Gay Activists Endorse City Council Candidates

The Cambridge Lesbian and Gay Association (CLAGA) endorsed seven candidates for City Council last week, including Hugh Adams Russell '64, the first openly gay candidate to run in Cambridge.

At their third annual CLAGA Candidates' Night, the 300-member organization supported those candidates who showed "sensitivity and commitment to issues affecting the gay community," said Arthur M. Lipkin, CLAGA president. Those endorsed were Mayor Francis H. Duehay '55, Saundra K. Graham, Russell, Renae Scott, David E. Sullivan, Michael H. Turk and Alice K. Wolf.

"CLAGA is dedicated to giving the gay community an effective political voice," Lipkin said. "Gay issues should be introduced into the Cambridge community because, like Blacks and women, they are a minority group whose rights need to be considered in the community as a whole."

The questionnaires which CLAGA sent to all City Council candidates focused on problems of the city's reaction to gays and asked the candidates to propose possible solutions. Council elections are November 5.

"Peer training sessions should be implemented in the police and fire departments to reduce anxiety about AIDS and eliminate stereotypes, and hospitals administrations should be advised how to provide first-rate, compassionate medical care to AIDS patients," Russell said in his response to the questionnaire.

Police Afraid

"There have been incidents where policemen have not helped crime victims because they were frightened of AIDS," said Russell "AIDS is becoming a central issue in the whole community." He recommended the establishment of an AIDS task force for the education of city employees.

Many of the candidates endorsed by CLAGA stressed the importance of integrating gay needs into the community in an unthreatening way, by relating gay issues to basic human rights, and not making excessive demands on the community.

CLAGA officials also said they are very pleased that Russell, who is openly gay, is campaigning in Cambridge. "Russell provides a public legitimate role model for young people in the community, which is essential to the acceptance of gays as a political force," Lipkin said.