Zsa Zsa Gabor Found Guilty

The manifest homophobia of Ms. Gabor during her trial for a variety of traffic and assault violations has brought great pain to the lesbian/gay community. She states that she fears going to jail because the lesbians there would threaten her.

Later we are told in The Times (Sept. 21) that “She told jurors that Kramer (the arresting officer) must hate her because he is gay. . . . Three gentlemen came up to us, under oath, and said they slept with Mr. Kramer,” Gabor testified, and she added, “Don’t you know, a gay would not like a woman like Zsa Zsa Gabor. Why would he? I marry all the men he would want to have.”

She made these statements to attempt to prejudice the jury in her favor. For shame! We lesbian/gay folk were impeached in testimony, denied access to community resources, to the decision-making processes of society for thousands of years by just such homophobic statements. Happily for us, we have staged a worldwide nonviolent social revolution to change such attitudes. What we have commenced to do is working--far from perfectly, but working.

I know nothing of Officer Paul Kramer’s private life (and it is none of my business), nor that of Ms. Gabor. I do know something about jail conditions. Yes, there are lesbians in custody, along with unknown numbers of non-gay women. They have troubles enough with survival, and search for justice under day-to-day conditions, without Ms. Gabor trying to worsen their situation.

Her statements have forced us to recall just how judgmental society was until this generation. Our educational effort must go right on. But we must take time out to respond to such painful statements.

MORRIS KIGHT

Los Angeles