Inside..

• Maine Gay rights supporters in the hundreds gather to find invalid signatures on People's Veto petitions
• ENDA update
• Ellen's mom goes on the road to tackle homophobia
• The future of gay rights bills in America?

One year ago...

• Bill Clinton wins reelection, bolstered in part by the support of the gay and gay-friendly communities.
• Jonathan Schmitz is convicted of 2nd degree murder in the slaying of Scott Amedure, who revealed on the Jenny Jones TV show he had a crush on Schmitz.
• San Francisco mayor Willie Brown requires all companies doing business with the city to offer domestic partner

Mark Your Calendar for these upcoming PFLAG Meetings

People's Veto Update

"We welcome any appropriate scrutiny of the petitions and the signatures," said Christian Civic League president Michael Heath to the Portland Press Herald in mid- October. He was referring to the 58,750 petition signatures his group and the Christian Coalition had turned in to the Secretary of State's office, in hopes of forcing a statewide vote to overturn the new state gay rights law passed in May.

Although over a thousand signatures were invalidated by the Secretary's office, that left about 6,000 more that had to be nixed in order to nullify the statewide vote.

So the rallying cry was sounded by Maine Won't Discriminate and the Maine Lesbian/Gay Political Alliance: "Let's get busy!"

Between October 20-27, hundreds of volunteers from all over the state-including members of PFLAG-pored over each and every petition round-the-clock from a cavernous 2nd floor space in the middle of downtown Hallowell. First the petitioners' names were entered into 20 computers to be checked for duplicates and other oddities that the Secretary of State missed. Then volunteers scoured each petition by hand, looking for multiple signatures in the same handwriting, incomplete dates, and over 20 other no-no's.

The organization of the effort was impressive. Arriving volunteers were given immediate instructions and put to work. The process moved seamlessly from one phase of the project to the next. And, perhaps most importantly, the network of gay- rights supporters that had disbanded after Question 1 was defeated two years ago suddenly re-emerged, fully energized, focused and committed to the task at hand.

So how many signatures were found to be bogus? The definitive answer won't be out before this newsletter goes to press. [15,000] But based on early estimates, there seems to be a ray of hope. Entire pages of petitions were tossed out due to fraud or technicalities (the room often erupted in applause when another petition with dozens of signatures was found to be invalid). Duplicate names were plentiful.

Petition signers who thought they were being sneaky didn't make it past the fme-toothed comb with which the petitions were scrutinized. So, although it's still a longshot, Michael Heath has every reason to be a little less cocky about his self-described "miracle of God."

His troops are clearly not quite as Godly as he would like Mainers to believe.

If enough signatures are found to be invalid in Maine Won't Discriminate's opinion, the coalition can appeal. A Superior Court judge would then hold a nonjury trial and rule by December 1. If the appeal is overturned, the issue will go to a statewide vote sometime between December and April.

But the foundation of gay rights supporters appears to be solid and ready for the fight, should it come to that. And PFLAG will be on the front lines to ensure equal-not special-rights for our gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered children and friends.

Gays describe job discrimination, harassment, and urge Senate panel to pass ENDA

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which failed to clear the Senate last September by one vote, has been re-introduced in Congress as S.B. 869 and H.R. 1858. ENDA would prohibit employers from Jiscriminating in employment practices based on sexual orientation.

On October 23, the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee heard testimony from a number of witnesses who had experienced job discrimination. One man, Kendall Hamilton of Oklahoma City, described losing a chance to manage a new restaurant when another employee told the boss Hamilton was gay. The boss even called Hamilton into the office to say that his sexual orientation had cost him the promotion. Hamilton had no legal recourse in the matter.

While Maine Reps. Tom Allen and John Baldacci have expressed support for ENDA, it's not clear how Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins will vote. Here's how to reach them to express your support of ENDA

Sen. Olympia Snowe 250 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Ph: 202-224-5344 or 3 Canal Plaza Portland, ME 04112 Ph: 874-0883 Fax: 874-7631 E-mail: olympia@snowe.senator.gov Rep. Tom Allen 1630 Longworth House Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20515 Ph: 202-225-6116 or 234 Oxford St. Portland, ME 04101 Ph: 774-5019 Fax: 871-0720 Email: rep.tomallen@mail.house.gov

Sen. Susan Collins 170 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Ph: 202-224-2523 or 140 Moulton Street Portland, ME 04101 Ph: 780-3575 Fax: 828-0380 E-mail: senator@collins.senate.gov Rep. John Baldacci 1740 Longworth House Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20515 Ph: 202-225-6306 or 202 Harlow Street Bangor, ME 04402 Ph: 942-6935 Fax: 942-5907 E-mail: baldacci@hr.house.gov

Ellen Update

Although many complain that the Ellen DeGeneres story is over- exposed, it continues to make news and expose millions of Americans to the normalcy and "everyday-ness" of homosexuality. So here's how she made ripples in October:

First she made the cover of TV Guide, in which she describes the future of the show and her relationship with her divorced parents.

Her mother, Betty DeGeneres, has been openly supportive, but her father, Elliott, is another matter. According to Ellen, "To this day, my dad comes to the show every Friday, but he still doesn't say, `You're so funny or good.' He'll say a line is funny or someone else is funny, but he never compliments me, so you can imagine him dealing with my being gay."

Then, on October 16, Vice President Al Gore, in a speech to the Hollywood Television and Radio Society, praised Ellen for forcing Americans "to look at sexual orientation in a more open light." Gore said the show was dealing with homophobia the same way 'All in the Family' did for racism and bigotry.

Last but not least, Ellen's mother has accepted a 1-year "tour of duty" as spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign's National Coming Out Project. According to Betty DeGeneres, her message will be "that parents accept the news that their child is gay or lesbian and love them and accept them and embrace them just as they always did, if not more so, because they need it more." DeGeneres, a retired speech therapist, will travel the country making appearances, and will participate in TV ads.

News and Notes from around the country...