Four candidates skip Gay forum
Baca wins community's backing for second time
The Albuquerque
Journal Friday, September 12, 1997
PO Drawer J, Albuquerque, NM, 87103
505-823-7777, 800-990-5765
(Fax 505-823-3994, print run 123,481)
AJopinion@aol.com
by Cindy Glover
Journal Staff Writer
That only three of seven mayoral candidates attended a forum
hosted by Albuquerque's gay and lesbian community Thursday night might have been more
telling than any of the questions and answers that followed, audience members said. Many
of the 130 people who turned out said they were disappointed that Vickie S. Perea and
Carlton Pennington were no-shows after organizers said they had promised to attend. Joe
Diaz and David Kirk Anderson said in advance they wouldn't be able to make it, according
to Janice Kando of Lesbians for Change.
But on the bright side, Lesbian and Gay Political Alliance
president Bob Summersgill noted, the three who participated were among the four top
finishers in a Journal poll. "That bodes well for us," he said.
Jim Baca walked away with the Alliance's endorsement. But Sam
Bregman and Dave Cargo also won praise. All three said they'd push for a city ordinance to
protect lesbians and gays from discrimination in employment, housing and credit. The trio
also backed requiring Albuquerque police to undergo sensitivity training, so officers can
better recognize hate crimes. However, Baca went one step further and said he'd urge the
police department to actively recruit gay and lesbian officers.
Baca and Bregman said they would support extending health
benefits to the partners of gay and lesbian city employees. Several local firms -
including Levi Strauss, Intel, the University of New Mexico and U S West - offer such
benefits. The Santa Fe city council is considering the issue. "Obviously, when city
employees are healthy, and their families and spouses are healthy, they're going to do
better," Bregman said. "It makes good business sense, and I think we should do
it."
The candidates parted ways when asked if they would support a
domestic partnership registry in Albuquerque. Proponents argue that a registry would make
it easier for companies to offer health benefits to same-sex couples. It would also give
those couples an opportunity to publicly affirm their partnerships. At least 21 American
cities offer registries, including New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago and Tucson.
Baca said he had an "open mind" about the idea, but
wasn't sure how the details would work legally. Cargo said he didn't think it was
necessary, because "any two people can enter into a legal contract." He added
that such a thing would "raise red flags" among the public. Bregman said he was
against having such a registry at City Hall. "I don't believe it's the city's
duty," he said.
Organizers of the forum were frank that the endorsement of
the gay and lesbian community is considered the "kiss of death" among some
voting groups. Baca noted that he won the lesbian and gay community's endorsement 12 years
ago, when he challenged Ken Schultz in a mayoral runoff election. "We lost in the
last weekend before the election," he said. "Leaflets were distributed in all
the churches and car windows, about how I was going to turn Albuquerque into some sort of
Sodom and Gomorrah." But he added: "I was proud to have accepted that
endorsement then, and I'd be proud to accept it again. Because I have no tolerance for
hate."
In a telephone interview after the meeting, Pennington said
he didn't go because he had a family emergency. Perea was unavailable for comment.
Back to the news