The passage of the anti-Gay/Lesbian ordinance in Springfield, Oregon has started to become national news. The following story was broadcast on National Public Radio's "All Things Considered" show (a news and public affairs program that runs on NPR in the late afternoon Monday to Friday) on Thursday, June 25. National Public Radio is a non-commercial radio network in the United States and has often gotten on the wrong side of the fundies. NPR's Nina Totenberg was one of the two reporters who broke the story of Anita Hill's allegations of sexual harrassment against Clarence Thomas (the other reporter who broke the story worked for New York's Newsday). [First ten or so seconds of introduction not taped. The introduction began with the statement that an anti Gay/Lesbian ordinance passed in Springfield, Oregon] ["All Things Considered" host Noah Adams introducting the story]: ...The city charter amendment also prohibits the city government from promoting, encouraging or facilitating homosexuality. The authors of the measure are members of the Oregon Citizens' Alliance, a conservative Christian group. They hope to have a similar state-wide measure on the ballot in Oregon this fall. Alan Sopporin [sp?] from member station KLCC in Eugene [Oregon] has a report. [Unidentifed male speaking to gathering]: Homosexualism is absolutely forbidden, and is an enormous sin. [Sopporin voice over]: People in the packed crowd shift uneasily. This is not a church service. It's the public testimony at a city council meeting in Springfield, a town of forty-five thousand in western Oregon. For some here, city hall is the battleground in a holy war, and the microphone is their pulpit. [Unidentified woman]: We are defending our religious convictions that all sexual relationships outside of marriage are immoral. [Women singing]: Keep on moving forward, Never turning back, Never turning back. [Sopporin voice over]: The day after the passage of the anti-Gay rights measure, Saramondi [sp?] the Lesbian choir from the neighbouring town of Eugene, performs on the steps to Springfield city hall. Eugene is considerably more liberal than the blue collar Springfield, a town built around lumber mills. Residents of Eugene are concerned about the new law, and many expressed their outrage on a local talk show. [Woman over phone]: I'm a Lesbian. Citizens of Springfield have asked me to stay out of town, and I think for the most part I'll comply with their wishes. [Another woman over phone]: Will I go to Springfield? Nah. There's no compelling reason for me to be there. Uh, there's no compelling reason for me to fix what is wrong with you or to help you fix it. You fix it yourself, you broke it. And who broke it is not the people who voted for the OCA platform, it's the people who didn't bother to get off their asses and vote at all. [Sopporin]: Actually, the voter turnout in Springfield was well above average for a primary election, and 45% of the voters rejected the charter amendment, representing a sizable number of Springfielders who don't fit an anti-Gay stereotype. The chamber of commerce, the mayor, and a broad- based coalition of area churches all opposed the measure. Still, it passed. Mostly because the majority, like these two people shopping at a Springfield mall, believe Gays have too much already. [Unidentified woman]: I'm heterosexual, and I have no special rights. Why should they? [Unidentified man]: I think that homosexuality is definitely wrong. And I think that it's time for the American people to stand up and say so. [Sopporin]: Notice that these are two different reasons. One says homosexuality is wrong. The other says Gays shouldn't have *special* rights. Exit polling indicates a majority of those who voted for the Springfield law don't want to deny Gays and Lesbians their basic civil rights. They just don't want homosexuals to have *special* rights. But Dave Fidenke [sp?], associate director of the ACLU [American Civil Liberties Union] Oregon says the sponsor of the measure, the Oregon Citizens' Alliance, fooled people into believing they could have it both ways. He says under the law, the city can't help Gays seek redress from discrimination. [Fidenke]: It's not a special right to look for a job. It's not a special right to look for housing. It's not a special right to go into a restaurant and expect to be served. It's not a special right to go to a hotel and ask for a room. [Sopporin]: The OCA's position is that homosexuals shouldn't have the same civil rights protections as racial or ethnic minorities because, they say, homosexual behaviour is perverse. Philip Ramsdel [sp?], the state political director of the OCA, says the homosexual movement is agressively seeking the benefits that come from a minority status. [Ramsdel]: What they want by law, and this is what they're getting down to, they want you to say that homosexuality, that what they're doing, is o.k. It is fine. It is just as good as being a heterosexual. It's just like any other behaviour. And what we're saying is no. No, it's not. [Sopporin]: The first test of the Springfield law is likely to be fought in the city library. Gay rights advocates have donated two books to the library: "Heather has two Mommies" and "Daddy's Roommate." Both address Gay and Lesbian parenting. The OCA is insisting that the city ban them under the new law. But if the library rejects the books, the ACLU is likely to step in. Soon though, the fight in Springfield will begin to take a back seat as the battle over the state-wide measure heats up. The Oregon Citizens' Alliance was formed less than six years ago, and the organization has already succeeded in overturning a governor's Gay rights order protecting state employees. This isn't just an Oregon issue. Colorado voters will face a similar measure this fall. An effort in Maine failed to make the ballot there. And groups like the OCA are organizing in other parts of the country. For National Public Radio, this is Alan Sopporin reporting. [end of report]