers from speaking about homosexuality at Brookfield High School. I saw this case as a fight to insure the right and even the duty of teachers to protect their most vulnerable students." She concluded her remarks saying the case was also "a victory for parents. All parents want their children in safe schools, and when the word goes out that no kid can be victimized, our schools are safer places for every kid." While the Houdes claimed victory as well, citing the dismantling of the Safe Zones program at Brookfield, Berrill pointed to an anti-discrimination clause adopted by the school and the formation of a Gay-Straight Alliance for students as evidence of true progression at the school. A portion of the settlement money will benefit the Committee for the Defense of Classroom Tolerance (CDCT), an organization which helped to raise legal fees to support Berrill's suit against the Houdes. For more information, contact CDCT Chair Jean Rexford at (203) 752-2823 or Leif Mitchell of GLSEN-CT, a chapter of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, at (203) 332-1480. 3) MAINE POLITICS HEAT UP AGAIN: After a lengthy public debate, the Town Council in Falmouth, Maine, unanimously adopted an ordinance in April prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation in the areas of employment, housing, credit, education and public accommodation. Since then, a ballot measure has been proposed to amend the town's charter to prevent the town from making any "ordinance, policy or regulation regarding sexual orientation." If passed, the measure would nullify the existing non-discrimination ordinance as well as preventing the further enactment of protective legislation. Supporters of the proposed charter amendment, including the Falmouth Concerned Citizens' Ad Hoc Committee on Sexual Orientation, say they plan to mail copies of an anti-gay publication dubbed "The Gay Agenda," to Falmouth residents trying to gain support. Last year, the publication was distributed in South Portland and Falmouth as an insert in the Portland Press Herald to combat proposed ordinances (including Falmouth's existing anti-discrimination ordinance). The paper subsequently published an editorial apologizing for distributing the piece. Falmouth Citizens for Equality has been organizing community members to respond to this year's proposal as well, campaigning locally to educate citizens and encouraging civil rights supporters to vote against the proposal on Nov. 2. In addition to the state's local ordinances, Maine was the center of significant attention in February 1998, when a statewide law protecting lesbian and gay rights was repealed by referendum vote. For more information, contact town councilmember Dolores Vail, also a co-chair of Falmouth Citizens for Equality, at (207) 781-4363. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) is dedicated to promoting and ensuring fair, accurate and inclusive representation of individuals and events in all media as a means of eliminating homophobia and discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 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. 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