Members of Lambda Independent Democrats will meet on Thursday, June 1st to screen candidates and vote on endorsements for the September 12th Democratic primary. It's a packed election year, with races for President, the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of Representatives and state legislature on tap. The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. at Park Slope United Methodist Church, located at 6th Avenue and 8th Street.
A number of hotly contested races will be decided, including the expected 11th congressional district primary between incumbent Major Owens and Councilmember Una Clarke. In addition to endorsements, 2 new candidates will be presented for election to the L.I.D. board and several other resolutions will be offered to the membership.
Endorsement meetings are the heart and soul of L.I.D.'s political
work. This is your opportunity to meet and question candidates about issues
of importance to you and our community. Please make a special effort to
join us. All current L.I.D. members who live in Brooklyn are eligible to
vote on June 1st. If your membership has lapsed since June 1999, you are
eligible to renew at the meeting.
L.I.D. Backs Rights Law
Expansion
The L.I.D. Executive Board has unanimously endorsed legislation pending in the City Council to expand New York's Human Rights Law to outlaw discrimination based on "gender identity or expression" in housing, credit, accommodations, education and employment. Two dozen cities and the state of Minnesota have similar laws protecting transgendered people.
Only one Brooklyn council member, Stephen DiBrienza, was among the
original 15 sponsors of the legislation. L.I.D. President Daniel Tietz
voiced our support for the bill at a City Hall press conference and L.I.D.
will now move to assist in educating our borough's city council members
about this measure and urge their sponsorship and support.
SONDA Advances in Senate;
Hate Crimes May Move
The Sexual Orientation Nondiscrimination Act (SONDA) has advanced to the floor of the state Senate for the first time in history. While Senate rules do not guarantee a vote, and one is considered unlikely, this still remains an historic advance for this long sought legislation.
The bill was approved by the Senate Investigations, Taxation and Government Operations Committee on April 19 by a vote of 9-1, with 2 abstentions. Both Brooklyn Senators on the panel -- Vincent Gentile and Marty Markowitz -- voted for the bill. While the measure had been approved by the committee in prior years, it had always happened late in the session at a point when Senate rules do not allow bills to be reported directly to the floor calendar.
As Lambda Line went to press, the Assembly had not yet passed SONDA this year, though it has done so annually, by increasing margins, since the early 1990s. It passed Hate Crimes legislation in February by an overwhelming margin, with all Brooklyn members who were present supporting the bill.
In an equally stunning move, state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Burno has pledged that the Senate will debate and vote on a hate crimes bill this session. The Senate has blocked such legislation for 11 years because it would include anti-gay crime with other forms of hate violence.
Bruno's announcement followed a motion brought by Senate Democrats to force the legislation out of committee and on to the Senate floor. The motion was introduced by Tom Duane, the Senate's only openly gay member. The motion failed on a party line vote, though four Republicans left the floor to avoid voting against the discharge.
These two bills were the focus of L.I.D.'s visits with borough
legislators during our annual participation in the Empire State Pride
Agenda's Lobby Day in April. While it remains to be seen if the Senate will
actually act, these movements are encouraging.
Brooklyn Pride Events
While L.I.D.'s June 1st endorsement meeting kicks off Pride Month in Brooklyn, there are numerous other events of interest.
Brooklyn Borough President Howard Golden's annual Pride reception is scheduled for Thursday, June 8th. L.I.D. President Dan Tietz will be among those honored at the event.
The big day is the 4th Annual Brooklyn Pride Festival and Parade on Saturday, June 10th. The day begins with a 5K Run, followed by a day long festival. The Parade itself will be at night again this year. Grand Marshals are: Rosalynde Blumeenstein, Daisy DeJesus, Colin Robinson and Paul Schindler.
Festival and Parade on Saturday, June 10th. The day begins with a 5K Run, followed by a day long festival. The Parade itself will be at night again this year. Grand Marshals are: Rosalynde Blumeenstein, Daisy DeJesus, Colin Robinson and Paul Schindler.
Volunteers are always needed, and the next volunteer orientation is
May 31st at Park Slope United Methodist Church. For more information,
contact Brooklyn Pride at 670-3337.
Nadler Introduces Landmark
Immigration Bill
Rep. Jerrold Nadler, a recent recipient of L.I.D.'s Brooklyn Lambda Award, has introduced legislation that would allow same sex couples to stay together when one partner is not a U.S. citizen. This vitally important bill would expand immigration law to include "permanent partners" under any rule now applying to spouses.
In contrast to non-gay citizens who can sponsor their fiance or spouse for immigration, sponsorship of an intimate partner remains unavailable to lesbian and gay citizens under current U.S. immigration law. This is true even if the couple is legally registered in one of several countries that recognizes lesbian and gay unions or if the couple has lived together and shared an interdependent life for decades. As a result, thousands of lesbian and gay couples have been, and continue to be, torn apart.
Rep. Ed Towns and Rep. Anthony Weiner have co-sponsored this bill. We
applaud them and Rep. Nadler's leadership and urge all Brooklyn members of
Congress to sponsor this important measure.
Homophobic Candidate Flunks
Campaign Finance Audit
Rabbi Lew Yehuda Levin, a perennial candidate in south Brooklyn elections who has made virulent homophobia a cornerstone of his numerous campaigns, has been ordered to return nearly $13,000 in taxpayer matching funds from his unsuccessful 1998 city council race. Levin's name was struck from the ballot days before that election.
An audit by the Campaign Finance Board turned up no evidence that the funds were actually used for the campaign. The audit was delayed for months by Levin's inability to produce relevant documents.
Levin's campaign finance irregularities follow similar troubles for another Brooklyn homophobe -- Councilmember Noach Dear. A Federal Election Commission audit found that Dear raised over one half million dollars in improper contributions for his 1998 congressional race.
While we would not begin to suggest a correlation between anti-gay
ideology and illegal campaign fundraising practices, we thought our readers
might like some additional reasons to work tirelessly to oppose the
expected future campaigns of Levin an Dear.
Oops! Corrections
A number of errors in our most recent Lambda Line need correcting. In our March issue we reported on the newly elected L.I.D. board and inadvertently neglected to thank Monica Barrett, a departing officer. Monica served on the L.I.D. board for nearly 5 years, including 2 years as First Vice President. Thanks for a job well done!
In our article on the Brooklyn St. Patrick's Day parade, we indicated that no Brooklyn politicians marched this year. We meant to say that no Brooklyn Democrats participants. Predictably, Bay Ridge Republican Council imember Martin Golden was among the marchers.
Finally, in our story on the homophobic programming on Brooklyn
Community Access Television (BCAT), we listed only the times and channels
in the section of Brooklyn served by Time Warner cable. We are well aware
that southern Brooklyn is served by Cablevision, and the show we mentioned
airs there Tuesdays at 11 pm on channel 67.
From the Archives
21 years ago, May 18, 1979:
L.I.D. Board member Lew Smith was appointed to Community Board #6 by
Borough Preesident Howard Golden, becoming the first openly gay or lesbian
appointee to a Brooklyn board. The appointment followed intense lobbying by
L.I.D. on Smith's behalf.
18 years ago, April 28, 1982:
Author Randy Shilts visited L.I.D. to read from and discuss his newly
published book, The Mayor of Catro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey
Milk.
14 years ago, May 6, 1986:
L.I.D. Board member Jon David Nalley became the first openly lesbian or gay
school board candidate in Brooklyn. Nalley lost his race in District #13.
7 years ago, May 4, 1993:
Jill Harris scored a landslide victory in the District #15 school board
elections, becoming the borough's first openly lesbian or gay elected
official.
Gay Male Singers Sought
Flirtations co-founder (and L.I.D. member) Elliot Pilshaw informs us that a new, gay male a cappella quintet called the Paradise Keys is forming under his direction. For more information or auditions, contact Elliot at elliotdp@earthlink.net or 624-7776.