Newspapers / Q-notes (Charlotte, N.C.) / Aug. 1, 1995, edition 1 / Page 1
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Hellacious Living ...Page 12 Campy gay men ...Page 17 The CaroWme’ Most Comprehensive Gay & Lesbian Newspaper Printed on Recycled Paper FREE Candidate for Senate speaks on gay issues by David Prybylo Q-Notes Staff CHARLOTTE—Harvey Gantt is some what of an icon to North Carolina gays and lesbians. A former two-term Mayor of Char lotte, his 1990 attempt to unseat Jesse Helms was looked on as a beacon of hope for a community whose representation in the Sen ate had for 12 years been dominated by ra bidly anti-gay rhetoric. Gantt campaigned heavily in the gay com munity, attending fundraising events at which he spoke clearly of his support for equal rights for all Americans, including gays and lesbi ans. The message was greeted with enthusi asm, and the gay community delivered its support in both dollars and votes. That he lost to Senator Helms was a grim disappointment to those of us who believed that the time Sad finally arrived for North Carolina to enter the 20th century. When the election was over, Gantt re turned to his Charlotte architecture firm and has kept a relatively low profile. In 1992, however, when the Charlotte City Council discussed the addition of language protecting gays and lesbians to its public accommoda tions statute, Gantt addressed the council to speak in favor of the change, flying home early from a business trip in order to do so. Although not yet officially announced, Harvey Gant will run again for a North Caro lina US Senate seat in 1996.1 talked with Mr. Gant at his office recently to discuss his views concerning some topics of specific interest to gays and lesbians and his up-coming race against Jesse Helms. QN; A couple of years ago, the Charlotte City Council, through the Human Rights Com mittee, tried to pass an ordinance protecting gays and lesbians from discrimination in pub lic accommodations, and you came and spoke quite eloquently to that subject. I wondered if we could start by getting you to recap some of the things that you said there. HG; That would be difficult for me to remember. Harvey Gantt QN; Well, essentially what I’m trying to get at is for you to tell us why the gay commu nity should support your candidacy. HG: Well, I don’t want to be so bold as to say why they ought to. I’m hoping that the gay community will look at the individuals who are running, and look at who is best able to deal with the times we’re living in and deal with the future that I think this country is going to be facing. One of the things that I think Senator Helms has spent a lot of time doing is being divisive — deciding to make villains of certain folks in our society; make scapegoats of certain folks in our society; whether they’re along racial lines or sexual preference lines, which is something that I’ve always abhorred and feel as if it’s counterpro ductive to building a strong America. So I’m going to be asking, not only the gay commu nity, but all of North Carolina and'the nation to look at this race next year, as I thought they were beginning to look at it in 1990, to see which person best represents being support ive of progress and change and bringing people together rather than trying to divide them, and it’s my hope that those in the gay and lesbian community will listen to that campaign and support us. They did so in 1990, both with their feet in terms of voting for us and in terms of financial support and moral support. And we expect and look for their support again in 1996. Continued on page 5 Gaston anti-porn ruling one-sided by Gordon Rankin Special to Q-Notes GASTONIA—Gastonia recently declared gay and lesbian pornography obscene, ignit ing a firestorm of controversy in the other wise conservative area and leading some of its gay citizens to feel unwelcome in their own place of residence. The declaration, made by a grand jury, came on the heels of the arrest of the manager and a clerk at Video House of America, a Gastonia adult bookstore. The manager was indicted for a felony count of possession of obscenity with intent to disseminate, and the clerk was charged with one felony count of disseminating obscenity. The video in ques tion was Colossal Combos, Vol. 43. Gastonia has a total of five adult establish ments. District Attorney Mike Lands wrote a letter to the remaining four following the grand jury’s indictments, providing them with a warning that some of their material may be considered obscene, and advising them to remove such materials. Among other things, the letter states, “...my office considers any film, video, book, or magazine that has as its exclusive or predomi nant content male or female homosexual sex acts of oral or anal intercourse, with or with out masturbation or use of sexual devices, to be in possible violation of North Carolina General Statute Chapter 14-190.1.”The letter failed to reveal the actual text of the specified statute. According to a June Gaston Gazette ar ticle, Gastonia Police Vice Captain Walt Griggs claimed that the initial arrest of the store manager and clerk was made to estab lish a community standard on sexual video tapes, magazines and other materials. While the Colossal Combos, Vol. 43 tape obtained from Video House of America was homo sexual in nature, a second tape obtained by vice officers from 321 News and Video was a heterosexual film. However, the same grand jury that returned the obscenity ruling against the gay tape found the straight tape to be within community standards. Rick Williams, manager of 321News and Video, said that Capt. Griggs gave him 30 days to comply with Lands’ letter from the Continued on page 15 ASA may take Raleigh to court over inaction on AIDS housing by Eagle White Special to Q-Notes RALEIGH—Some members of Raleigh’s City Council, along with the mayor, Tom Fetzer, indicated that they are not concerned about providing affordable housing for per sons living with AIDS when they voted to not endorse a low-income housing plan submit ted the AIDS Service Agency (ASA). Now, ASA’S plans for a 24-unit multi family housing complex are in jeopardy, ap parently doomed to miss its July 25 funding application deadline with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) The controversy centers on ASA’s HUD grant application for construction and sub sidy of a housing complex for low-income households which have a disabled member as defined by the “Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990.” The primary goal of the ASA project is to provide affordable rental housing for persons with HIV/AIDS. According to figures fi'om the city, the 1994 average monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Raleigh was $605. Cullen Gurganus, Executive Di rector of Raleigh’s ASA, says that 35 percent of ASA clients have annual incomes of less than $5,000. The ASA application falls under HUD’s Section 811 Project which provides 20-year grant funding for such housing. Under the current ASA plan, the complex would be located in Southeast Raleigh and would include 13 one-bedroom, 8 two-bed- room, and 3 three-bedroom units. In order for ASA to be considered for funding, HUD requires a letter from the City of Raleigh, certifying that the project meets the goals of Raleigh’s new Consolidated Housing Plan. ASA’s application was submitted for re- Continued on page 11 Pride PAC hires new director by Dan Van Mourik Q-Notes Staff CARRBORO, NC—^The North Carolina Pride Political Action Committee for Lesbian and Gay Equality (NC Pride PAC) has hired M.K. Cullen as its new executive director. She replaces Derek Charles Livingston who resigned in October 1994. Ms. Cullen recently served as Project Co ordinator of GrassRoots Organizing Week ends (GROW) of the United States Student'Association, the nation’s oldest and largest political organization for stu dents which is headquartered in Washington, DC. She be gan her duties with Pride PAC on July 6. “M.K. ’s unique talents will provide NC Pride PAC with a visible presence in both the statewide lesbian, gay and bisexual movement and in the general assembly,” said Bob Barret, chair of the NC Pride PAC board of directors. Openly lesbian, using initials instead of her name only because people had trouble getting it right, Cullen plans to make NC Pride PAC a voice in the North Carolina General Assembly for all gay, lesbian and bisexual people in the state. “Legislators of this state need to know that there are lesbian, gay and bisexual constituents in their districts who care, very much, about the legislation which affects their lives. NC Pride PAC will be an integral part of the 1996 state elections — giving support to those candidates who sup- M.K. Cullen port the lesbian, gay and bisexual commu nity,” she said. Since the NC General Assembly will be recessing some time this month, and will most likely not reconvene until next May, Cullen plans to use that time to establish “effective electoral targeting” as well as gain a full understanding of her administrative duties as executive director. NC Pride PAC’s recent activities include participation in June’s Pride ’95 where they handed out 1,000signs which read “I Vote with Pride” and made a cellu lar phone available so attend ees could voice their concerns about NC Senate bill H.B. 834 to their legislators. H.B. 834, “Teach Abstinence Until Mar riage,” promotes misinforma tion regarding the transmis sion of HIV. and forces North Carolina public schools to teach abstinence and that “a mutually faithful, monogamous heterosexual relationship in the context of marriage is the best lifelong means of avoiding...AIDS.” The bill passed the NC House on May 3 but was pulled from the floor of the Senate on June 12 and sent back into committee. NC Pride PAC is a four-year-old organiza tion dedicated to improving the lives of gays, lesbians and bisexuals through the electoral process by surveying candidates for the NC Congress on issues of concern to the commu nity and providing endorsements and dona tions to candidates who respond favorably. Trial date set for accused murderer by David Stout Q-Notes Staff CHARLOTTE—On July 3, Mecklenburg County’s Grand Jury issued a True Bill of Indictment against James Mark Barberree, 31, finding probable cause to bind him over for trial in the slaying of a gay man. The accused will make his next court appearance on August 15. Bhrberree is being held without bond in connection with the brutal stabbing death of Russell (Rusty) Watson, 45, who died June 19 at his apartment in the Summit Ridge com plex. Although nothing was missing from Watson’s home, robbery is thought to be the motive in the crime. A portrait of Barberree as a serial predator of gay men is seemingly beginning to form. In 1987, he was convicted of stabbing another gay man 27 times then robbing him of $23 in cash. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison for that crime, but paroled after six. Sgt. Rick Sanders, a supervisor in the Police Department’s Homicide Division, says that the case against Barberree is “strong” and physical evidence collected at the crime scene and elsewhere will be presented at the trial. Reportedly, the police recovered bloodied clothing from the area which the defendant discarded during his flight.
Q-notes (Charlotte, N.C.)
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Aug. 1, 1995, edition 1
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