In a message dated 95-07-18 21:12:18 EDT, ChadL39788@aol.com wrote:


PARENTS, FAMILIES AND FRIENDS OF LESBIANS AND GAYS
A National Support, Education and Advocacy Organization
by Chad A. Lupkes

In 1972, an elementary school teacher named Jeanne Manford started a 
national movement. Her son, Morty, was the victim of a Hate Crime 
perpetrated by a member of the New York City Fireman's union, and the 
police stopped to watch the fight instead of trying to stop it. Mrs. 
Manford's subsequent letters to the New York Post and appearances on TV 
talk shows nationwide made the family very well known. Then Morty asked 
his mother to join him in walking the 1972 New York City Gay Pride March. 
Her sign read "Parents of Gays: Unite in Support of Our Children." P-FLAG 
was the result.

P-FLAG is needed in the city of Everett now as much as it was needed in 
New York City in 1972. Many of the kids that are living on the street in 
Everett don't feel comfortable at home.  That constitutes a problem that 
everyone should be aware of. Thus this article, and thus the formation of 
an Everett chapter of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays.  
Confusion about sexuality issues is only one source of the discomfort in 
the home, but it's the one that we can do something about immediately.

P-FLAG offers families and friends a support group where they can learn to
understand and love one another and to offer support where needed. At a 
time when gays and lesbians are coming out to their parents and family, 
P-FLAG can be helpful. For people going through the coming out process, it 
gives a chance to talk with other parents and to help you decide the best 
way to tell his or her own family. If you are a parent who has just found 
out your child is gay, you can talk with other parents who are going 
through the same things you are or who have gone through them in the past. 
You also can have a chance to interact with other gays and lesbians and 
ask questions to help you better understand what your child has been going 
through.

Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays promotes the health and
well-being of gay, lesbian and bisexual persons, their families, and 
friends through: support, to cope with an adverse society; education, to 
enlighten an ill-informed public; and advocacy, to end discrimination and 
to secure equal civil rights. Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians 
and Gays provides an opportunity for dialogue about sexual orientation, 
and acts to create a society that is healthy and respectful of human 
diversity.

If you have E-mail, the Everett Chapter can be contacted at
PFLAG98201@aol.com.  

To subscribe to a private, confidential P-FLAG group on the Internet where 
you can talk with other parents, send E-mail to:

 pflag-owner@pflag.casti.com 

with the following message:

        subscribe pflag-talk

There is even a World Wide Web (WWW) page created by the Las Vegas Chapter 
of P-FLAG at http://www.geopages.com/WestHollywood/1082/.

P-FLAG affiliates are located in more than 340 communities across the 
United States and in 11 other countries. For information about P-FLAG in 
your area, contact P-FLAG, 1012 14th Street, N.W., Suite 700, Washington, 
D.C. 20005 or call (202) 638-4200 or e-mail: PFLAGNTL@AOL.COM. For 
additional Everett reso