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Table of Contents
Reese's World: Perspectives from the Editor
Picture it: Independence, Missouri, fall 1988. "Mom/Dad: Can I go to Nicaragua next summer?" The above was obviously paraphrased, but relates an experience of mine that taught me well: always ask for more than you think you can get. Similarly, ever since we in the GLBT community have been demanding marriage rights, suddenly every Democratic, and many Republicans even, politician is for civil unions. Just a few years ago, every politician, except for the most liberal Democrat, was against even that. Howard Dean was seen as doomed politically for the rest of his career because he signed the civil unions bill. Now, as full, complete equality, not a second-class version, is there for same-sex couples, suddenly civil unions are the 'obvious' way to go. Even the Christian Coalition, the Christian Coalition!, has said that "they can't fight civil unions anymore" and they've lost that battle, but marriage, marriage!, is not gonna happen on their watch. Well, here we are going down the aisle. And who would have thought that civil unions would even be de rigueur. So, rear back and get ready, cause we ain't going back and we ain't settling for civil unions anymore. And while I settled for Mexico back in the 80's and it was wonderful and beautiful and I loved it, this time we're shooting for the full enchilada, Nicaragua, in our fight for full equality and marriage rights. Reese Aaron Isbell, M.P.P. (Editor) April Co-Chair's Report Greetings and thank you from your new Co-Chair! At the Co-Chairs election meeting on March 22, almost 100 Alice members elected Rich Kowalewski and me to serve as Co-Chairs of the club for 2004. I was elected to my first term as Co-Chair and Kowalewski to his second one-year term. I succeed Theresa Sparks who stepped down after providing outstanding leadership to Alice for two years. Theresa, we will miss you! I hope to fill at least one of your shoes. At the meeting, Treasurer Susan Leal, Supervisors Bevan Dufty, Tom Ammiano and Aaron Peskin, Public Defender Jeff Adachi, former Supervisor Sue Bierman, County Central Committee members Scott Weiner, Robert Haaland, Michael Goldstein, David Campos and Bill Barnes were among the elected officials who showed up to vote and mingle; along with leaders from the Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club, Noe Valley Democratic Club and the Young Democrats. As Co-Chairs of the Board of Directors of the city's largest Democratic club-with over 500 dues paying members-we are eager to lead Alice during this very exciting, yet challenging, time. I know I speak for Rich as well when I say that the overwhelming positive energy in the room the night of the turnout shows that Alice members are more active and energized than ever. We look forward to continuing our cooperation with the Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club on issues affecting the LGBTQ community, such as homelessness, hate violence and gay marriage, as well as working together to help defeat the divisive and war-mongering George Bush in November. Building coalitions with other minority communities has set Alice apart from other clubs and has helped make Alice one of the most influential democratic clubs in San Francisco. Not only do I want to work with Mayor Gavin Newsom and have the club continue to be at the forefront of the gay marriage fight, I also want to focus the club on electing more LGBTQ leaders, particularly lesbians, in San Francisco. We haven't had a lesbian Supervisor since Leslie Katz. And with the recent news that Supervisor Gonzalez will not run for District 5 Supervisor, I want to work hard to help elect a queer Democrat for the newly open seat. Already, Robert Haaland, Jim Hammer and Bill Barnes are asking Alice Board members for support. I also want to continue to work closely with our LGBTQ mentors and leaders: Assemblyman Mark Leno, Treasurer Susan Leal and Supervisor Bevan Dufty. With their support, we can increase Alice's active membership, resources and programming and expand Alice's influence throughout San Francisco. I want to create a dialogue with some of our LGBTQ leaders who recently have not had a relationship with Alice. And I am excited to expand our relationships with our non-queer allies. Mayor Gavin Newsom, Assessor-Recorder Mabel Teng, City Attorney Dennis Herrera, District Attorney Kamala Harris, Public Defender Jeff Adachi and Supervisors Aaron Peskin, Fiona Ma, Sophie Maxwell and Chris Daly top that list. Many of us worked very hard together in the past year, working on Susan's campaign for Mayor, and then working to elect Gavin Newsom as Mayor and Kamala Harris as DA. I will bring the same passion and commitment to Alice in the year ahead, as I have in the past. And I hope to continue to grow the many friendships and working relationships that I have with many of you in Alice. Please feel free to call me at #235-6048 or Rich at #552-4257 if you have any questions about our goals for Alice or if you want to share ideas for making Alice even stronger in 2004. Here's to a great year of activism! For those of you who don't know Laura and Rich well, here is some background on Alice's new leadership:
For the last year and a half she has been working full-time (and then some!) in the political arena. She worked on Bevan Dufty's election to Supervisor of District 8. Spanjian then served as campaign manager for Susan Leal's run for Mayor of San Francisco. In addition, she just finished managing Assemblymember Joe Simitian's successful bid for State Senate on the peninsula. Laura has been Chair of the Board of Directors for Community United Against Violence (CUAV) for the past three years, a member of the Finance Advisory Board for Project Open Hand and a member of the World Center Advisory Board for the Family Violence Prevention Fund. Spanjian graduated Phi Beta Kappa from UCLA with two B.A. degrees in Communication Studies and English and received a Masters degree in Communication from Stanford University. She lives in Noe Valley with her partner, Ellen Callaway.
While in Kansas City, Rich was a member of the board of the ACLU of Kansas and Western Missouri, a board member of the MAINstream Coalition (an interfaith non-partisan organization), chair of the Human Rights PAC (a LGBTQ political organization), and a founder of the Friends of Justice, which became affiliated with the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation as GLAAD-KC. Kowalewski served on the board of GLAAD-USA and helped broker the merger of GLAAD-NY and GLAAD-LA which led to the creation of GLAAD as a national organization with regional offices. Kowalewski lives in the Inner Mission with his partner, Duda Silva. On the
Mark in Sacramento
The 2004 Assembly session is in full swing. Many important pieces of legislation are being discussed and debated. I have introduced a number of bills which I will detail here in the coming months. But first, let me take a step back, and note the historic activities of the last few months. When Mayor Newsom told me that he was going to follow the state constitution and not allow discrimination in marriage licensing in San Francisco for same-sex couples, I immediately knew that we were about to take a giant leap forward in the movement for full equality, that this was the beginning of a new era in human and civil rights, and that my newly introduced bill AB 1967 would be a strategically perfect next step. On the heels of my introduction of Assembly Bill 1967, the bill that will prohibit the denial of marriage licenses by the State of California to gay and lesbian couples, I was thrilled to have spent Thursday, February 12th, Friday, February 13th, and that long, historic weekend at City Hall personally officiating the marriages of over 150 couples who came from all over the country. What a proud and defining moment for our equal rights and for our City. San Francisco has once again stepped out from the shadows of injustice by standing up for the civil rights of all. The sense of excitement radiating from City Hall that week was humbled only by the extraordinary displays of commitment that hundreds of couples have made to each other. I had the great pleasure of marrying my rabbi, my deceased partner's Episcopal priest, many Alice members, community friends, and others I've known throughout the years. The emotion we all felt during those historic weeks was palpable. No court decision can ever take that away from us. Now we are on to the next steps in the struggle. As I mentioned, I have introduced AB 1967 into the Assembly. This bill would amend the state Family Code to define a marriage as between "two persons" instead of between a man and a woman. It follows a November ruling by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court affirming the right of same sex couples to marry. The Massachusetts high court labeled the denial of marriage equality on the basis of sexual orientation "arbitrary," and declared that the Massachusetts Constitution, "affirms the dignity and equality of all individuals.and forbids the creation of second-class citizens." The Court also "failed to identify any constitutionally adequate reason for denying civil marriage to same-sex couples." AB 1967 does not conflict with Proposition 22 though our adversaries argue otherwise. The language of Prop. 22 was to prevent California from being forced to recognize the marriages of same-sex couples who were married outside of California. (CA Family Code Section 308) However, that proposition did not change the criteria for issuance of marriage licenses within California, which is the subject of my bill, (CA Family Code Sections 300, 301 and 302). Additionally, I have introduced a resolution, in my role as the new Chair of the California Legislative LGBT Caucus, to make California the first state on record opposing the proposed discriminatory amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would remove the lawmaking authority from states with regard to civil marriage. George W. Bush is now on record as the first president to embrace codifying discrimination into our constitution. Clearly this is a desperate act by a desperate man. I have much more to share with you regarding my many legislative and political priorities in the Assembly. Over the next year, I look forward to updating you further on these activities and more via local events, community forums, and this column in the Alice newsletter. In the meantime, should you have questions or thoughts, please feel free to contact me at any time through my District Office at 415-557-3013 or keep updated on the web via: http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/members/a13. Yours, Assemblyman Mark Leno
Alice B. Toklas
LGBT Democratic Club Alice Co-Chairs Treasurer Secretary Political Action Co-Chairs Issues Co-Chairs Membership Co-Chairs Public Relations Director Finance Co-Chairs * In addition to these 18 board members elected by
the Alice membership on 3/22/04, there are other appointed board
positions for which appointments will be made at the 4/26/04 board
meeting. April 12 Membership Meeting at 7:00P at the LGBT Center, Room
300 April 26 Board Meeting at 6:30P at the State Office Building 1) Boxer Revisited After hearing outrage and concern from many of us in the GLBT community, receiving a letter requesting clarification from Alice, meeting with the Human Rights Campaign in person in Washington, DC, meeting via district staff with the Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club, and recognizing the grave concern we had over her statements back in February regarding the same-sex marriages occuring at City Hall, Senator Barbara Boxer has reaffirmed her commitment to the GLBT community. Senator Boxer issued the following statement: "I support full equality for all couples, regardless of the gender of the individuals. I believe that both different sex and same-sex couples should have the same rights, protections, and benefits as well as the same responsibilities under state and federal law. I understand that current California law does not provide the full equality I initially thoughts it did."-- Senator Barbara Boxer We at Alice are pleased by Senator Boxer's statement and her admission that she was mistaken about California law. Now we want to get back out there and support her re-election to the United States Senate. 2) Kerry vs. Bush Scorecard on GLBT Rights
"George Bush, who promised to become a uniter, has become
the great divider. [Bush] proposed to amend the Constitution of
the United States for political purposes, and we say that he has
no right to misuse the most precious document in our history in
an effort to divide this nation and distract us from our goals.
We resoundingly reject the politics of fear and distortion."
-- Senator John Kerry Commentary written in June 1996 during the federal debate over legislation in Congress entitled the "Defense of Marriage Act" (DOMA). At the time I was a skinny young 25 year-old thing, romantic, desperate for love and attention, not yet to have my met my boyfriend-soon-to-be-ex-who-broke-my-heart-and-for-which-I-lost-all-interest-in-romance-and-love-thereafter (so read it with your heart on your sleeve). At that time I felt so personally touched by the marriage debate, and became increasingly angered by the politics and the climate and the debates, and wrote many a letter to many a legislator in DC and in Missouri to state my concerns and anger. And at that time, I wrote an editorial on the issue for publication in local Gay papers, which inevitably didn't get published by any of them. But, as the country goes through the debate in a new and exciting way, I've been thinking about that article I wrote and what I said back then. So I go through my old files from DC from the mid-90s, and find my article, and it's below. The Struggle for Marriage is Unique I want to get married. Yes, I truly do want to get married. I want to have all the glitter and trappings of a ceremony. My parents, his parents, my friends, his friends, my relatives, his relatives, our acquaintances, they will all come and participate in the joyous celebration of the love that we have found. We will plan out a life together and commit to that goal. We will be a married couple. I used to scoff at the very notion of marriage. "I don't want to get married," I used to say. "That's such a straight thing to do." As a young college student, I believed in a more "free" existence where I would float through life from love to love, finding joy with several people. But I've grown past those thoughts and, after many years of self-reflection and soul-searching, I now realize that scenario will not work for me. I have decided to search for that special someone with whom I will feel comfortable and enjoy sharing the rest of my life. Maybe that makes me sound pathetic, overly romantic, or even conservative, but that is how I feel for my own life. Others can do what they want, but for me, this is it. And in a way, it's rather a liberating thing to conclude. Now if I could only find the man. With gay men and women pushed into isolated communities by the larger society, I have to contend with meeting others through the bars, the dance clubs, specially formed networks, or happenstance; these do not always provide substantive situations. With the difficulties imposed by this scenario and gay life in general, lifelong gay or lesbian relationships are especially remarkable to me. I'm hoping to be one of the lucky ones who can attain it. I would say I haven't yet known mutual love. I've looked, longed, watched, cried, debated, ignored, tried to ignore, joked, whines, grown bitter, appeared nonchalant, and wondered when and why not now. I've been a romantic fool wishing for love and flowers and someone to fall for. I've been jealous and lovelorn. I've even been depressed. Yet, I've survived and am surviving all of that. I've learned to enjoy my life on my own terms. I've discovered my own self. I've determined what I want for me. This is who I am as a person. Now the country is discussing the issue of same-sex marriage and is delving into my personal life and determining for me whether or not I have the right to get married. Everyone is debating my ability to love, my ability to commit, my desire for its recognition and legality, and my hopes for a union. Furthermore, everyone is questioning even my capacity to contemplate the issue and determine what is best for my own life. Well, I can make my own decisions. I can determine if I'm in love or not. I can see if it's a relationship that will last or not. I have the ability to commit to another human being. Trust me to live my own life. I have spent years determining what I want as an individual and what I hope for myself. I have gone through a long process of self-examination and determination. I have given this issue fervent thought. Yet, I am given less credit, and legal standing, than an 18-year old heterosexual who gets married on a whim. They will get access to their partner's health insurance. They will get hospital admittance, inheritance rights, and tax breaks. But, most importantly, they will receive the societal acknowledgement and trust of their decision. I will not receive any of this. The debate over same-sex marriage is the most personal for me of all the gay and lesbian rights efforts of the day and the past because it reaches into the depths of my individuality and it rejects my self. It denies the fact that I have thoroughly considered what kind of relationship I want. It overlooks the fact that I have been searching for a partner, and ignored all the difficulties that I've encountered in that quest. It invalidates my ability to think and love. It denies my personhood. Previously, the struggles for gay and lesbian equality did not really take our individuality into account. They always involved attaining equal status as an official citizen who should have the right to work, a home, private sexual relations, and political accessibility. This gave society the ability to ignore my private life while possibly accepting me tangentially. However, this time the issue is not about separating my personal life from the larger society. This time, the issue is not about society treating me simply as a distant relative with whom it only professionally associates. This time, it's not about my being just the "gay guy" with whom they have to work or life. This time, my personal relationship life is not being left at the door as I enter the room. This time, it is about my being a full-fledged person with a mind and hopes and a desire for love and fulfillment. This time, it is about the recognition that I have a life beyond the formal and official ones, and that I should have equal legal and social status in this arena as well. This time, it is about my being a three-dimensional human being. This time, the discussion is extremely personal. And that is how unique, and difficult, this debate is. Reese Aaron Isbell June 12, 1996 We
Did It Once, And We Will Do It Again Every member of the LGBT community will always recall what he or she was doing on that "Holy Thursday" or "original Thursday" when on February 12, 2004 he or she heard that the City and County of San Francisco was issuing same-sex marriage licenses. This coming week will be a month since the February event, which will always be remembered as one of the most important achievements for the civil rights moment in America. As an employee for the City and County of San Francisco who works as the chief tax counsel and director of policy and appeals for Assessor-Recorder, Mabel S. Teng, I recall how the first four couples were ushered into Assessor Teng's office and how the staff, friends, and media were waiting in anticipation for the marriage ceremony to begin. The atmosphere seemed very light and joyful; however as Mabel Teng began to officiate the marriage ceremony for the first couple, Phyllis Lyon, 79, and Del Martin, 83 , the mood turned quiet and somber; and as the couple exchanged their vows, there was not a dried-eye person in that room. I also recall being deputized as a marriage commissioner by Nancy Alfaro, Director County Clerk, and how City Hall in the days that followed turned into a Woodstock of love with couples in long lines encircling city hall. With the uncertainty of a number of pending legal proceedings, I felt as if I was living in a small European country on the eve of World War II with the threat of a Nazi invasion at any moment in the day. In our situation, the Nazi invasion was a court order enjoining the ceremonies. In response to such threat, I felt that it was my calling to marry as many couples before being told to stop. Others presumably felt the same way, since city hall had an outpouring of volunteers from both city employees and non-employees, working endlessly late into the evenings and over a three day weekend to issue, officiate, and record the same-sex marriage licenses. I must have married more than a hundred couples in practically every area of the rotunda, including the staircase. Couples traveled from as far away as Florida, Washington, D.C., Berlin, and Ireland. Although each couple may have been different in language and culture, they however shared a commonality in their ongoing love and devotion for one another. I also found that in nine times out of ten, as it had happened with Phyllis and Del, the giddiness of the moment usually turned into very emotional and teary one as the couple joined hands and look each other in the eye and exchanged their wedding vows. As the city continues to issue and record same-sex marriage licenses, with the leadership of a very courageous Mayor Newson, San Francisco should be proud to be the first city to stand-up up against discrimination of same-sex marriages. San Francisco should also be proud that it has nurtured and harvested its city elected officials to protect and uphold the constitutional protected rights of its neighbors. In our case, straight married couples are the heroes who protected the rights of same-sex couples to marry who they please. Hats off to Mayor Newsom who authorized the marriage licenses as well as Nancy Alfaro who issued the marriage certificates and Mabel S. Teng who recorded the certificates, along with Dennis Herrera who is defending our actions. It is difficult to predict how the courts are going to rule on
the pending court actions. Already other cities are following the
path of San Francisco. The LGBT community already knows that the
community is very vibrant and tenacious in fighting barriers of
discrimination. We have fought ongoing battles against racial and
sexual discrimination in the 60's and 70's as well as ones in the
80's and 90's involving HIV and Aids. Each of our battles against
social injustice caused a change in either creating new laws protecting
our rights or creating a greater social acceptance throughout the
country. We know that there will be battles ahead, and eventually
we will win the war because we did it once before, and we will do
it again. Craig Dziedzic Assessor-Recorder Mabel S. Teng's Chief
Tax Counsel Alice B Toklas LGBT Democratic Club General Membership Meeting 2nd Monday of each month Join or renew on-line at www.alicebtoklas.org, or fill out the application below Membership Application Yes, I want to join the Alice B. Toklas Democratic Club! __$30 Regular __I am renewing my membership __I will be a new member __I am a registered Democrat Name ___________________________________________________________________ Address _________________________________________________________________ City _________________________________________State: ______Zip: _____________ Phone: Day _____________________________Eve: _____________________________ Email: _________________________________________ Please send checks payable to “Alice B. Toklas LGBT Democratic Club” and mail to: Alice B. Toklas LGBT Dem. Club/1800 Market Street PMB#18,San Francisco, CA 94102 |
"Shooting
for Nicaragua"
Laura
Spanjian has been active in the LGBTQ community since 1997 when
she started as Supervisor Leslie Katz's legislative aide. She not
only worked with Katz to fight the United Airlines suit against
the City's Equal Benefits Ordinance, but she led the early fight
to open the first LGBTQ youth homeless shelter in the Castro. From
Katz's office, she went on to be the Government Relations Director
for Muni and then went to work for the SFPUC.
Rich
Kowalewski has been active in the San Francisco community since
moving here in 1999. In addition to serving as co-chair of Alice,
he is Chair of the Board at the New Conservatory Theatre Center
in San Francisco and served on the board of the Gay and Lesbian
Victory Fund in 2002-2003.
Dear
Alice Friends: