(ZGP^ Anniversary Tales (continued from page 1)
important things about vdiat was happening
with CGA during this time. Karen P. was
chairperson and brought a vital energy.
Many lesbians became involved and
demonstrated that there was room for
lesbians in CGA, too. There were
conflicts. There was love. We all worked
hard. The early CGA men, the constant
supporters, and these lesbians made the
CGA visible and vital.
We tried to keep CGA growing.
Sometimes it was a struggle just to keep
it alive. The budget hearings before the
CGC were an annual battle. The minority
representative would not speak for us, and
there were openly hostile CGC members.
There was a certain amount of politicking
and lobbying. We prepared budgets and sat
up all night awaiting our turn to speak.
Every year we rallied our support, and we
kept alive financially—if only barely.
But at least the CGC could no longer
ignore us.
The Southeastern Conference was founded
in 1976 by CGA members and others in the
Triangle and Triad areas. In 1976, 300
gay men and lesbians met in a weekend of
workshops and celebration in the Carolina
Union. In 1979, over 600 folks came from
all across the Southeast. We felt our own
strength during these conferences and
carried it on for the CGA.
A brilliant idea first took shape in
1978. A week of discussion groups, work
shops, lectures, and films—Gay Awareness
Week was born. The "cube" announcement
for the Week was defaced nightly that
first year, and we quietly repainted it
daily. The second Gay Awareness Week
found us sleeping en masse next to the
Are You Expiring?
If the EXP line on the mailing
label of your subscription to LAMBDA
reads 3 /85, you may have already
bitten the dust.
In past years, our computer list
didn't have lots of smarts, and once
you got on the mailing list you never
got off.
But according to the Campus Govern
ing Council, there is no such thing as
a free lunch. So, with a little
microcomputerized help, we'll be
reminding you when you're about to
"expire" on us.
We don't want to lose you, so when
you receive the "lavender reminder’
return it along with $3 and we'll
extend you.
Additional contributions are very
helpful. But CGA and LAMBDA are not
tax exempt.
cube as a guard. It also found a group of
fraternity boys wielding bats confronting
two lesbians and a gay man at the cube.
Lengthy student honor court hearings
ensued and later found one young man not
guilty, citing his role as water boy for
the football team as evidence in his
behalf. Gay Awareness Week provided a
relatively safe space for folks to meet.
For those of us beginning to explore our
own identity, it was a wonderful dis
covery. For others, it was a joyous
confirmation. Gay Awareness Week seemed
to reflect the essence of the CGA and its
function at UNC.
Gay men and lesbians at Carolina were
no longer invisible. Many found friends
and support through the Southeastern
Conference and Gay Awareness Week. But,
there were also the dances at the Newman
Center. Fr. Tom Palko helped us use that
space for needed socializing away from
business. It was at places such as this
that we found a vibrant lesbian and gay
community at Carolina.
There were times during this period
that I felt like precious few of us kept
CGA alive. There were other times when I
felt like I was a part of a big family.
I'm sure it is much the same today. But
the bonds I developed through my work with
CGA are still strong.
During the years from 1976 to 1979, I
felt a resistance to the positive changes
CGA stands for. It was a light-weight
opposition compared to the one growing in
North Carolina today. CGA is people, and
we must help it continue to help the
lesbians and gay men at Carolina.
-Patty & Ann
in Seattle
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