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Jim Andris, Facebook |
Marvin Kabakoff (Midcontinent Life Services Center)Carol Cureton's RemarksOur next speaker for this evening is from an organization that is unique in our city. It is not unique in our nation. It has a role model, if you will, The Gay Community Center of Los Angeles. The Gay Community Center of Los Angeles, California started out years ago as a very struggling organization and now finds itself a very prestigious part of that community. They find many of their programs being funded federally. Our tax money finally is going for something real good in our community too, because some people a long time ago in LA stood up and said “We’re going to be proud.” We have an organization standing up in St. Louis and saying that now too, Mid-Continent Life Services Center. One of their board members, Dr. Marvin Kabakoff. [Applause.] Marvin Kabakoff's RemarksYour gay community center is still struggling. We don’t have a federal grant yet, maybe some day. But we do provide services for the gay community in St. Louis. And to the straight community, because we’re not here by ourselves. We run a gay hot line, an information line, a crisis intervention line, for gay people, for parents of gay people, for brothers and sisters of gay people. And we have a professional counseling service for people who need help. We have two rap sessions every month on topics of interest to gay people. We have a monthly magazine called Prime Time. It has a wide variety of articles for gay people and for straight people. We have a recreation room in the basement that’s having its grand opening on Sunday, and we’re very proud of that. And it will have a pool table and juke box , pinball machine, keep a snack bar for hamburgers and hot dogs and stuff. And of course, all are invited to the opening this Sunday. And we see it as an alternative to the bars. There are other places to meet gay people besides the bars, and this is one of those places. Someone from the audience: What time is that open? 7 o’clock? Kabakoff: 7 o’clock. We also have a speaker’s bureau that goes around to straight groups and tries to educate them and tries to break down stereotypes. These stereotypes exist among straight people and among gay people. We were raised up straight; we were taught the same things that straight people are taught about what we are. And we are the people our mothers warned us about. [Laughter and applause.] So one of the major goals of the Center is to educate ourselves, to make ourselves more aware, more informed, and also, educating heterosexuals. Because it’s only through education that we can struggle against the idiocies of the bigotry of Anita Bryant and her followers. We can’t go back into our closets, and we won’t go back into our closets. We’ve come too far. And we can’t afford to fight it all ourselves. We must stand together to produce an enlightened and an open society where men and women can live the kinds of lives they choose for themselves. MLSC is very proud and very happy to be part of that purpose. Thank you. [Applause.] Transcribed by Jim Andris August, 11, 2017 from a copy of a tape made of the event provided by John Hilgeman. |