At a special endorsement meeting in early August, L.I.D. endorsed 2 additional candidates in the September 15th Democratic primary.
For a contested, borough wide civil court judgeship, L.I.D. is backing Lauren Bailey-Schiffman. In the 17th state senatorial district, L.I.D. is pleased to endorse Sen. Nellie Santiago. Senator Santiago was one of only a handful of senators who opposed recently passed legislation establishing mandatory HIV partner notification.
Please refer to the enclosed palm card for all L.I.D. endorsed candidates who face primary opposition on September 15th. Keep the card handy and take it with you to the polls on primary day.
L.I.D. Mourns Liz Garro . . .
L.I.D. was deeply saddened by the news of the untimely death of Liz Garro over the July 4th weekend. Garro, a longtime lesbian activist in Brooklyn, was found dead in her Florence, South Carolina home.
As lesbian and gay liaison to Brooklyn D.A. Charles Hynes, Garro worked tirelessly to combat anti-lesbian and gay violence in Brooklyn. You may recall the Purity Diner incident of 1990, in which two lesbians were viciously attacked in a Park Slope eatery. Garro was instrumental in the planning of a demonstration following the episode and worked night and day to have the incident classified as a bias crime.
But she didn't stop there. She convinced the district attorney to take the unprecedented move of assigning the chief of his civil rights bureau to prosecute the case. Garro was a fixture at the court hearings of the offender and a counselor to the victims. In recognition of her dogged pursuit of justice for victims of anti-lesbian and gay violence, L.I.D. honored Garro with its 1991 Brooklyn Lambda Award.
Several years later, Garro's perseverance again was the driving force behind uncovering the fate of John T. Brown, a gay Park Slope resident who disappeared mysteriously. In addition, her behind the scenes work was crucial in sensitizing local police precincts to anti-lesbian and gay bias in the criminal justice system.
Prior to joining Hynes' staff, Garro was an aide to former city council member Abe Gerges. When Mayor David Dinkins reestablished a Police Council on Lesbian and Gay Issues in 1990, Garro was one of his initial appointees. After moving to South Carolina in 1994, Garro was employed as a product manager at Sunoco.
She left her mark on Brooklyn's political landscape and our borough is a better place for lesbian and gay people thanks to her pioneering work.
. . . and Bids Farewell to Genovesi
The Brooklyn lesbian and gay community also lost a steadfast friend with the untimely death of Canarsie Assemblyman Tony Genovesi in early August.
Elected to the Assembly in 1984, Genovesi was a staunch supporter of the lesbian and gay community and people with HIV. During the most recent legislative session, for example, Genovesi voted against HIV registry and contact tracing legislation. A staunch civil libertarian and a thoughtful and consistent liberal, nobody could ever accuse Tony Genovesi of voting any way other than that which his conscience dictated.
We bid him a fond farewell, thankful for his long friendship and support.
Champagne & Desert:
September 2
L.I.D.'s annual party to raise funds to support the campaigns of our endorsed candidates is scheduled for Wednesday, September 2 beginning at 7:30 pm at 1103 Albermarle Road.
Please join us for an evening of sumptuous deserts, free flowing champagne and the chance to mingle with the candidates we hope will emerge victorious in the September 15th Democratic primary.
Don't forget to bring your checkbook! Min- imum suggested contribution in is $25.
Fossella Shows Extremist Colors
Congressman Vito Fossella, who represents parts of Bay Ridge and Bensonhurst, has planted himself firmly in the homophobic, radical right camp of the Republican party with a flurry of anti-gay votes in late July and early August.
Most notably, on August 5th Fossella voted to overturn President Clinton's executive order banning job discrimination against lesbian and gay federal employees. The measure was defeated by a vote of 252-176, thanks to the opposition of 63 Republicans. How any fair minded representative could support job discrimination -- which this measure condoned -- is beyond us. Clearly Fossella thinks that lesbians and gays do not deserve work place protections, putting him at odds with the vast majority of New Yorkers.
Fossella also cast the deciding vote in favor of an amendment to withhold federal housing funds from San Francisco unless it repeals its domestic partnership law. The measure's narrow margin of victory provided Fossella with an opportunity to exhibit courage in sending a message to his radical colleagues. Instead, he caved into the extremists who now seem to dominate his party in the House.
Since being elected last November to replace Susan Molinari, Fossella has built a shameful voting record that exposes his radical homophobia. In that short time, aside from supporting lesbian and gay employment discrimination and denying housing funds to San Francisco, Fossella has voted to:
If you are as embarrassed by Fossella's voting record as we are and live in his district, we urge you to write to him and express your outrage:
Should he respond to you in writing, please make sure to forward a copy of his letter to L.I.D.
Correction on HIV Legislation
We reported in the July edition of Lambda Line on the unfortunate passage of state legislation establishing mandatory, government conducted HIV partner notification.
We regret that we inadvertently omitted the name of Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein from the list of 13 Brooklyn Assemblymembers who voted against this bill.
We are well aware of Assemblywoman Weinstein's opposition to this legislation and thank her not only for her vote, but for the pivotal role she played in developing and lobbying for an alternative compromise bill. While this legislation never saw the light of day, thanks to Speaker Sheldon Silver's decision to back the harsher version, its development was strategically important.
Again, we regret this editorial mistake and, once again, express our deep thanks to all Brooklyn legislators who opposed this harsh and unnecessary measure.
Expanded Partner Bill Introduced
Just weeks after the enactment of sweeping city domestic partnership legislation, Council Member Tom Duane has introduced a bill to amend city law to recognize domestic partners registered in other municipalities. Duane also announced his intention to introduce an amendment similar to a San Francisco law requiring companies doing business with the city to provide domestic partnership benefits to their employees.
Our thanks to Councilmember Angel Rodriguez, who was the only Brooklyn member to originally sponsor the bill.