SGN Page 40

Letters


CLUB Z OPEN FOR BUSINESS Dear SGN, This has been a year of highs and lows for Club Z. At first we were notified that our lease was not being renewed. The owners wanted to tear the building down to make way for progress for the Pike/Pine corridor. Sadly, it was decided that Club Z would shut down for good. There were many factors contributing to this decision and we let the community know that we were going out of business. After three extensions, we were notified again a couple of weeks ago that we now had through the summer of 2006. We had been liquidating our supplies and making inquiries about selling the clubs equipment. Currently weve had to scramble to restock and re-evaluate projects to keep the club open for business. Needless to say its been stressful to get things back in working order. Were nearly where we need to be to continue our business and weve had many very positive comments about keeping Club Z going. Of course there are others who jokingly say that this has been some advertising gimmick. Unfortunately its not a gimmick. Its hard to give something up that youve worked hard to build and for right now, it looks like it will be around for at least another year. Then, ??? Carlos Adams Manager, Club Z PUT PAINTER ON THE RALLY STAGE Seattle Pride Committee and Seattle Gay News, GLTB Pride is not just about the celebration of our humanity, it also is a recognition of the struggles we face on a daily basis. We were reminded how dangerous that struggle is when Micah Painter was brutally stabbed during last years Pride Weekend. Except for Seattles Gay media, Micah received only lukewarm support from the greater GTLB community. We can, and should, make that up to him by giving him some time on the Rally stage. He deserves it. By doing this we can let him know that it was homophobia in bigots that caused his pain and we, the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender people of Seattle really do care. Mike McNamara A HUGE PRIDE MONTH THANK YOU! Dear SGN, I would like to send a huge thank you to these wonderful individuals and families who have donated in support of the Safe Schools Coalition this past year and a half: Roberta Adams, Jim Fotter, Kelly Aiken, Betty Freund, Sue Anderson, The late Robert K. Goldsworthy, Linda and Tom Baker, Susan Kirchofer, Janet M. Bogle, Joyce Liljeholm, Janet Cady, Marcie Mathis, Samantha J. Chandler, Mike McCloud, Gabi and Alec Clayton, Katharine A. Pearson, Maureen Considine, George H. Reis, Laurie Dils, Lew Scheinert and Dave Green, Bill Dubay, Barbara Steele and Beth Reis, Charles Fay, Kim Westheimer. And many others who either asked us to remain anonymous or who donated through their workplaces and chose not to identify themselves even to us. (Apologies to those who donated who may not have intended your donation to be anonymous. If you arent listed here, we lost the record of who chose anonymity over a year ago, and so bent over backwards to protect even those of you who may not have needed protection of your confidentiality.) All your colleagues in coalition appreciate your sacrificing in support of publications, the web site, the list serve, intervention services and our training/speakiing efforts. It couldnt happen without your support. As you know, we function on a shoestring, with a tiny fraction of the budget of other national organizations. Every dollar you give makes it possible. To donate, go to www.safeschoolscoalition.org/donate.html. Beth Reis Co-Chair Safe Schools Coalition HEARTSTRONG HELPS RESCUE VICTIMS OF REPARATIVE THERAPY Dear SGN, Thanks for including information about HeartStrong in the SGN, particularly with regards to reparative/restorative therapy. I wanted to add one more thing about HeartStrong, if I may. While HeartStrongs mission is first and foremost to reach out to GLBT students from religious schools, part of that includes helping them deal with reparative/restorative therapy which is almost always offered to or forced upon them. With that in mind, several years ago, I sat down at my computer and wondered what a person would find if they typed the domain name of exGay.com. I typed it and to my surprise, no one owned that domain name. All of the ex-Gay groups, therapists, counselors, and churches had failed to acquire the one domain name that could help them spread their message. I immediately went to one of our HeartStrong supporters and asked if she could help us purchase the domain name and cover the cost for hosting it. She said yes and since that day HeartStrong has owned exGay.com. Shortly after that some of our supporters purchased other variations of exGay domain names and had them directed to our site. What started as an outreach project to reach our students became a way for us to help even more people. Since our supporter, Landa Ikeda, covered the cost for HeartStrong to purchase that domain name we have helped dozens of men and women each year who are trapped in the ideology that a heterosexual lifestyle is the only appropriate way to live. We even had one exGay counseling group in Ohio disband completely because one by one, the group members came to us and eventually came to understand that they had been lied to about who they were and what it really meant to be Gay and Lesbian. Conferences like Love Won Out from Focus on the Family are not attended by monsters and demons. They are attended by GLBT people who are trapped and quite often brainwashed into thinking a certain way. These conferences are also attended by heterosexual people who think that the God they believe in only approves heterosexuality. And every day for the past nine years, HeartStrong does as much as possible to light the way for one more person looking for personal peace and real freedom. Marc Adams (Volunteer) Executive Director HeartStrong, Inc. www.heartstrong.org