Newspapers / Q-notes (Charlotte, N.C.) / Jan. 4, 2003, edition 1 / Page 1
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noted . notable . noteworthy GLBT issues for MaWm Foundation fhm January W’26 FOAf^-trackswxine if- Strom Wurmond SC Center launches drive ONLINE www.q>notes.com How long before LGBT atttietes will be accepted? 5 years. 10 years . 25 years . not in this lifetime .POLL RESULTS: VOLUME 1.7 . ISSUE 17 SINCE 178« He^B MTTS 1952-2002 ol celebrities both lamous and unknown WWW.^-NO'rSS.COM 27 JANUARY 4- . 2003 US Supreme Court will hear "Homosexual Conduct" case A ruling which could effect all states who impose sodomy laws, among them, - North and South Carolina Tyron Garner John Lowrence NEW YORK — The US Supreme Court announced it will hear Lambda Legal's case challenging the constitutionality of Texas's "Homosexual Conduct" law, which criminal izes Oral and anal sex by consenting gay cou ples and is used widely to justify discrimination against lesbians and gay men. "This is a significant step forward because it means the court has seen the serious constitu tional problems with these laws and is willing to look at them closely," said Ruth Harlow. Legal Director at Lambda Legal. "We now have an opportunity to convince the court to remedy the widespread harms to lesbian and gay peo ple caused by Texas's law and others like it." Lambda Legal represents )ohn Lawrence and Tyron Garner, who were arrested in Lawrence's Houston home and jailed overnight after officers responding to a false report from an acquaintance found the men engaged in pri vate, consensual sex. Once convicted, they were forced to pay fines and are now consid ered sex offenders in several states. "The state should not have the power to go into the bedrooms of consenting adults in the middle of the night and arrest them," said Harlow, who is the lead attorney in the case. see CONDUCT on 4 New York State finally says, "No" ... to discnmination of lesbians and gays, but not transgenders ALBANY, NY — Thirty-one years after first being introduced, a measure outlawing discrimination against gays in workplaces, education, housing and public services won final approval in the NY State Senate. The Sexual Orientation Non- Discrimination Act was hailed by gay rights groups who say the measure, signed into law by Gov. George E. Pataki, will give homosexuals protection against employers, landlords and others who discrimi nate. Religious and conser\«ative groups have criti cized the bill, claiming it carves out an unneeded special protection for sexual practices they con sider immoral and will lead to political momen tum at the Capitol for other gay rights measures, such as legalizing homosexual marriages. The measure, which passed 34-26 in the Republican-controlled Senate and was approved last lanuary by the Assembly, makes New York the nation's 13th state to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation. Strong religious pressure The measure has been a political football for years, always dying in the more conservative Senate, where pressure from religious groups kept it from ever being considered on the floor. But Pataki, during his recent re-election cam paign. fought hard to get backing from gay rights groups, in particular the Empire State Pride Agenda. In October, shortly after Pataki persuaded Senate Majority Leader )oseph Bruno to bring the long-stalled measure to the floor, the 25,000- member gay organization endorsed the governor. George Pataki New York Governor - Mott Foreman Empire State Prioe Agenda Thomas Duane New York State Senator The measure, which takes effect in 30 days, adds sexual orientation to the state's human rights law, which already bans from discrimina tion in housing, employment and other settings based on race, sex, creed, color, national origin, disability, age and marital status. "Gay and lesbian New Yorkers will no longer have to risk losing their basic necessities based just on who they are," Sen. Thomas Duane, D- Manhattan, an openly gay lawmaker said. In an unusual coalition, the liberal Democrat was joined by Bruno, a conservative Republican who for years publicly dismissed the need for the bill. He said he voted for the measure "to express tolerance" and "just to recognize that people are free to live their lives as they see fit." A great opportunity — missed Transgender people accused gay rights groups, specifically the Empire State Pride Agenda, of abandoning them by not pushing hard enough to be covered by the bill's protections. see SONDA on 4 First online help site for HIV in NC Positive Living unveils North Carolina's first HIV web resource directory ' BURLINGTON, NC - For the first time, people living . in North Carolina who are affected by HIV can j find out where they can locate help, in their com munities or across the state, with just the click of a mouse. The North Carolina Council for Positive Living (Positive Living) recently unveiled its website, featuring the state’s first and only user-friendly online resource direc tory for HIV-related services in North Carolina. , . Positive Living was awarded a contract from the North Carolina HIV/STD Prevention and Care Branch to develop and publish the state’s first online HIV/AIDS resource direc tory. The launch of the directory means people from across the state can get information on HIV-related resources ranging from testing and counseling to food pantry locations. The site can be navigated in both English and Spanish. Positive Living is North Carolina’s only statewide consumer based program provid ing education, leadership development, and advocacy for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). The organization works to encourage the active and meaningful involvement of PLWHA at every level of plan ning and delivery of HIV-related services and to advocate for policies that provide neces sary prevention and care resources and pro tect the right of PLWHA. According to Patrick Lee, the program director for Positive • Living, the directory serves two purposes. The first is to provide a practical tool for individuals and organiza tions to use to help people who are infected with and affected by HlV/AlDS. “In the twenty plus years’we have been dealing with this epidemic, not one person has been cured but many have had prolonged lives because they know how to access care,” said Lee. “That is what this is all about - getting people into care." The second purpose is to raise the awareness about HIV/AIDS. “In this period of rapid increases in infection rates and limited funding for services, it’s more important than ever that people know that HIV has not disappeared," Lee said. info; www.ncpositiveliving.org
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