Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 9, No. 36, Ed. 1 Friday, January 1, 1993 Page: 3 of 32
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Task Force, Campaign Fund, others urge travel to state
only for purpose of working to overturn Amendment 2
By Cliff O’Neill
O’NEILL NEWS SERVICE
WASHINGTON — Executives of the
nation’s leading gay and lesbian rights
organizations on Dec. 22 formally
announced their support of a growing
boycott of the State of Colorado over
passage of Amendment 2, a statewide
measure barring anti-discrimination
protections for gay and lesbian citizens.
“Amendment 2 subverts democracy,
freedom and justice in Colorado for gay
men and lesbians," stated Peri Jude
Radecic, acting executive director of the
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. “It
prevents the full participation of gay
people in the American democratic
process. There can be no business as
usual as long as the rights of gay men
and lesbians are repealed, as long as gay
people are officially second-class
citizens, as long as discrimination against
gay people is legal and condoned.”
In making their announcement, the
national groups endorsed the boycott of
Colorado tourism, business and
convention events. They called on
tourists to forego plans to travel to the
Rocky Mountain State and asked
businesses and government to cancel
any plans for conferences and gatherings
in Colorado.
Leaders of the political organizations
added that they will encourage some
travel to the state, but only for the
purpose of organizing opposition to the
amendment.
“We will strengthen our
community’s ability to repeal the
amendment, but we will not underwrite
the state’s anti-gay and -lesbian bigotry,”
declared Tim McFeeley, executive
director of the Human Rights Campaign
Fund. “Business and recreational travel
into the state for any reason other than
to fight for the restoration of civil rights
for lesbian and gay Americans should be
off-limits.”
Amendment 2, passed by Colorado
voters on Nov. 3, prohibits governmental
anti-discrimination protections for gays
and bisexuals in the state when it
becomes effective on Jan. 4. The
amendment also overturns existing gay
and lesbian anti-discrimination
protections on the books in Denver,
Boulder and Aspen and in Denver
County. The measure also affects an
existing executive order issued by Gov.
Roy Romer barring bias in state
employment.
The Amendment does not require
the laws to be expunged. Anti-
discrimination provisions protecting
heterosexuals will remain in force. Only
homosexuals will be exempt from
discrimination protections based on
sexual orientation.
At their midday news conference,
representatives of NGLTF and HRCF
were joined in endorsing the boycott by
leaders of the Gay and Lesbian Victory
Tim McFeeley, executive director ot ’he
Human Rights Campaign Fund . . . "We
will not underwrite the state's anti-gay
and -lesbian bigotry."
Fund and the Southern California
chapter of the American Civil Liberties
Union. Leaders of a number of women’s
political groups sent statements of
CONTINUED ON PAGE 7
21.06 to receive final hearing
before Texas Supreme Court
Justices will hear oral arguments in Austin on Jan. 5
The state's final appeal of a ruling
negating the Texas "homosexual
conduct" statute will be heard by the
state Supreme Court on Tuesday in
_and^gay and lesbian officials
would affirm lower court rulings
overturning the statute.
The law, Section 21.06 of the Texas
Penal Code, prohibits most forms of
STATE
sexual contact between members of the
same gender. Violations are punishable
by a maximum $200 fine. A Travis
County District Court and the Third
Court of Appeals both sided with five
gay and lesbian plaintiffs who filed suit
in 1989 challenging the statute. The
lawsuit, Morales et. al. v. State of Texas,
claims that the statute cannot be
enforced without violating privacy rights.
"I'm guardedly optimistic. I really
am," stated Suzie Wagers, executive
director of the Texas Human Rights
Foundation, the Austin-based concern
sponsoring the lawsuit.
Wagers said she believes Supreme
Court justices will respond to a changing
climate for gays in the country.
"This is my sense. We have a new
it's obvious'thaT’lftiJfg$it5.tt^l5fi,(and
change. We've made significant gains,
and I think the court will look at that.
It's a time of change, and it's certainly
time for T.exas to move into the 20th
Century."
Wagers also pointed to a recent state
Supreme Court decision in Kentucky,
overturning that state's sodomy statute.
"If we were looking for the Texas
Supreme Court to take the first step on
this issue, I'd say hang it up," Wagers
remarked. "But with the Kentucky
decision, the election, and so on, it's
apparent that things are changing."
Wagers said her optimism about the
upcoming hearing also was based on
two other factors.
First, she pointed out, the opinion of
the Third Court of Appeals, "as a matter
THRF's Suzy Wagers
of law, is very solid. It is a very well
reasoned opinion that will be difficult to
pick apart."
Too, she said, the Supreme Court
itself adopted a stringent privacy
standard for Texas citizens in a 1987
decision acknowledging that the Texas
Constitution contains its «wn privacy
guarantees which are stronger than
those contained in the U.S. Constitution.
THRF representatives also point out
that the case is generating widespread
interest because of the privacy issue.
"Everyone will be looking to this
decision to take the pulse of the court
on the privacy issue," Wagers said. T
GOP leader seeks
laws based on
Christian beliefs
Hotze endorses harsh
penalties for adultery,
abortion, homosexuality
Texas humorist and political writer
Molly Ivins once remarked that there are
PbYfe&VAfifRePALbJlcans_in Texas —
of the extraordinary ones come from
Houston, she added.
Dr. Steven Hotze, a Harris County
GOP leader, may prove that tongue-in-
cheek claim. Hotze, who is drawing
attention since he assumed leadership of a
key Harris County GOP committee, wants
to rebuild American government and
society into a system strictly based on
biblical law.
Among the precepts Hotze endorses
are harsh criminal penalties for adultery,
abortion, and homosexuality. And he's
willing to consider, he said, a death
penalty for those caught engaging in
homosexual acts.
Hotze led a coalition of conservatives
CONTINUED ON PAGE 7
JANUARY 1, 1993
t
DALLAS VOICE
3
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Vercher, Dennis. Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 9, No. 36, Ed. 1 Friday, January 1, 1993, newspaper, January 1, 1993; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth616406/m1/3/?q=%22%22~1: accessed July 11, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.