• Advance Report - 2008
• Advance Report - 2007
• Advance Report - 2006
• Advance Report - 2005
• Interchange, December 2004
• Annual Report 2004

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Manual of Procedure, July 2004 has no description

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The Ad Hoc Committee on Gender and Sexual Diversity Concerns holds as its charge to gather and distribute information on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender concerns arising from within Baltimore Yearly Meeting. Furthermore, the Committee is charged to put new energy into advocacy activities that help to end the oppression, often unconscious that is imposed on people because of real or perceived gender or sexual orientation. In its charge, the Committee continues the tradition of Baltimore Yearly Meeting’s original 1973 Minute 87.

This report includes data from mid-2006 as well as 2007.

During our Meeting at the June 17, 2006 Interim Meeting at Hopewell Center we disussed the varied responses we received about the FGC Minute. We recommended that the budgeted money for FUM from 2005 and last half of the 2004 be sent, in order that BYM stay in dialogue with FUM.

At our Meeting during the Fall 2006 Interim meeting (10/21/2006) we discussed an invitation from Stony Run for members of our committee to visit and present information regarding the FGC Central Committee minute. The Clerk, Aron Teel planned to attend their session on December 10.

Our Meeting during 2007 Annual Sessions was limited to an hour. Margaret Stambaugh and Denny Hartzell agreed to be the new co-clerks of the Committee, replacing Aron Teel who has served well and faithfully as Clerk for a number of years. A Minute of deep appreciation was written for Aron’s dedicated service.

The Committee then discussed how to improve our heretofore limited success in evoking reponses from Monthly Meetings to the FGC Central Committee Query regarding their experiences with GLBTQ Quakers. We asked the Yearly Meeting Clerk to make an announcement reiterating the request for Monthly Meetings to Minute their experiences. We expected to continue our efforts at this task at future Meetings.

However, during the Fall Interim Meeting at Washington in October, 2007, we agreed not to continue pursuing this task. Instead, we decided to write a report based on the responses that we had already received. We also decided during this Meeting that our email correspondences should not be used for discussion of important issues, but that these should only be discussed in a worshipful manner during our Meetings proper, in the Light.

We also discussed how Friends can help to raise awareness of the African GLBTQ community.

At the Spring Interim Meeting 2008 in Williamsburg, it was announced that we will sponsor two workshops at 2008 Annual Sessions: Joe Izzo will present “Opening Hearts and Minds” on sexual orientation and marriage; and Brad Ogilvie will present “Love, HIV, and Diversity.”

We are requesting $180 from BYM as our budget. We have decided to sponsor a brochure designed by Laura Goren to help make BYM more friendly to Transsexual persons. We will take on the editing and production of the brochure, which Laura presented in an already advanced state of preparation. After some discussion, the Committee decided it has no clearness on whether or not to endorse two separate documents having to do with BYM funding FUM

Dennis Hartzell, co-clerk

The Ad Hoc Committee on Gender and Sexual Diversity Concerns holds as its charge to gather and distribute information on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender concerns arising from within Baltimore Yearly Meeting. Furthermore, the Committee is charged to put new energy into advocacy activities that help to end the oppression, often unconscious that is imposed on people because of real or perceived gender or sexual orientation. In its charge, the Committee continues the tradition of Baltimore Yearly Meeting's original 1973 Minute 87.

This report includes data from mid-2006 as well as 2007.

During our Meeting at the June17, 2006 Interim Meeting at Hopewell Center we disussed the varied responses we received about the FGC Minute.

We recommended that the budgeted money for FUM from 2005 and last half of the 2004 be sent, in order that BYM stay in dialogue with FUM.

At our Meeting during the Fall 2006 Interim meeting (10/21/2006) we discussed an invitation from Stony Run for members of our committee to visit and present information regarding the FGC Central Committee minute. The Clerk, Aron Teel planned to attend their session on December 10.

Our Meeting during 2007 Annual Sessions was limited to an hour. Margaret Stambaugh and Denny Hartzell agreed to be the new co-clerks of the Committee, replacing Aron Teel who has served well and faithfully as Clerk for a number of years. A Minute of deep appreciation was written for Aron's dedicated service.

The Committe then discussed how to improve our heretofore limited success in evoking reponses from Monthly Meetings to the FGC Central Committee Query regarding their experiences with GLBTQ Quakers. We asked the Yearly Meeting Clerk to make an announcement reiterating the request for Monthly Meetings to Minute their experiences. We expected to continue our efforts at this task at future Meetings.

However, during the Fall Interim Meeting at Washington in October, 2007, we agreed not to continue pursuing this task. Instead, we decided to write a report based on the responses that we had already received. We also decided during this Meeting that our email correspondences should not be used for discussion of important issues, but that these should only be discussed in a worshipful manner during our Meetings proper, in the Light.

We also discussed how Friends can help to raise awareness of the African GLBTQ community.

At the Spring Interim Meeting in Williamsburg, it was announced that we will sponsor two workshops at 2008 Annual Sessions: Joe Izzo will present "Opening Hearts and Minds" on sexual orientation and marriage; and Brad Ogilvie will present "Love, HIV, and Diversity."

We are requesting $180 from BYM as our budget. We have decide to sponsor a brochure designed by Laura Goren to help make BYM more friendly to Transsexual persons. We will take on the editing and production of the brochure, which Laura presented in an already advanced state of preparation.

After some discussion, the Committee decided it has no clearness on whether or not to endorse two separate documents having to do with BYM funding FUM.

The Ad Hoc Committee on Gender and Sexual Diversity Concerns holds as its charge to gather and distribute information on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender concerns arising from within Baltimore Yearly Meeting. Furthermore, the Committee is charged to put new energy into advocacy activities that help to end the oppression, often unconscious that is imposed on people because of real or perceived gender or sexual orientation. In its charge, the Committee continues the tradition of Baltimore Yearly Meeting's original 1973 Minute 87.

2005 Annual Sessions:
At 2005 Annual Sessions we sponsored a workshop entitled: “How Some Programmed Meetings experience GLBT Friends”. A panel of Friends from programmed meetings speak of their experience in dealing with Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transgendered people in their Meetings. The panel was comprised of 4 Friends, two (Cheryl Bridges and Willie Frye) From North Carolina YM – FUM, and two (Stand and Karen Bauer) from Iowa Yearly Meeting.

We also sponsored an Interest Group session on the perception of Homosexuality in African Meetings. Edith and Samson Wakesa from Kenya lead the discussion.

FGC Central Committee Minute:
The Committee has been charged to consult with Monthly Meetings in preparing a response to an epistle dated 12th Month 2004 the Central Committee of Friends General Conference which testified to the valued participation of "lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer Friends" within FGC.

In consultation with BYM Interim Meeting (3rd Month 25, 2006) the committee members have agreed to carry the Minute to as many Monthly and Quarterly Meetings as possible, inviting Friends to labor with us.

For this year, Aron Teel has served as Clerk of the Committee, and Martha Gay has served as Recording Clerk. The Committee meets at each Interim Meeting and during Annual Sessions. We also held one special meeting this year during 4th Month 2006.

The Ad Hoc Committee on Gender and Sexual Diversity Concerns holds as its charge to gather and distribute information on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender concerns arising from within Baltimore Yearly Meeting.

Furthermore, the Committee is charged to put new energy into advocacy activities that help to end the oppression, often unconscious, that is imposed on people because of real or perceived gender or sexual orientation. In its charge, the Committee continues the tradition of Baltimore Yearly Meeting's original 1973 Minute 87.

At 2004 Annual Sessions we sponsored a workshop entitled: "Marriage -- Who Cares? Issues of Religious or Civil Marriage," during which a panel discussed their own experiences of both the spiritual and civil aspects of marriage, as well as how Monthly Meetings are dealing with marriages held under the care of the Meeting. Panel members included:

• Joan and Rich Liversidge-Sandy Spring
• Kerry Weissmann-State College
• Ms. Shelley Simpson-Human Rights Campaign
• Mr. Ron Schlittler-Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbians and Gays

We developed a Minute in opposition to the Federal Marriage Amendment. The minute was proposed at Fall Interim Meeting, and a copy was sent to all Monthly Meetings for consideration. A revised version was approved at Spring Interim Meeting. The final version is attached to this report.

We are actively involved with and supporting the work of the Baltimore Yearly Meeting Intervisitation Committee by having a representative on that Committee, and our workshop at 2005 Annual Session will receive funding support as part of that effort.

Our Committee sent representatives to each of the six or seven meetings held to develop a proposal for handling annual funds sent to Friends United Meeting by Baltimore Yearly Meeting.

We submitted a proposal for a workshop at 2005 Annual Sessions to bring together a panel of Friends from Pastored Meetings to share their experiences of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered (GLBT) Friends.

For this year, Aron Teel has served as Clerk of the Committee, and Martha Gay has served as Recording Clerk.

Federal Marriage Amendment

The Ad Hoc Committee on Gender and Sexual Diversity Concerns presented a minute in opposition to the Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA) at Interim Meeting (Goose Creek 10th Month 30, 2004). While the initial FMA was defeated in Congress during the summer of 2004, a new FMA-like amendment and related legislation will continue to be introduced in future sessions. In the minute we consider religious freedom and civil rights issues. This minute does not request marriage rights for same-sex couples, as we recognize that BYM is not in unity on that question.

While Interim Meeting Friends voiced approval of the content of the minute, the Committee was asked to make some revisions and send it to Monthly Meetings for consideration in preparation for Interim Meeting April 2, 2005.

Aron Teel

Proposed Minute Opposing the Federal Marriage Amendment

The faith and practice of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) has always been to seek that of God in everyone. From this, we have come to know that God's love extends to all of Creation. All children of God, regardless of their perceived or identified sexual orientation, are beloved of God who created them, and all are deserving of love and compassion in accordance with the example and teachings of Jesus Christ.

Within our Baltimore Yearly Meeting, we have not yet come to unity on the question of marriage for same-sex couples. Some of our Meetings will marry same-sex couples, and others will not. However, it is surely not the Federal government's role to prefer one religious definition of marriage over another, much less to codify such a preference in the U.S. Constitution. To the contrary, the great contribution of our Constitution is to protect the rights of all faiths and all citizens. Throughout its history, the United States Constitution has been amended toward equal treatment for all. Even though the practice has always fallen short of the ideal, changes to the Constitution have always been made to favor including more citizens with equal treatment, rather than fewer. We see this trend to be in accordance with God's will for a just social order.

The proposed Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA) reverses this long march of history toward equality and compassion for all under the Constitution. It would not only deny same-sex couples the right to marry, but the FMA obliterates the family rights that many same-sex couples and their families now have under various state laws. Thus the FMA reverses the Constitutional tradition of protecting individual freedoms, and forces states to adopt discriminatory policies.

As members of the Baltimore Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, as Quakers, as U.S. citizens, and as God's children, we do not support the proposed Constitutional amendment, known as the FMA which would curtail the right of our brothers and sisters who are gay and lesbian to make loving commitments to each other within the same fundamental social and legal net by which everyone else is now supported.

Annual Report 2004

This was a year of pivotal change for this Ad Hoc Committee. At the 2003 Annual Sessions, Baltimore Yearly Meeting acknowledged a change in our name. Formerly the “Ad Hoc Committee for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Concerns”, the new title (above) was suggested in order to keep it as simple as possible while still reflecting more inclusion of minority concerns and clear commitment to our Testimony on Equality. The new title labels the concerns without trying to comprehensively label the people who hold those concerns.

The Committee also came to Annual Session to request an expansion of our charge to move beyond gathering and disseminating information. The charge that was approved at Annual Session includes a clear dynamic of advocacy. We wanted to have support for giving voice to ideas and opinions about equality and to encourage Friends to share in political, civil rights and peace or social concerns areas. Thus, this Committee’s new charge:

The Ad Hoc Committee on Gender and Sexual Diversity Concerns holds as its charge to gather and distribute information on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender concerns arising from within Baltimore Yearly Meeting. Furthermore, the Committee is charged to put new energy into advocacy activities that help to end the oppression, often unconscious, that is imposed on people because of real or perceived gender or sexual orientation. In its charge, the Committee continues the tradition of Baltimore Yearly Meeting’s original 1973 Minute 87.

This Committee met on all Interim Yearly Meeting Days and fostered a small work-group to meet both inside and outside the YM Office in Sandy Spring in June and July. The work-group spent long hours organizing and readying a long-awaited packet of information on relevant Minutes, especially those pertaining to same-gender couples. Minutes and Other Actions on Same Gender Marriage and other Gender and Sexual Diversity Concerns in Baltimore Yearly Meeting, Monthly and Quarterly Meetings, a 24 page document, bore a print date of Summer, 2003. Multiple copies were made available to attenders at Annual Sessions with urging to take those copies back to Monthly Meetings and submit additions or corrections to the Committee. As of its last meeting of the calendar year, this Committee was still compiling, revising and making plans for broader and more formalized distribution of the document.

The expansion of our charge seemed timely given the concerns about Friends United Meeting’s personnel policies and the arising correspondence with BYM following BYM’s Minute of concerns about the policy’s implications for excluding those in same-gender relationships from leadership or service positions within FUM. This Committee was asked at the October, 2003 meeting to work with BYM’s Ministry and Pastoral Care Committee to help propose a BYM response to the latest FUM correspondence. Throughout 2003, the mood of this Committee seemed to include much sadness and hurt over discriminating policies among Friends, yet an earnest desire to continue to labor tenderly with FUM’s Board in the hope of encouraging growth toward inclusion and equality in the recognition of spiritual gifts.

The Ad Hoc Committee also went through a change in leadership during 2003. Bonnie Stockslager resigned as Clerk of the committee and, in the absence of a replacement, agreed to “temp-clerk” the next (October) meeting with the understanding that the Clerk of meeting function would then rotate to others on the committee. Lauri Perman graciously agreed to Clerk the March, 2004 meeting. Martha Gay was heartily approved to continue as Recording Clerk.

Other activities accomplished by this Committee in 2003 included sponsoring a workshop at Annual Session (led by Joseph Izzo), providing an educational display in the bookstore and brainstorming ways to get a stronger and more viable connection with Friends for Lesbian and Gay Concerns (FLGC). Holding the October meeting at State College Meeting allowed State College Friends for Lesbian and Gay Concerns to join in our Committee meeting and share with us.

We ended this calendar year on the optimistic note that the expansion of our charge might also expand our membership to include more energetic, advocacy-gifted “young” Friends (of all ages) to help us continually put new life into the charge to “end the oppression.”

Bonnie Stockslager and Lauri Perman