Miami Herald (MH) - Sunday, March 15, 1998
Dorothy Acheson; Herald Staff Writer

A New Jersey appeals court ruled that the Boy Scouts of America's ban on admitting homosexuals violated the state's laws against discrimination.

The Supreme Court, in a landmark decision, ruled unanimously that federal law must prohibit same-sex as well as opposite-sex sexual harassment at work.

A research study out of the University of Texas, Austin, presented strong evidence of a physical difference between lesbians and straight women, suggesting lesbians' inner ears, like men's, are less sensitive.

The inner ear study generated a lot of discussion among local lesbians, with many of us brushing it off as "poppycock," in the words of one woman at a party over the weekend.

But kudos to Laura Meagher -- an Emmy-winning former host of Wild Chicago who now reports local Miami news for Barry Diller's USA Broadcasting -- for seeking out local lesbians to share reactions about the study. Meagher took a camera to interview a small, diverse group at Joffrey's on Lincoln Road and then to Mary D's Thursday Cabaret for women at 821.

Though straight herself, Meagher objected to the study as reinforcing negative stereotypes.

"I just have a reaction to research studies that try to put people in a box," she explained. "And that Herald headline [Lesbians' inner ears found to be different from straight women; Link is made to male hormone ], I thought it looked like the National Enquirer , `Aliens Have Landed.' It conjures the image of this little earwig creature that lives inside lesbians' ears and brainwashes them away from men."

Meagher got what she wanted amid the thundering bass at 821, where everyone to whom she posed a question answered: "What?"

USA Broadcasting will air the lesbian ear segment as part of its local news programming when the network debuts in the late spring.

Why can't we get together?

How to foster a closer understanding between lesbians and gay men will be the topic of the second in a series of dialogues sponsored by the Cosmopolitan Community Center following the regular brunch at 1 p.m. March 22.

The subject is more than ripe for discussion. The Broward gay and lesbian community is still reeling from a gender-parity fight that divided the board of the Dolphin Democratic Club last fall, reaching inevitably, into the wider community.

"Even with our own board, the men and women don't quite walk down the aisle together," says Arnie Berliner, Cosmo Center vice chair.

More than 20 key leaders from both Broward and Dade are expected to participate in the dialogue, among them Ana Fuentes, Bill Watson, Dilia Loe, Keith Cromley, Julia Dawson, Rabbi Greg Kanter, Edda Cimino, Jorge Mursuli, Alicia Apfel, Clark Reynolds, Bill Adams and Alexandria Douglas.

For more information, call (305) 534-1150.

Attention sexperts

Don't miss Thursday's sure-to-be-entertaining evening at Books & Books with outspoken author Susie Bright, whose many books on sex and erotica have earned her the moniker "sex guru."

Bright will read from the new paperback edition of her most recent book, The Sexual State of the Union . The reading is at 8 p.m. at Books & Books, 933 Lincoln Rd.

Lambda at MoCA

From 6 to 8 p.m. March 28, there will be a wonderful opportunity to privately view the Keith Haring exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art in North Miami while also participating in a cocktail fund-raiser to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Lambda is the oldest and largest legal organization defending the civil rights of lesbians, gay men and people with HIV and AIDS

Managing attorney Jane Morrison, of Lambda's new Atlanta office, which covers Florida as part of its southern U.S. region, hopes lesbians in particular will come to the fund-raiser to help Lambda capitalize on a generous $25,000 matching grant offered by an Atlanta woman.

Admission starts at $50 per person. Call (305) 597-4444 for more information.
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