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NEWS
Moving forward to the
Equality Herald
Resignation not an ending, just a transition
by Beth
Maples-Bays
Equality Herald - Editor and Publisher
In September 2003, I
attended East Tennessee Pride at the World’s Fair Park. Although I did not
see it, a friend told me that Out and About Nashville had a presence at
the event, and that they were looking for writers. At that time, I spent
much of my day writing various articles published either in various
periodicals or on my own Web site.
The idea intrigued me, so I submitted what I called my “feminist resume”
to Brent Meredith, the newspaper’s editor and creative director. I had
spent much of the twelve years before 2003 blind and very sick due to an
autoimmune disorder. A white cane for navigation and a sack full of
medications went everywhere with me until in 1998 I began
immunosuppressant therapy that gradually restored a bit of sight to my
right eye. I then purchased a computer, newly outfitted with Windows 98
SE’s accessibility features, and I began reading and writing like a
maniac, trying somehow to make up for lost time.
Having a few
successes under my belt, I was keenly aware that I knew virtually nothing
about journalism. My “feminist resume” did include a few entries about
published articles, but it was chock full of my activist experience
beginning with my 1978 membership in Women’s Place, a rape/domestic
violence crisis and women’s health counseling collective in Missoula,
Montana. The first experience I had with LGBT journalism came in that
place as well. Assisting with distribution of the “Amazon Spirit” may not
have been an impressive resume entry, but it was an experience that I
carried with me throughout my life as a lesbian feminist activist. I saw
the importance of that little publication. I saw how it could provide a
lifeline of information to women who otherwise may have remained isolated.
Yes, it was a little mimeographed newsletter, but it changed lives and
offered hope.
Moving on through the 1980s, I found my life full with nursing studies,
growing children, aging loved ones, and personal upheaval. I did have time
to found Mountain Womyn’s Coalition, the second openly lesbian
organization in East Tennessee. That organization made its debut producing
Kate Clinton at a little community center in East Knoxville. We packed the
house with more than 300 lesbians, hungry for connection to a culture that
was the stuff of their dreams. As the organization moved forward, it
became a social support group for womyn in the area for more than seven
years.
While pursuing a bachelor degree in nursing, I also served on the
University of Tennessee’s Commission for Women as the undergraduate
representative for two years. The Commission is primarily a group of UT
women faculty and staff, allowing two seats for student representatives:
graduate and undergraduate. It was a fulfilling way to continue to realize
my commitment to women while racing through a life that seemed to be
bursting at the seams.
Then the children grew up, the aged elder passed away, the partner left, I
graduated from UT, and life proved once again that there is nothing
constant except change. Dodging some bullets that came my way on both the
personal and professional fronts, I began to move forward and see my way
clear to once again advocate for women by joining with other local health
care professionals to produce Knoxville’s first women’s health conference
in 1989.
Then my vision decreased to the point that I could no longer work in
nursing. Time stopped for me in many ways. Because of all these
experiences, the opportunity that stood before me in September 2003
offered an avenue for a lot of pent-up creative juices. It held promise as
a way to make contributions to my community, helping once again to do what
I could to decrease the social isolation that is common in for many LGBT
Tennesseans.
It has been a wonderful three years during which I have learned so much
from Jerry Jones, our publisher, and Brent Meredith, our editor/creative
director. Their patient tutelage has proven invaluable in moving me
forward a bit in my journalistic skills. Their grounding in professional
journalism is a gift for which I will forever be grateful.
They are also credited with introducing me to the National Lesbian and Gay
Journalists Association. Serving as the local chapter’s Vice President and
attending the 2005 and 2006 conventions were, at the risk of sounding
corny, life-changing experiences for me. The people I met, the information
I gleaned, and the sense of being a part of something much larger than I
realized has given me a vision for the future for East Tennessee. It is
with that vision that I now say goodbye to my role as East Tennessee
Bureau Chief. It is with that vision that I remain committed to bringing
the news of our communities to the LGBT citizens in the place of my birth.
I am also grateful for Paul Balo, Ken Palmer, David Shuler, Tommy Higens,
Dee Crum, James McKissic, Kenny Griffith, Ashe Smith, Layne Price, Rick
Pimental-Habib, T. Nicole Sliger, Barbara Ehrgott, Michael Wilhoit, Hal
Lee, Jennie Gritton, Julie Auer, Mark Hubbard, Mark Jones, Brian Varner,
Nancy Mott, Sam Bays, Diana Cunningham, and all the people who have helped
to bring the East Bureau news to Out and About Newspaper. Paul Balo, in
particular, has given of his time, energy, and money in a way that can
never be repaid.
As in the circle of life, birth and death are ever-present. In beginning
the Equality Herald, I am full of hope that we can someday bring a quality
publication to our readers in the Eastern Grand Division. While we will be
starting with a Web-only presence, the East Bureau staff and I have dreams
to realize in preparing the way for a hard copy edition. These dedicated
men and women have given of their time and resources in a way that I have
not seen often in my journey on Earth. They are wonderful, talented,
creative people, and I am pleased that they will join me in this new
venture.
So, this is not a goodbye, but a transition to what will hopefully be a
better place for all of us as we speak the truth to power by bringing the
news to our community.
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