Gay and Lesbian activists' conference
By Kim Spurway
SYDNEY — About 70 people attended a one-day workshop here on February 22, organised by the New Left Party Lesbian and Gay Group with the support of ACT UP (Sydney), the Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby and Lesbian and Gay Solidarity.
The workshop was organised as part of the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and was partly funded by the Mardi Gras. It aimed to inject some politics back into the Mardi Gras.
The keynote speaker, Rodney Croome from the Tasmanian Gay and Lesbian Rights Group, was followed by a panel of speakers who addressed the issue of "Why I got involved: Best and Worst Experiences as an Activist". The afternoon consisted of a variety of workshop sessions including documenting gay and lesbian history, tactics for activists, the use of the word "queer" as opposed to gay and lesbian, politics with soul and a discussion of the possibility of a National Gay and Lesbian Conference.
Debate focused on tactics, with some participants proposing militant action on the streets counterposed to lobbying as a "more sophisticated and adult" way to act. Most participants seemed to be against such tactical absolutism and supported a more flexible approach, depending on the situation. One criticism of the workshop was that there were only 10 women participants and that the issues of lesbians were not addressed adequately. Some felt there was a general lack of direction and that the workshop overall was "wishy-washy".
Several definite ideas were proposed: the formation of a committee to discuss the possibilities of a national conference, celebrations to be held around the 25th anniversary of Stonewall and a national campaign around discrimination laws.
Anyone interested in helping to organise a national conference should contact Lesbian and Gay Solidarity, (02) 283 3222 (Ken) or (02) 516 3821 (Kim).