xt7j6q1sj515 https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7j6q1sj515/data/mets.xml Lexington, KY Pride Community Services Organization 198008 This collection contains newsletters produced by the Lexington, Kentucky based Pride Community Services Organization. Included are publications from the organization through multiple name changes, such as LinQ magazine (July 2013-2016); the GLSO (Gay and Lesbian Services Organization) News (August 1986-June 2013); the GSO (Gay Services Organization) newsletter (1979-July 1986). Accession number 2016ms055. newsletters  English Pride Community Services Organization Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Pride Community Services Organization publications LGBTQ community--Kentucky LGBTQ culture LGBTQ newspapers Gay men Lesbians Bisexual people Transgender people Sexual minorities Gender identity Drag culture The Gayzette, August 1980 text The Gayzette, August 1980 1980 2019 true xt7j6q1sj515 section xt7j6q1sj515 ____________________________________________________________I__________________________.
LEXINGTON GAY SERVICES ORGANIZATION, INC. AUGUST 1980
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CONFERENCE ON GAY CONCERNS AND NEEDS HELD AT SHAKERTOWN

In an effort to forge a greater move on to other issues and to reap-
sense of community and to get persons proach this particular concern at a
who have been working on gay concerns later date.
or in activities of some interest to A somewhat related issue and one of
the gay community. a Lexington-area the main points of the conference is
conference on the needs and concerns the notion of support groups for and
fac1ng gay people in this area was among gay people. Everyone seemed in
held on Sunday, July Zoo at Shakertown. agreement that such groups are needed,
Representatives and members of several both for providing friends and working
groups as well as interested indivi— toward some measure of gay presence in
duals were in attendance. A total of the community. In essence. it was de—
approximately thirty persons partici- cided that most gay people and groups
pated in the conference. have in common the need to have some-

Representatives from Amber Moon and thing in common--to develop the capa-
the Lexington Gay Services Organiza— city to reach out and take some re-
tiOh explained their groups' functions sponsibility for one another. Lack of
with particular reference to their re— communication between groups which
lationship With Lexington's gay commu- contain many gay members or relate in
hltY- Some persons also mentioned some fashion to gays is a barrier to
other groups in Lexington WhiCh offer establishing and maintaining such sup-
some assistance or have some relevance port; hopefciiy the Shakertown meeting
to gay Lexingtonians. Such groups in- made a start toward piercing that bar-
clude Alternatives for Women and the rier.
Women's Action Alliance. A brief de— A problem of particular concern to
scription of the above-mentioned groups gay persons living in communities the
is contained within this newsletter. size of Lexington is that of visibili-
. Of the thirty participants, approx- ty. People, for a variety of personal
imately half were women and half men. and work-related reasons, often feel
Thls has particular relevance as one the need to maintain a certain degree
0f the first topics taken up was the of "closetedness". At the same time,
lack of cohesion and communication be— more open gays often fail to under—
tween the gay male and lesbian commun- stand or respect the reasons/motiva-
1t1es: the reluctance of some women to tions behind the actions of less open
work with men who are not supportive gays. In a town such as Lexington,
of feminist concerns was discussed. there is the need for gay people to be
Many 0f the women present felt that more visable and hopefully accepted;
most men need to come to grips With at the same time the climate that
the .pervasive nature of sexism before creates this need also works against
meaningful and trusting working rela- the willingness of individuals to
tionships can be forged. While SUCh withstand the problems/pressures often
issues were broached and some discus- encountered if they are openly gay.
s10n ensued, it was finally decided to Everyone saw the need to develop more

 i.
-2-
SHAKERTOWN continued... %
tolerance in the community at large terest to gays.
.but few suggestions as to achievin
such a change were put forward. Oneg , AMBER M9ON ?RODUCT¥ONS‘ ? non-pro-
possibility would be the establishment fit. organizatlos Wthh brings women 1
of a gay community center. Persons artists to LeXington who might not _
could work—-in varying degrees of vis- 0th?rWlse come; Whlle ?h? group 18 non—
ability-—in a center that would also POlltlcal and not speCifically gay-or-
help create a sense of permanance and, iented,_ many 0f the performers are
perhaps eventually, acceptance for gay supportive 9f the gay and feminist and
people in Lexington. A committee was other minority movements. Amber M00“
set up to explore the possibility for has made it pOSSlble for people in Lex-
such a center and to work on the Ob- ington to hear such performers as Holly
stacles (mainly financial) facing such Near, Sweet Honey 19 the Rock,. and
an effort. Hazel Dickens. During the coming year,
One of the more specific ideas that there W111 b? an attempt to bring W0"
came up at the conference was the no- men Jazz artists to Lex1vst0n-n ,
tion of some sort of group made up of Amber Moon has established Friends
gay men and women interested in dif- 0? Amber Moon' t9 prov1de more finan— ‘
ferent recreational/social activities, Clal support for 1tS_Pr°dUCt1°nS' the
such as sports. If people are inter- rates are: $5‘19W income; $12-meélum ‘
ested in being involved in such a ven— income; $25'h1gh income: any contribu— , i
ture, they can send their name and nu— tion, Of course, 13 welcome. '
mber to GSO at P.O. Box 11471, Lexing- , ,
ton #0511 and it will be forwarded to @LTERNATIVES FOR WOMEN? an infor-
the people attempting to organize this mation and referral serVice which at— 1
group. . tempts to make women aware of alterna-
The Shakertown conference brought tives to their present situation or to
together many people concerned about problems they. may be experienCing;
. the state of the gay community in Lex- this organization is attempting to be-
ington and a number of ideas and issues come more senSitive and responSive to
were raised which merit further discus- lesbian concerNS-WH‘ f“l”” "9 “*
sion and work. It is felt that another - ' ’ ' " - 1 ‘ ‘
such meeting would be useful sometime WOMENS ACTIQN ALLEANCE=. has attemp— ‘
in the future. When plans are more ted to engage in action-oriented steps
solidified, the Gayzette will carry a ”coward stopping Violence agalnst women-
notice. This group sponsored last fall's "Take
Back the Night" march in Lexington.
*i************************************
******
. , If you are interested in working
There were either representatives with any of these groups or in more
from or members 0f several groups 1n information, either contact a member '
meetgms- Whll? on,” “.18 Lexmgton Gay number to GSO at 13.0. Box 11u71, Lex-
SerVices Qrganization is an actual gay ington, 40511 and we'll put you in
organization, there are other groups touch.
which, in the line of their work, of— :
fer some type of support to gay people -
or engage in activities of some in- 1
(continued in next column)

 -3-
GAY BAR BUFFET
Mirror, mirror, in my eyes, My options are dwindling, the bar will
T81]. me whom to idolize. soon close.
The tanned one there With the open I'll be stuck with myself, not the
Shlrtv, first time, God knows.
or the one.ln the comer Who refuses Well, here goes my last shot, then
to flirt? I‘ll call it a night.
How about the stud with the muscles He smiled! Could this be? Oh, my
that gleam. God, it's a bite!
Fresh from the spa and an encounter My apartment? on, not far. And I
Wlth steam? . , drove; we're in luck.
- There's a nice one there, all hairy Never die - that's my motto. Someone
, and lank; . always gives a fuck.
I could cruise right on by and give .
his 'kerchief a yank. __..__________a___alaa.LinQan____iu__
Here's a new face: if he'd just look
my way!
Don't stand there and stare, think of
something to say . Egg Gayzette has a need for feed—
That's clever or Witty and Will get a back, readers and money (not neces—
'. reply sarily in that order); money and
Before some other person gets the feedback can be addressed to GSO at
' nerve and walks bY- Box 11471, Lexington 40511... as for
I 11 take a dozen Of those on the readers, if we obtain fifty more names
dance floor. my dear: . for our mailing list, we can apply for
Have them wrapped ‘ bUt not tightly ‘ reduced postage charges. Thus we could
I 11 be anx1ous I fear. broaden our readership and save money
And where have you been all my life to at the same time. If you know of a
. th%s p01nt . . . friend or someone who would appreciate
While I ve been wasting away in this receiving 222 Gayzette, mention it to
smoke-filled acint? them and get them to send us their
Say hello to your lover? You came name and address. The paper is mailed
here to unw1nd? in a plain envelope with only the let-
Oh: I Juet saw a fr1end...I hope you ters "G.S.O." in the upper corner. If
won t mind _ _ at any time a person wants to stop re—
If I run over to see hlm?! Nice meet- ceiving the newsletter, they just have
1ng you two, to drop us a note and their name will
What's with all these couples? What's be removed from our mailing list.
a single to de? Also, this newsletter is intended
I'd ask you to dance, bUt you'll have to be of and for the Lexington gay
to dispose community. Don't be shy--if you have
Of that bottle 0f poppers you've got an opinion, want to review a book or
shoved 9P your nose. movie or feel you have anything to say,
Yes, I know lt adds rhythm, makes you send it to us. We could really use it.
llght on your feet, And, don't worry, we send very polite
But it gives me hot flashes, turns my rejection notices.
face to a beet.

 -4-
RECORD REVIEW CALENDAR
Tom Wilson's Gay Name Game
AUGUST 3: GSO rap group will meet at

Let's face it, if you wanted to Shillito Park for a cookout
'buy gay-oriented songs sung by gay ar- and games; if you're inter—
tists, your selection wOuld be limited. ested, bring yourself, some
But even if we had scores from which equipment and a friend (lat-
to select, Tom Wilson's Gay Name Game ter two items optional); this
would still be one of the best. Most will start at 5:30 p.m.
of the son 5 are characterized b a , .
subdued cam? humor ("Momma's Boy" 2nd AUGUST 4: Regular GSO monthly buSlness
"The Love That Dare Not Speak Its meeting. 8‘00 p.m. A NEW
Name") and treat topics ranging from LOCATIQN‘ Southland Branch
threeways to lesbian seagulls. I have of LeXlngton Public Library.
two personal favorites on the album. A ST . gonmfimgirsbwelgomea. , t
"Second Runner—Up" is about Anita Bry— UGU 3‘ pag e l ene l inner a
ant. If you think she is a dead issue Alfalfa for Amber Moon. 7‘00
and nothing new can be said, you are p.m.; $5 donation and B'Y'O'B'
wrong. The other is "Save Our Child- AUGUST 13: GSO cookout and sw1m at Wood-
ren/Recruiters' Fight Song", which éagg gaik’ thls starts at
counters the evangelists' pleas for , ‘ °”"*, N . .
protection of the children against US SEPTEMBER 5’6’7‘ Garage saieéto bengflt
with a very special recruiting song-—— Amber Moon at 1 2 Eliza 8th
"...cause ten percent is not enough." Street
"1:00 A.M."is a bittersweet conversa-- “—
tion that takes place in a gay bar, GAY PARENTS
Tom speaking both roleS- It would be There will be an informal meeting of
pretty funny if it had not happened to gay fathers and mothers on August 25
us all at least once. at 6:45 p.m. at 1207 Merman Drive.

I cannot think of anything in the The purpose is to discuss common con-
album that would be the least offen— cerns, experiences and needs. Child-
sive to the most sensitive of us. I ren are welcome. Lovers of gay par—
have played it for my parents and sev- ents who could come to help with the
eral straight friends, and it has got- kids are also invited. You may have
ten rave reviews. I suppose everyone some mutual concerns to share with
reviewing a record, film or book feels each other as well. If you havguggywr 7”
obligated to find fault with at least questions, contact Carol at 27?;9120
one aspect of it, and I am no excep- or Pam at 269—8702.

. tion: it was not long enough. If you —————————-———————————-—————-—————-———
are interested in a copy of the album, Th L ._ . . .
I am told that Squecial Media has 9 9X1ng?°n.Gay seerces organizaF1°n
stocked it 'before; otherwise, direct has a continuing need for persons Will-
your inquiries to Aboveground Records, ing to partiClpate 1n our speakers bur-
Box 2191, Philadelphia, PA 19103. e?“ as W?1} as ?° Oper?te our Phoee
llne. Training/guidance in each activ—
Joe Lincoln ' ity is provided and you would be help-
ing a great deal if you can partic1-
pate. Contact Doug at 255-8173 or
Birch at 255-4993 or drop a note to GSO
at P.O. Box 11471, Lexington #0511.