Last edited: April 19, 2004


Rhea County Pride Day Letters

The Chattanoogan, April 17, 2004
Chattanooga, TN
Fax: 423-821-8475

Letter: Rhea Gay Day Event Organizers Caved In

Well now, after all the commotion, the Rhea County Gay Day planners decide to move the event to Dayton City Point Park. Now talk about woosies.

Although the uprising was not asked for but it called for it, and now the planners want to be wussies about the parade upon the court steps.

Please, guys and gals, what a decision....to be a pansy or not. That is all up to you, but I gotta tell you—thousands of folks (gay and straight) have made arrangements...hours out of their day to be there. Just to be pushed to the side.

Being a gay American, if you ain’t got the nerve, then let those of us that do take control.

– Roger Brian Jenkins
Chattanooga
rjenterprise@comcast.net

 

Letter: Rhea County Gay Day Group Faced Violence

There are a number of issues that have not been addressed publicly. We as well as the Dayton officials received a huge number of threats of violence.

There are only 14 police offers available to provide us with protection. We have 2,500+ people coming to this event. They could not protect us in the city because there were too many entrances to cover and no weapon laws in place.

June Griffin has been on the radio all week advocating violence against us. We have organized hate groups busing people in from all over America.

We had no choice but to move the event to the city park where we can be better protected. They would not issue a permit for the parade because 14 officers could not protect us inside the city.

We could have pressed the issue. We had an attorney from Lambda Legal who worked on our behalf, and after reviewing the information everyone involved agreed that public safety had to come first and the event had to be moved to the park.

The police are going to keep the protesters out of the park. Weapons are prohibited from the park. We have been given complete authority to have the police remove anyone from the park who causes problems.

– Rhea County Gay Day Organizers


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