Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1999. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Bay Windows - National News, September 30, 1999
Beth Berlo, Bay Windows staff
Calling King a pioneer in the fight for equal opportunities for women in sports, Lambda chose the tennis champion for her contribution to programs aimed at eliminating harassment of lesbian and gay youth in Chicago Public Schools.
"The Bon Foster lecture provides a forum in which the lesbian and gay community's civil rights struggle can be considered in the context of broader civil rights struggles and discrimination issues facing the country," said Matthew Roberts, Lambda's Midwest regional director. "Billie Jean King is able to share her unique personal experiences and connections she draws between the women's movement and gay and lesbian civil rights."
Bon Foster was a Chicago attorney committed to fighting for gay and lesbian rights, and civil rights for people living with HIV and AIDS. In addition to co-founding several gay organizations, Foster left a generous bequest that enabled Lambda to open its Midwest regional office, Roberts said. Foster died in 1991.
Past speakers at the Bon Foster Memorial Lecture include: civil rights activist Coretta Scott King, who was featured last year; Jamie Nabozny, a Lambda client awarded a $1 million settlement in a physical abuse and harassment case against the Ashland, Wisconsin school district; Tom Stoddard, Lambda's executive director from 1986 to 1992, who died from AIDS in 1997; and Mary Newcombe, former Lambda staff attorney who opened Lambda's Western regional office in Los Angeles and who represented Col. Grethe Cammermeyer in her fight to remain in the Army.
King, who lives in Chicago said, "With millions cheering women's basketball and world class soccer teams, this is an amazing moment for all women and girls in sports. Just as we have made strides toward helping more young women and girls realize their full competitive potential in sports, our schools must encourage respect for their lesbian and gay students, who deserve support in living their truths and fulfilling their dreams in all walks of life."
In addition to her ongoing commitment to helping gay and lesbian youth, King has also reportedly donated $10,000 for the distribution of the film, "It's Elementary."
Lambda Executive Director Kevin M. Cathcart called King's work an "inspiration."
"Billie Jean King's stamina and courage to fight against discrimination and for fair play-on and off the court-is a great inspiration to all of us at Lambda and to our court battles. It is an honor to have her deliver our annual memorial civil rights lecture."
Each year, Lambda seeks a speaker who can offer a new perspective on the civil rights movement, Roberts said. "As a local resident and with her involvement in programs aimed at eliminating harassment of lesbian and gay youth in Chicago Public Schools, she seemed a natural choice for this year's speaker."
The Chicago Sun-Times last year reported Coretta Scott King quoting a passage from the writings of her late husband, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., during the lecture: "We are all tied together in a single garment of destiny-I can never be what I ought to be until you are allowed to be what you ought to be." King continued to tell the crowd, "I've always felt that homophobic attitudes and policies were unjust and unworthy of a free society and must be opposed by all Americans who believe in democracy."
Lambda, in its 26th year is a nationally recognized organization in the gay and lesbian community that works to maintain civil rights protections for all people.
Information on sponsorship and individual tickets to the luncheon, lecture and reception with Billie Jean King are available by calling Marty Grochala from the Midwest regional office at (312) 663-4413 x29.
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