Formed on 06/28/03 as a direct-action group in the spirit of (and by many former members of) ACT UP, we, The So-Called Homosexual Agenda, are a group of people committed to direct action, with corporate media as a specific target (although not the only one), and gender, sexual orientation, class and racial equality as our goal. [We have] "largely signed on to the so-called homosexual agenda" to quote Supreme Court Justice Scalia. We are the "homosexual activists who seek to eliminate the moral opprobrium that has traditionally attached to homosexual conduct".

Actually, this is far bigger than Justice Scalia ever feared. Our agenda includes the interests of the lesbian, transgender, gay, bisexual, queer and homosexual communities, in all their, racial, economic, and religious diversity.

SCHA-LA's position is as follows:

1. The June 27 print editon of the LA Times was layed out in such a way as to create an association, intended or not, between the Supreme Court's decision to strike down sodomy laws and the release of sexual predators into California communities. The decision against sodomy law and the decision against retroactive changes in statutes of limitation were, in fact,

separate.

2. We want comprehensive coverage of the Supreme Court decision against sodomy law and the implications for personal liberty, including assocation, as they relate to broader issues than "gay sex."

3. We want comprehensive coverage by the LA Times of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities in all of their racial, gender, class, political and religious diversity.

4. We want the LA Times to put itself in dialogue with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities to insure a deeper understanding of the issues and facts concerning those communities that a responsible paper, based in Los Angelels, ought to cover.

Many letters were sent to the LA Times protesting the way they linked the 2 rulings. The Times responded (to some) with a form letter which, among other things, asked how "we" would have laid out the front page. Here is one of our suggstions (we came up with more than 6) - and we aren't even newspaper professionals.

Michael Ventura wrote a great article in the Austin Chronicle about this very issue. You can find it online by going the AC and searching his name.

This headline is not an isolated incident. It is the most recent affront in a series of slights offensive gestures from the Times.

SCHA-LA is a direct-action group and you will be seeing more of us.