GLIFAA NEWS
February-March 2004

Officers:
Bob Post, President, postjr@state.gov
Sarah Cohen, Policy Director, kukuziwa@yahoo.com
Angela Martin, Budget Director, amartin@usaid.gov
Tom Coleman, Communications Director, colemantm@state.gov
Curtis Ried, Outreach Director, riedcr@state.gov

Upcoming GLIFAA Events

Thursday, March 18, 6-9 PM – Monthly Happy Hour, every third Thursday, at Hamburger Mary's/Titan's (upstairs), 1337 14th St. NW, corner of Rhode Island and 14th! First drink free with government ID or business card! Join the crowd for a few after work drinks. All members, friends, World Bank, other GLOBE groups and interested folk are welcome!
Monday, April 5, 7PM - GLIFAA April Meeting will be held at the home of Sarah Cohen, 1018 Constitution NE, a ten minute walk from Union Station or Eastern Market. All members and interested folks are welcome to attend!

Letter from the President

Dear GLIFAA Members and Friends:

The good news is that, as gays and lesbians, we have never before received so much media attention. The optimist in me wants to believe that the advances achieved over the last year and most recently with the marriage ceremonies in San Francisco, Seattle and New Paltz, NY, are part of the march of progress and are irreversible. In reality, this will depend on how well we make our case to the public, our family and friends. Rather than try to provide you all with an exhaustive review of the media, I have pulled out a few of the links where you can make your voice count. Make a difference!

GLIFAA continues to be visible within the Department. Look at our second Equality Campaign GLIFAA ad, featuring board members David Tessler and Ken Kero on their way to Iraq on page 43 of the March FSJ issue – “equal benefits for equal work!” Design is under way on the 3rd ad featuring our members at USUN scheduled for June. Make GLIFAA even more visible by cutting these ads out and placing them prominently in your office! Thank you to all who have pledged funds in support of the Campaign. We want to acknowledge everyone who has contributed, but knowing how long it takes the pouch to reach Washington, we will wait another month until the checks reach us!

Research is also under way for an article on the Member of Household policy for the June FSJ issue. The writer is looking for personal experiences on how MOH is or is not working. Please respond to today's AFSANet message asking for such stories or send them to glifaa@hotmail.com (include subject line: “FSJ story on MOH”) and we will forward them on.

For those of you who have not responded to the Employee Survey, please do so. The deadline has been extended until March 31. The intranet link is http://hrweb.hr.state.gov/cf/ess/ and remember to specifically state your concerns about GLBT issues in the boxes reserved for comments. The more regularly that Management hears from us, the better! More in the announcements below.

During the United Nations Commission on Human Rights meetings this month in Geneva, Brazil is expected to introduce a resolution calling for an end to discrimination based on sexual orientation. GLIFAA sent a letter to the Secretary urging the Department to support the resolution. See the text of the letter in the announcements below.

Planning is under way for Pride Week. We intend to cooperate with Fed GLOBE partners, particularly EPA and Commerce, on joint events and to sponsor our own events at USAID and State. Tentatively, topics may include gay and lesbian immigration rights and the release of David Johnson's book, “The Lavender Scare.” Volunteers for Pride are still needed. Please contact Curtis Ried at riedcr@state.gov to offer your help.

Bob Post
GLIFAA President

Announcements

Marriage Issues
There are so many sources of information on the gay marriage debate that we can't hope to share them all with you here. For a quick synopsis of what is happening and what you can do, click on www.hrc.org. Five hearings will be held in the House of Representatives over the next month beginning March 30 on the Constitutional Amendment. Various organizations are working to ensure that voices opposed to the amendment will get a fair hearing. On Massachusetts, HRC reports that the vote by the State legislature on March 11 in favor of an amendment to the State constitution may still leave room for optimism. And in California, HRC views the March 11 Supreme Court halt of gay marriages in San Francisco not as a roll-back, but rather a stop order to allow for a timeline for a hearing on the issue. See the links below for more info on all these topics:
Boston Phoenix article on the State amendment: http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/ct/fpqn64d18QUl/
More info at MassEquality:
http://www.massequality.org
More info on California marriages at Equality California:
http://www.eqca.org or the National Center for Lesbian Rights: http://www.nclrights.org

Surveys/Analytical Studies
1. Employee Satisfaction Survey: The deadline for survey submissions has been extended to March 31. There are multiple opportunities to let the Department know your level of satisfaction/dissatisfaction on treatment of gay/lesbian employees and their families, particularly in the comment sections. Please take time to respond! http://hrweb.hr.state.gov/cf/ess/

2. The Crisis Management Team and the NFATC Leadership and Management School recently launched a survey on crisis management and asked for information on the extent to which DOS employees and their families face difficult and often dangerous situations. One of our members, randomly selected and asked to respond by Feb. 27 to this questionnaire, made sure to include concerns of gay/lesbian employees with partners in his response. Results, not available yet, are promised on NFATC's Leadership and Management School by sometime in March. Be sure to take advantage of similar opportunities in the future to remind Department officials of the concerns facing us and our families. http://fsi.state.gov/fsi/lms/default.asp

3. New Study of Openly Gay Foreigners Who Served With U.S. Forces in Iraq, Other Joint Operations (Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military)
http://www.gaymilitary.ucsb.edu/PressCenter/press_rel_2004_0209.htm

4. Attitudes about Homosexuality, (American Enterprise Institute, 2/13/04)
http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.14882/pub_detail.asp

Events

1. Make GLIFAA a Host Committee Member for the May 22 SLDN/AVER Military Ball! If we can get commitments from 5 individuals to buy tickets at $75 each for this annual event, GLIFAA will be listed in the program and we can help a good cause! Please e-mail us at glifaa@hotmail.org if you are interested. The SLDN/AVER Military Ball will be held on Saturday evening, May 22 at the Hamilton Crowne Plaza Hotel on 14th and K, from 6:30 to 10:00, in conjunction with the AVER National Convention (see http://www.aver.us ) and SLDN Lobby Days. The proceeds will be split between SLDN and AVER, and the proceeds that go to AVER serve primarily to defray the costs of putting on the AVER National Convention. (AVER is an all-volunteer, chapter-based organization consisting of about 300 GLBT veterans and does not have a large fundraising mandate.)

The Ball is going to be mostly an evening of music and dancing, with a light speaking program. It's $75 per person and includes a couple of free drinks and heavy hors d'oervres. It's going to be populated by a large number of GLBT veterans and retirees who have come in from across the country and who will be wearing their dress uniforms. MAJ Jeff McGowan, USA (Ret.) and his spouse, Billiam van Roestenberg,
have been invited to lead the first dance. They were the first same-sex couple married in New Paltz, NY, by the mayor who's now facing misdemeanor charges. The three openly gay flag officers (BG Richard, BG Kerr, and RADM Steinman) will also make an
appearance and give a few brief remarks.

People can buy tickets on line at http://www.sldn.org.

2. The American Constitution Society (ACS) has organized an excellent event
in which scholars from the Constitution Project will discuss the so-called federal marriage amendment (FMA) in light of neutral criteria on amending the United States Constitution. The Constitution Project takes the position that the highest legal document in our country should only be amended in "great and extraordinary occasions," and then sets out neutral criteria to assess what such occasions might be. Detailed information on the event appears below. If you are interested, contact Brad Jacklin in the HRC Legal Department (Brad.Jacklin@hrc.org) by March 17th and Brad will RSVP to the ACS on your behalf.

"The Federal Marriage Amendment: When Should the Constitution Be Amended?" The Constitution Project and ACS present a panel discussion featuring Walter Berns, Member, Constitution Project's Constitutional Amendments Initiative and Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute; Deborah Hellman, Professor, University of Maryland School of Law; Mickey Edwards, Co-Chair of Constitution Project's Constitutional Amendments Initiative, Lecturer in Public and International Affairs, Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University, former Congressman and member of the House Republican leadership (R-OK); and L. Michael Seidman, Reporter, Constitution Project's Constitutional Amendments Initiative and Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center. Moderated by Charles Ogletree, Jessie Climenko Professor of Law, Harvard Law School. Friday, March 19 from 12:30-2:00 p.m. in the Paul Porter Room at Arnold & Porter, 555 12th Street, NW. A light lunch will be served.

3. Support Youth Pride Alliance at Upcoming Fundraisers! Youth Pride Week is a weeklong series of celebratory and educational events for GLBTQ Youth in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Region. Youth Pride Week will take place from April 16th to April 25th with the main event, Youth Pride Day, on Saturday, April 24th from 12-5:30 PM at P Street Park on the corner of 23rd and P Street.

Youth Pride Alliance, the organizational sponsor of Youth Pride Week/Day 2004, will be hosting a fundraising event at Lambda Rising, 1625 Conn. Ave, NW, on Saturday, March 20th from 12:00-5:00 PM. Lambda Rising will donate 10% of their total sales during that time. Come meet local GLBT authors and support a great cause! Youth Pride Day 2004 will take place Saturday, April 24th. For more information, please contact Paul Marengo at paul@youthpridedc.org.

Youth Pride Alliance and Metro TeenAIDS Present "Spin4Youth" a fund raising dance party on Friday, March 26th, featuring DJ Kirk Druey of Cherry 7-9/Meltdown 2k3/Sandblast '03, 8:00-10:00 PM at Cobalt, 17th & R Streets, NW. Admission is $10 at the door, which includes a raffle ticket for a pair of tickets to this year's Cherry Sunday night party. Proceeds will benefit Metro Teen Aids (www.metroteenaids.org), DC's only organization focused exclusively on HIV/AIDS and youth, and Youth Pride Alliance, the Organizational Sponsor of Youth Pride Week (www.youthpridedc.org). For more information, email Paul Marengo, Director at paul@youthpridedc.org.

Youth Pride Alliance and the Rainbow History Project present, "A Colorful Walk to Chaos!" a fundraising walk on Sunday, March 28, beginning at 11:00 AM. It will begin at 1724 20th Street, NW, and go through the Dupont area, while members of the Rainbow History Project discuss the importance of preserving our history and local historic sites. After the tour, brunch will be served at Chaos. The $25 ticket price includes the tour, brunch at Chaos, and a mimosa! Proceeds benefit Youth Pride Alliance and Youth Pride Day. Tickets can be purchased on the day of or by mailing a check to Youth Pride Alliance, PO Box 33161, WDC 20033. For more information, please contact Paul Marengo at paul@youthpridedc.org.

4. HRW Panel on Arrests of Egyptian Gay Men. On March 8, Human Rights Watch-joined by Amnesty International, Global Rights-Partners for Justice, and Al-Fatiha Foundation for LGBTIQ Muslims held a special discussion moderated by U.S. Congressman Barney Frank on Egypt's massive, continuing crackdown on the "crime" of men having sex with men.
In Egypt, hundreds of men have been arrested for homosexual conduct since 2001, and hundreds of lives have been ruined. Police entrap victims over the Internet and use informers to conduct raids on private homes. The arrested men face brutal torture. Over months of documenting this repression, Human Rights Watch heard men tell how they were beaten, burned with cigarettes, dunked in ice-cold water and given electric shocks on their limbs and genitals.
Together with a few courageous Egyptian organizations who support equal protections for all, Human Rights Watch in early March launched a major report in Cairo showing the scope and sweep of the crackdown: In a Time of Torture: The Assault on Justice in Egypt's Crackdown on Homosexual Conduct.

5. FSI Transition Center Presents: MQ801, Maintaining Long Distance Relationships. Learn tips on how to keep relationships strong during evacuations, TDY travel or separated tours. Saturday, March 20, 2004, 9 AM to 1 PM. Non-tuition and open to all USG employees and their adult family members. Register by calling 703-302-7268 or e-mailing FSITCraining@state.gov (is this email address correct, or should it be FSITraining@state.gov?)

Legislation/Resolutions

1. House Hearings on Same-sex Marriage. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI) and Constitution Subcommittee Chairman Steve Chabot (R-OH) announced that The Constitution Subcommittee would hold at least 5 hearings in the next few months to examine the issue of same sex marriage. The first hearing on March 30 will focus on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Is it Constitutional? Is it adequate to protect the traditional definition of marriage? Will it prevent the "federalizing" of the definition of marriage by state courts? The other hearings will be held in April, May and possibly June. The topics will be: Legal threats to traditional marriage HJRes 56, the Musgrave Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA); Other proposed Constitutional Amendments to protect marriage (e.g. a broader one suggested by Concerned Women for America, narrower proposals); Statutory approaches to limiting court jurisdiction.

2. UN Resolution on Sexual Orientation. Brazil is expected to introduce a resolution on sexual orientation for the second year in a row at the upcoming April session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. Last year the United States abstained from voting on the resolution, which was ultimately defeated. The State Department has not made public the U.S. position this year. Human Rights Watch, IGLHRC and Amnesty International Outfront, along with GLIFAA, met with DRL DAS Michael Kozak in January and asked him for U.S. support of the resolution. On March 14, GLIFAA sent a letter to the Secretary encouraging a positive decision. The letter follows. You may also get more information and sign the petition in support of the Resolution at the links below.
April 12, 2004
Secretary Colin Powell
U.S. Department of State
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Secretary Powell:
As gay and lesbian foreign affairs professionals, we are proud of the President's commitment to human rights abroad. As you noted in your press briefing on the release of the 2003 country Human Rights Report:
As President Bush put it in his State of the Union Message in January: “Our aim is a democratic peace, a peace founded upon the dignity and rights of every man and woman.” A world in which human rights and fundamental freedoms are respected and defended is a world of peace in which tyrants and terrorists cannot thrive. President Bush regards the defense and advancement of human rights as America's special calling, and he has made the promotion of human rights an integral and active part of his foreign policy agenda.
This year at the 60th UN Commission on Human Rights beginning March 15, Brazil will again table a resolution that recognizes the human dignity of all people, regardless of sexual orientation, and expresses concern at violence and discrimination aimed at individuals because of sexual orientation. We sincerely hope that the United States will support Brazil's resolution. We believe that U.S. opposition would stand in stark contradiction to the President's stated commitment to the non-negotiable demands of human dignity; it would send a powerful negative signal to countries like Egypt, where homosexual men are tortured to extract confessions of “debauchery,” that some human rights are more important than others.
The Board of Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies urges your strong support of this resolution.

Information on the Resolution:
http://www.brazilianresolution.com/6018/21418.html
Sign the petition:
http://win2knew.net4all.ch/brazilianresolution/petition.asp?LangueID=1

Write to the DG! DG DIRECT: Department employees can write to the DG directly, so we encourage members who have specific issues or stories that they think are worth sharing with the DG to write to DG Direct (dgdirect@state.gov). Many people are not aware of this opportunity, but the DG does pay attention to what comes in on DG Direct. Remember your diplomacy skills and get your fingers typing!

SUPPORT "THE REAL POST REPORTS"!!
The "Tales from a Small Planet" website is becoming the place for gay and lesbian expats to gather information on long-term living conditions overseas. There are now over 50 countries listed in the gay and lesbian section with information such as the following: Riga, Latvia: "Host government is very accommodating. Several (non-US) diplomats have accredited same-sex partners. " Caracas, Venezuela: "I definitely never heard of people being hassled for their sexual orientation and, given that we knew gay Caraquenos, I don't think it was a real issue." This non-profit organization depends on charitable contributions, so if you find this site useful, go to the online contributions section and help them out. GLIFAA makes a small contribution each year to make their work possible. Also, they are eager to make the site more useful for us, so write to GLIFAA or directly to “Tales” with your suggestions. AND, please contribute information about your country! The site is http://www.talesmag.com/resources/glbt.shtml.

Press Clippings
1. A majority of Mainers favor either full marriage rights or civil unions for same-sex couples, according to a recent poll. http://www.pressherald.com/news/state/040311samesexpoll.shtml

2. Homophobia's Reach. Tony Kushner Op-ed on the case of Russian Sharipov in Uzbekistan. (Washington Post, 3/8)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A39175-2004Mar7.html

3. A Fight for Hope (Washington Post, 2/29)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A15590-2004Feb28.html

4. Same Sex Marriage Vaulted into Spotlight (Washington Post, 3/8)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38830-2004Mar7.html

5. LGBT Workers: Government Stops Investigating Gay Bias Claims in Civil Service (365GAY.COM, 2/13)
http://www.365gay.com/newscon04/02/021304fedGlobe.htm

6. An Open Letter to Political Columnist George F. Will of the Washington Post
from John Shelby Spong (Washington Post, 1/13/04)
http://www.clgs.org/marriage/press_release_010904.html

Membership

GLIFAA is the officially recognized organization representing gay and lesbian personnel in the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Foreign Commercial Service, Foreign Agricultural Service and other foreign affairs entities.

For more information -- or to become a member -- please go to our website at www.glifaa.org or email us at GLIFAA@hotmail.com

GLIFAA DUES – Dues are due every October at the beginning of the fiscal year, so for those who have not yet paid, please make a $30 check out to “GLIFAA” and send to: GLIFAA, P.O. Box 18774, Washington, DC 20036-8774 or bring it to a meeting. Please include your e-mail address, agency or organization, location, and snail-mail address. Affiliated membership is now available at a cost of $15.00 per year. This is designed for those who work for USG contractors and grantees overseas, Foreign Service National employees, retired USG employees and others who believe in the mission and activities of GLIFAA and wish both to support its goals and enjoy many of the benefits of full membership without voting rights. No monetary cost associate membership is available to any current employee of the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Agency for International Development, or other U.S. foreign affairs agencies, or their families/partners who want to express solidarity with GLIFAA members and our goals. Associate members are warmly welcomed to attend and participate in many GLIFAA sponsored events.

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Newsletter Policy: Items submitted for publication in the GLIFAA News should be sent via e-mail to Terry Anderson at GLIFAA2@attglobal.net. Items received by the 10th of the month will be included (subject to editing) in that month's edition of the GLIFAA News, which is published soon after the 15th of each month.
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