Newspapers / Q-notes (Charlotte, N.C.) / Nov. 11, 2000, edition 1 / Page 1
Part of Q-notes (Charlotte, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
The Carolinas’ Most Comprehensive Gay & Lesbian Newspaper Coming next issue ! Tell Trinity: The Queen of Advice Published Every Two Weeks On Recycled Paper • Volume 15, Number 13 • November 11, 2000 • FREE Wife of AOL chairman gives $5.8 million to Florida school connected with fundamentalist church Gay activist group bars AOL by Clay Ollis Q-Notes Staff FT. LAUDERDALE, FL — Jean Case, wife of AOL founder and chief executive Steve Case, donated over $8 million to Westminster Academy, the school where she graduated in 1978, according to an October 16 story in the Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinal. The school sits adjacent to the campus of the ultra right-wing Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church and ac cording to its web site, “It exists primarily to educate the children of Coral Ridge families.” That news prompted the National Gay Lobby to urge all GLBT users of AOL to switch ISPs immediately, explaining that by paying for AOL service, subscribers are helping to subsidize the anti-gay programs AOL funds. Coral Ridge Presbyterian is the church pastured by Rev. D. James Kennedy, who is well known for anti-gay positions on every issue. The church sponsors “Worthy Creations,” an ex-gay ministry which claims to offer a way out of homosexuality for those desiring to change. Coral Ridge also runs the “Center for Reclaiming America,” which inl999 launched a national ad cam paign thanking Sen. Trent Lott and pro football player Reggie White for publicly proclaiming their anti-gay views. The Center for Reclaiming America joined eighteen other right-wing organizations, including the Family Research Council and the Christian Coalition, to fund the “Truth In Love” ex-gay ad campaign, featuring Anne and John Paulk. Most recently. Coral Ridge Presbyte rian led the opposition to a decision by the Ft. Lauder dale city council to cut funding to the Boy Scouts be cause of their discrimination against gays. Jean Case defended her gift; saying the money was not coming fromt the Case Foundation, but from the Cases personal money, and that it was for scholarships to benefit underprivileged youth attending Jean Case’s alma mater — it was not to benefit the church at all. She also stated she was opposed to discrimination and intolerance. AOL does indeed have a non-discrimination policy and offers gay employees domestic partner benefits. But so do almost all tech companies: it’s a requirement to be competitive. According to research conducted for the story by Gay.com, only $500,000 vyill be earmarked for scholar ships, while over $7 million will go toward building a new school building. Furthermore, Jean Case is presi dent of the Case Foundation, while Steve Case is a mem ber of the Board. And in 1998, the foundation itself gave $100,000 to the McLean Bible Church, a similar fundamentalist congregation near the Case’s home, which also is involved with ex-gay groups affiliated with Exodus International. McLean Bible Church’s web site also has links to the Family Research Council and Fo cus on the Family. On October 20, the National Gay Lobby (NGL, nationalgaylobby.org) board of directors responded to the news by adopting a resolution calling upon all GLBT and supportive America Online users to immediately switch service providers. The resolution also bars NGL from accepting new members who use AOL as their Internet Service Provider (ISP). In presenting the resolution adopted yesterday to the NGL board, NGL Executive Director Michael Romanello explained why he believes the drastic action was called for. “After a full year of this AOL nonsense, including what we all believe to be AOL’s discriminatory enforce- The latest Q^Poll results users as members ment of its Terms of Service policy and other actions which negatively impact that company’s gay and les bian users, I have come to the conclusion that anyone who financially supports AOL is an enemy of our com munity, be they straight individuals, businesses, or or ganizations, or gay versions of the aforementioned,” wrote Romanello in a message to the NGL board. “You cannot walk with the devil and remain sin free. Gay Internet users have got to understand that they cannot support AOL financially and think of themselves as be ing supportive of the gay equality movement. They are not, and it’s time they are made to understand that.” According to NGL President Jayce Fortwangler, ex isting NGL members who use AOL as their ISP will be able to retain their NGL memberships. “As member ships come up for renewal, NGL members now using AOL will receive a letter explaining why they must switch ISPs in order to renew their NGL membership,” said Fortwangler. NationalGayLobby.Org is working now to provide current AOL users who wish to switch ISP with an ac ceptable alternative. “I placed calls yesterday to AOL competitor Earthlink/Mindspring’s Vice President of , Marketing Brinton Young and to E/M’s Vice President of Brand Marketing Claudia Caplan to notify them of our pending.announcement,” said Romanello. “We are going to do our best to provide NGL members, and gay and lesbian Internet users in general, with an eco nomical and advantageous deal if they switch from AOL to Earthlink/Mindspring.” T Italian American Reconciliation Huey Maximilian Bonfigliano (played by Robert Simmons) embraces Janice (play^ by Laurie Cipriani) in a scene from John Patrick Shanley's Italian American Reconciliation, directed by Michael Simmons. See page 19 for the whole story. Memorial to gay Vets dedicated PHOENIX, AZ—The Arizona Rain bow Veterans announced October 24 that the first memorial in a national cemetary to acknowledge the service of gays and les bian in our nation’s armed forces will be dedicated at a 7:00 am ceremony on Sat urday, November 11, at the National Me morial Cemetary in Phoenix, Arizona. This represents a critical turning point in honoring gay and lesbian veterans, accord ing to the group. “This memorial pays tribute to those who have served their country and been willing to sacrifice everything,” said Wally Straughn, a spokesperson for the Arizona group. “It is not only for those men and women who gave their lives, but also those who sacrificed their careers, their honor and their dignity to serve in the military.” Straughn did note three specific inci dents involving gay and lesbian service members in recent years: Two men who were killed when their barracks was bombed in Beirut; the murder of sailor Allen Schindler in Japan; and the murder in July 1999 of PFC Barry Winchell, a soldier at Fort Campbell, Kentucky who was attacked and killed by fellow service members who thought he was gay. “This memorial is for them, and those who have served for a number of reasons,” Straughn said. “Some come from a long line of service members and feel drawn by family honor; some have entered the military to escape poverty. This Memo rial honors them all.” T VETERANS '. MEMORIAL \ tx OF, \li,.VEn-KAKS \viji»si-:{tvFD WITH COl .'RAGE AM) i'MlDH V Donati’ti by Hie L«,'.hinn & IJiscxuai \'Vternas of Arjierti'si Fall heats up activities in Wilmington by Bo Dean Special to Q-Notes WILMINGTON, NC — Notable changes in the climate in Wilmington have been less marked by the rash of hurricanes in recent years and more noted by the great numbers of pow erful gay and lesbian activists making the scene with messages of hope and progress in this tra ditionally closed and conservative town. Among these notables is the Reverend Doc tor Mel White, who recently visited the Uni versity of North Carolina at Wilmington as one of the main speakers brought to the campus by the newly structured Office of Campus Diver sity. The formation of this office is evidence of major changes in and of itself Formerly known as “Minority Affairs,” the administration at UNGW saw a need to expand the parameters of the office beyond ethnicity and to include GLBT students among others. In a commend able fashion, the office began its programming with Dr. White’s visit. In keeping with the great work of Martin Luther King, Ghandi, and other spiritual lead ers, firmly rooted in his own Christian faith, and reflecting his background as a closeted ghost writer for such conservative constructivists as Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, Dr. White of See FALL on page 26 On which of the following nights are you more likely to go “out on the town?" Fourth of July - 13% Halloween - 39% I New Year’s Eve - 48%
Q-notes (Charlotte, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Nov. 11, 2000, edition 1
1
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75