From ngltfexec@aol.com Wed Dec 8 13:57:05 1993 Date: Wed, 08 Dec 93 13:56:19 EST From: ngltfexec@aol.com To: qrd@vector.intercon.com Subject: Mississippi situation FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE contact Robin Kane (202) 332-6483 ext. 3311, ngltfrk@aol.com or David M. Smith 202) 332-6483 ext. 3309 pager (800) 757-7736 MISSISSIPPI TOWN RESIDENTS THREATEN, ATTEMPT TO OUST LESBIAN NEIGHBORS NGLTF Calls on Justice Department to Intervene Washington, D.C.-- (December 8, 1993) -- The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) yesterday sent a letter to Attorney General Janet Reno requesting her immediate intervention in a violent situation in Ovett, Mississippi. A town meeting was held in Ovett this week for the purpose of condemning and trying to oust two lesbians who own land in the small Jones County community. For the past two months, the two women have been the targets of harassment and violence. On December 6, 250 people attended a meeting at the Ovett Community Center to denounce Brenda and Wanda Henson, who bought property in July to create Camp Sister Spirit, a feminist educational center. At the meeting, residents discussed ways to force the women to leave the area. Private citizens and public officials (including the attorney for the Board of Supervisors in neighboring Perry County) vowed to research state and county laws, including the state anti-sodomy law, to discover a means to force the women to leave. The women did not attend the meeting because they fear for their safety. A second community meeting is scheduled for January 4, 1994. This meeting follows nearly two months of harassment, intimidation and violence directed at the women. The women receive harassing and threatening phone calls; a dead dog was hung from their mailbox; the mailbox has also been shot at and stuffed with sanitary napkins; and several unknown men (some of them armed) have been found wandering on the 120 acres of Camp Sister Spirit. In a letter to Attorney General Reno, NGLTF Executive Director Peri Jude Radecic stated, "The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force asks that you and the Department of Justice move immediately to support the lesbians' right to purchase property and live free of violence and harassment. Any delay by the Department of Justice in intervening in this explosive situation could result in harm to the two women." Radecic made the following urgent requests of the Department of Justice and related agencies: --The Community Relations Service should perform mediation in the community to immediately alleviate the potential for violence. --The Federal Bureau of Investigation should monitor the on-going situation. --The Department of Justice Civil Rights Division should investigate the attempts to violate the civil rights of the Hensons. --A representative of the Attorney General's office should attend the January 4 Ovett community meeting. "Finally, we request that you meet with us and one of the women from Camp Sister Spirit in order to work together to alleviate the violent situation and to insure that these women may live free of violence in their community." Copies of the letter were also sent to the Community Relations Service (CRS), the FBI and the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. Yesterday Radecic also spoke directly with an official of CRS in D.C. and participated in a conference call with the D.C. office and the Atlanta office, which has jurisdiction over Mississippi. Radecic informed CRS officials about the situation and received assurances from CRS Atlanta official Sue Brown that she would contact the Hensons directly. Brenda Henson told NGLTF staffers that she fears for the safety of the women at Camp Sister Spirit and has requested support from people nationwide. She has asked women to come and stay at Camp Sister Spirit to create a safer environment and help put up protective fencing. Henson is also asking that letters of support for Camp Sister Spirit be sent to the local newspapers and to the Jones County Board of Supervisors. She is also seeking donations and technical support for the non-profit agency as they prepare to defend their right to own and operate Camp Sister Spirit. "Even local government officials are involved in the attempt to force us from this land," Henson said. "I view this as an open conspiracy to deny us our civil rights." "These women are literally under siege," said Robin Kane, NGLTF Public Information Manager who has been working with the women to resolve the situation. "The violence and intimidation they face from their own community goes against the very principles this country was founded upon. This is a direct threat to the basic right to own property." - 30 - Letter to the Attorney General will follow. [Addresses for the above mentioned letters: Hattiesburg American, P.O. Box 1111, Hattiesburg, MS 39401; Biloxi Sun-Herald, Attn: Marie Harris, P.O. Box 4567, Biloxi, MS 39535; Jones County Board of Supervisors, Jones County Court House, Laurel, MS 39440; Brenda and Wanda Henson, Camp Sister Spirit, P.O. Box 12, Ovett, MS 39464]