Gay Sunshine
Press, San Francisco) 22-24. Critical analysis quotes from secret
Chicago conference documents revealing the ADVOCATE magazine's
strategy to isolate leftist elements within the gay community
and establish a clearly defined gay capitalist market.
The ADVOCATE: A REMARKABLE PUBLICATION WHOSE
READERS BUY, BUY, BUY.
[The above slogan appears
on an Advocate mailing envelope.]
"THE
ADVOCATE: Capitalist Manifesto"
by Lionel
Biron
This article
appeared in GAY SUNSHINE (San Francisco, Spring 1976), a literary
magazine published by Winston Leyland.
Do you think
issues raised in this article -- published over 25 years
ago during America's Bicentennial year -- are still 'relevant'
today?
The strident,
preachy tone which dates this article still seems to have some
relevancy today. Or am I just living in the past?
To celebrate his first anniversary as publisher of the Advocate,
David Goodstein wrote a controversial article on the Gay Liberation
Movement in his "Opening Space" column in the January
14th [1976] issue of that paper. In the wake of the article, George
Whitmore, editor of the Advocate's Humanities/Literature
section, resigned. Dave Aiken, David Brill, Arnie Kantrowitz,
Vito Russo and Allen Young, all regular contributors to the Advocate,
joined Whitmore in criticizing Goodstein's column in a letter
to the editor published in The February 11th issue. The New York
Gay Activists Alliance [G.A.A.] also responded to the column in
the statement "In Defense of the Gay Liberation
Movement: An Open Letter to David Goodstein and the "Advocate,"
adopted at its January 22nd general meeting. [A copy of this statement
is available from G.A.A., Box 2, Village Sta., New York N.Y. 10014
in return for a stamped self-addressed envelope]
Gay liberationists must not discount Goodstein's article as idle
rhetoric; this is not a battle of words. His remarks provide the
firm ideological base from which he intends to operate as a self-declared
"practicing capitalist" [Advocate No. 156]. Anyone
who would doubt this, should take note of the invitational letter
sent by Goodstein to a select "group of like minded people,"
and announcing " The 1976 Advocate Invitational Conference."
This Conference was held at the Chicago Hyatt Regency Hotel on
March 27, 1976 and was chaired by Goodstein. The invitational
letter includes the following item in the Conference's agenda:
lV.
Dealing with gay spoilers
A. Keeping them off broadcast media and out of print media organizing
local media committees to educate media about whom to contact.
B. Keeping them away from legislators or at least neutralizing
them.
The Conference ground rules, stated in Goodstein's invitational
letter, suggest meetings held under tight security and procedural
restrictions designed to make the Conference reflect the Advocate's
view of politics. The Invitational letter states:
If you agree to come, I will send you forthwith an initial
position paper about the agenda items and policies. Because our
objective is to obtain agreement and because we don't wish to
waste time over items everyone already agrees, we will not
debate items unless someone submits a position paper specifically
disagreeing with one or more of the start off positions.
This tightly run Conference was clearly Goodstein's answer
to the less manageable meetings of most gay organizations he has
criticized so vehemently. Yet, by convening this invitational
conference, he contradicts the following statement made in
his January 14th Advocate column:
We have not found a way to solve the problem of organizing
gay people. Democracy as I've described it hasn't worked. Elitist
organizing by invitation only also hasn't worked. It is resented
and too narrowly focused.
Gay Sunshine No. 24 [in its article "The Advocate: A
Turn to the Right?] reported how Goodstein, after purchasing the
Advocate in the fall of 1974, shifted "the basic editorial
position from dead center to some where between conservative and
reactionary." During the past year the Advocate has
been transformed into a show place of white, middle class gay
America. Features on travel, fashion and entertainment suggest
an affluent, carefree lifestyle in which Gay means little more
than fun and chic. Editorial statements, lashing out at
the Gay Liberation Movement, have promoted a myopic gay politics
whose sole end is the passage of gay civil rights legislation,
as if all will be well with gay America once anti-gay discrimination
laws are enacted. Consequently, news items dealing with gay liberation
spokespeople and organizations have been tailored, or censored,
to conform with this editorial policy. There have, of course,
been a few in depth, valuable articles in the Advocate during
this period. One might single out George Whitmore's superb literary
humanities section.
In his "Opening Space" Advocate column of Jan.
14th, 1976 Goodstein comments on the gay silent majority:
The past year has also shown us the truth of a complex reality
we only surmised a year ago. Specifically, we know most gay people
are somewhat closeted... Nevertheless, I believe many gay people
would like to participate in our exciting movement. They want
reassurance from those of us who are veterans that they are wanted
as they are closeted. They don't wish to waste their time or money
over petty or irrelevant issues. The dues of public exposure are
more than they are willing to pay... We have to find ways
to encourage them to do what they can from the safety of their
closets. We have to articulate objectives narrowly and clearly.
[emphasis mine]
One gets the curious impression that the specter from San Clemente
has been conjured up for the occasion. President Nixon proclaimed
himself the spokesman of America's badly maligned "silent
majority." In 1976 the Advocate feels convinced that
it can ride the crest of a new gay mandate by scrupulously applying
the old Nixonian politics to the Gay Liberation Movement. In the
late 1960's Americans were facing an agonizing reappraisal of
the U.S. commitment to South Vietnam. Nixon was able to direct
the anxiety of many Americans away from themselves towards the
anti-war protesters who first revealed that the war was not in
the national interest.
Goodstein is attempting to revive the myth of the "silent
majority" for a similar purpose. Today, many gays are facing
an agonizing reappraisal of their closeted life styles. The Advocate
wants to direct their anxiety away from themselves towards
the Lesbian and Gay activists who in recent years have brought
gayness out of the depths and into the light. The same Advocate
column states:
Almost anything of any significance is being done behind the
scenes by people who do not wish to be known or exposed to harassment
by other gay people, especially by self-appointed gay leaders.
As a result, gay "spokespeople" are disconnected from
their constituency.
This statement is trying to undermine the Gay Liberation Movement's
politics of "Coming Out." Its message, directed to the
silent "gay majority," is very blunt: No longer is it
desirable to be out of the closet and openly gay. Look
at the activists who have come out. They are out of touch with
the gay majority. In fact the new breed of liberationists are
closeted themselves. So, stop feeling guilty about not coming
out. It's perfectly acceptable to be "somewhat closeted"
in 1976, and perhaps even necessary if you are going to have any
impact on the future of gay America.
In their Open Letter to the Advocate the New York G. A.
A. challenges Goodstein's analysis:
It is true that most gay people are still closeted. This is
because gay people are still oppressed, and homosexuality is still
condemned by our society, But rather than urge them to stay in
the closet and thereby accept as permanent the oppression that
this entails, the gay movement has from the very beginning urged
them to 'come out of the closets,' while at the same time trying
to involve even closeted gays in the struggle for liberation by
refusing to make coming out a precondition for participating in
or supporting our struggle, The entire thrust of the movement
has been to create the conditions in which ever greater numbers
of gay people would feel they could come out publicly with out
running the risk of losing their jobs, their friends, their apartments,
their livelihood. Has this thrust been wrong? We don't think so.
In fact, we don't want to see our sisters and brothers feel obliged
to continue a closeted existence. We are doing everything
we can to break down the societal and psychological barriers to
a free and open life for gay people.
Ignoring the purposes and accomplishments of the Lesbian and
Gay activists, Goodstein tries to discredit the vocal minority
by making it the scapegoat. Nixon exploited the fears of the law
and order mentality of his "silent majority" by evoking
the image of dirty, long-haired hippies. Goodstein evokes a similar
image when referring to the present day gay leaders "They
appear unemployable, unkempt and neurotic to the point of megalomania."
The motivation for this forced reasoning is apparent at the end
of the Advocate column: "We must find ways to keep
the emotionally disturbed members of our community out of center
stage roles and on the counseling couches where they belong."
The distance from the couch to the psychiatric ward is not far.
To declare them mentally ill is a convenient way of eliminating
annoying gay leaders. This tactic provides the necessary rationale
to isolate them and their politics without appearing to violate
the democratic principles of free speech.
In his Advocate column Goodstein would also have us believe
that the political issues that have generated conflicts within
gay organizations are of no interest to his silent majority:
Gay men and women do not believe achievement of gay civil rights
has anything to do with fascism, imperialism, socialism or other
aspects of Marxist rhetoric. They are enraged by gay contingents
in leftist and 'Third World' demonstrations.
This statement is an affront to Black Gays, Chicano Gays,
Asian-American Gays and all other minority group gays who must
struggle against oppression on more than one front. Obviously,
Goodstein would restrict his silent majority to the white middle
class which alone can focus on the single issue of gay civil rights.
The necessity of joining in solidarity with other oppressed peoples,
debated so passionately within gay organizations, has raised the
consciousness of many white middle class gays, and made us aware
of the common roots of class, sexual, and racial oppression
and our common goal of human liberation. Goodstein also states
the separatist issue in the simplest of terms:
First and foremost, no one reasonably can believe it is sensible
to hate or cut off communication with half the human race [the
opposite sex} or 90% {heterosexuals], among whom our silent majority
has many friends. Thus, our majority regards separatism, including
lesbian separatism, as counterproductive. At best it is unrealistic;
at worst destructive.
Only anti-feminist homosexual men who wish to make the "gay
world" the last bastion of male supremacy,choose to
separate themselves from Lesbians. Unfortunately, many such men
exist who call themselves gay, as our Lesbian sisters know all
too well.
The only political male separatism feasible today, concerns heterosexual
men. Gay males, however, must understand [without presuming to
present a coherent lesbian analysis] the essential difference
of gay separatism for women: our Lesbian sisters are torn between
struggling against sexism with homophobic straight feminists (a
diminishing problem), and struggling against homophobia with sexist
gay males. Lesbian separatism teaches us that unless gay men can
raise their feminist consciousness, no meaningful Lesbian/Gay
coalition is possible. The Advocate's position again reveals
its lack of depth and understanding in dealing with the complex
issues of gay liberation.
Goodstein's Advocate column goes on to say:
Most gay organizations are nearly always insolvent and dominated
by people who took them over from more responsible persons through
hysterical attacks on their integrity. These are the spokespeople
whom our majority shuns. The straight media pay attention to them
because they confirm the stereotypes they're looking for. Our
people resent them for the same reason.
We can assume from this statement that the Advocate
is not duped and does not pay attention to these gay leaders.
These remarks seem to confirm Gay Sunshine's report of
last spring [Issue No. 24] that the Advocate blacklists
certain gay activists. Are you surprised when the publisher of
the largest national gay newspaper tacitly admits that editorial
policy is not confined to editorials but extends to the censorship
of gay news? This is an important point. Anyone who reads the
Advocate should be aware that under existing policy, a
distorted view of the gay movement is inevitable. Of course, these
news blackouts are done in the name of a "silent majority"
which can begin wondering what is not "touching their lifestyle"
in the pages of the Advocate.
The New York Gay Activists Alliance comments on the Advocate's
censorship:
Many of us have searched the pages of the Advocate in vain during
the past year for consistent coverage of activist demonstrations
and struggles on behalf of gay people. The occasional and incidental
mention such struggles have received cannot be entirely explained
by the admitted general decrease in activism during the past year
or so. Clearly activist groups and actions were put on a blacklist
a long time ago by the Advocate. Goodstein simply makes
it official in his piece.
In his Advocate column (mentioned above) Goodstein writes:
Another aspect of the reality we observe is that gay people
everywhere in the Western world are demonstrating more self-esteem,
more pride. The most obvious example of this new pride are the
many new, well-lighted, expensively decorated bars and clubs that
are rapidly replacing the dingy toilets of old.
New York's Gay
Activists Alliance responds directly to this statement in their
January 1976 official declaration (mentioned and briefly quoted,
above):
First, having surveyed the worldwide status of gays, he [Goodstein]
correctly notes that "gay people everywhere in the Western
world are demonstrating, more self-esteem, more pride." On
this, at least, we can all agree. But to what can this new self-esteem
and gay pride be attributed? On the struggles of the gay liberation
movement, including its noisier components, since Stonewall? No.
To the impressively large, annual gay pride marches occurring
throughout the United States and Canada, which each year seem
to draw in wider strata of the gay population than before? No.
To the growing trend toward repeal of medieval sodomy statutes
(now in thirteen states) and passage of gay rights legislation
(in close to thirty cities)? No. To the mounting number of books
being published that deal with homosexuality in ways more imaginative
than the old psychiatric formulas? No. To the successes of lesbians
in making lesbianism an issue within mass women's organizations
that formerly snubbed the issue? No. To the proliferation of gay
groups, reaching into wider layers of our community and of American
society? No.
None of these factors some of which have even received passing
mention in the pages of the Advocate itself merit the slightest
mention in Goodstein's piece. No, he singles out something quite
different as the symbol of this new state of affairs "The
most obvious examples of this new pride are the many new, well-lighted,
expensively decorated bars and clubs that are rapidly replacing
the dingy toilets of old."
And to whom, or to what, does Goodstein attribute this fact (if
it is a fact) that the bar and club owners have made their establishments
into less offensive places of rendezvous? A higher level of
consciousness on the part of the Mafia? Or is he inclined to take
credit for it himself? It does not seem to even occurred to him
that the gay liberation movement itself may have had something
to do with instilling a new sense of pride in gay people, as well
as with the treatment received in the bars and clubs some of us
frequent. How far out of it can you get?
An analysis of the Advocate's politics must include its
economic interest in the Gay Movement. It is from Goodstein's
statement "I am a practicing capitalist" that must be
viewed his evaluation (in dollars and cents) of the Gay Liberation
Movement. This explains why he sees gay pride reflected in the
new expensive bars and clubs rather than in the achievements outlined
L by G. A. A. And who are the "enlightened spokes people"
for whom the Advocate has cleared the way by discrediting
present day gay spokespeople and organizations? Aren't they the
business people ready to sell something to the closeted clientele,
the same "like minded people" at the Advocate Conference?
David Goodstein's "Opening Space" column (which I have
been quoting and commenting on throughout this article) ends on
a plea that the "enlightened spokespeople "join with
the Advocate "as it is damned lonely on the front
lines!" The nature of the front lines by now is clear. It
is no revolutionary barricade. In defense of capitalism, Goodstein
is manning the front lines while waiting for new recruits to share
the spoils of the growing gay market the true "gay spoilers."
The Advocate's continued success, largely dependent on
revenue from its advertisements, encourages a coalition of "like
minded" business people. Together they will work out a plan
to deal with gay activists who would upset their clearly defined
gay market with their politics of Coming Out.
Goodstein's "Opening Space" column is nothing less than
a Gay Capitalist Manifesto. It "articulates objectives
narrowly and clearly" for the gay masses in terms of gay
civil rights. This permits the ordered transfer of the quasi-visible
gay person into the mainstream of American society. There
she/he can be granted full equality as an exploited consumer.
The alternatives are clear: economic oppression or Gay Liberation.
In his January 23rd letter of resignation as literary contributor
to the Advocate (mentioned above) George Whitmore recognizes
these alternatives and makes his choice:
Those of us who don't necessarily consider ourselves "leaders
" but who want to be responsible spokespeople for the concerns
of gay people no longer want to be associated with this publication.
He [Goodstein] did quite ably create a "them" vs. "us"
schism in his article. I 'm one of "them," not one of
you.
According to New York's G.AA., the Advocate's aim is "to
drive a wedge between the activist wing of the movement and the
rest of the gay community." To counter this attack, the Lesbian
and Gay Liberation Movement will need all the help it can get.
Hopefully, we have all learned from our experience with the Nixon
presidency and won't be duped by this "silent majority"
double talk. If this is true, many Gays will speak out and reject
this kind of closet politics. That's what Coming Out is all about.
Lionel Biron
Ann Arbor, Michigan
David Goodstein,
the former publisher of The Advocate , has long since died
of AIDS. May he rest in peace.
If you have any
comments you'd like to share regarding this article published
during America's Bicentennial, you are encouraged to: