Proposed Gay Games Event Divides Ill. Town [View All]

CRYSTAL LAKE, Ill. - Among the items on the City Council's agenda seems a simple matter: Whether to give rowers a permit to have a boat race this summer on a small man-made lake.

But because the rowers are gay — participating in something called the Gay Games — what would normally be a mundane debate about parking and street closures is instead a heated battle between those who see the event as a threat to their small-town way of life and those who see such views as simply small-minded.

On Tuesday, the City Council was scheduled to discuss whether to allow the Olympics-style Gay Games to hold its rowing event in this bedroom community of 40,000 about 50 miles northwest of Chicago.

One look at the angry letters to the editor that have frequently appeared in the local newspaper reveal it isn't the logistics of the race that's on residents' minds.

"Make no mistake: The purpose of the Gay Games is to legitimize homosexuality and make it appear as a wholesome lifestyle choice," wrote Tim Coakley, a critic of the games.

In the same day's paper, Perry and Christine Koste dismissed such views. After wondering if Crystal Lake's motto should be "homophobic capital of the Midwest," they asked, "How proud are we to live in such a narrow-minded, backward hateful community?"
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One of the Gay Games' missions is to raise awareness about gays to reduce stereotypes — a point organizers kept discussing during the park district hearings, said spokesman Kevin Boyer.
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The furor in Crystal Lake about the games goes to the heart of why many people say they stay in or move to such a community.

Coakley said one reason he and his family moved to Crystal Lake a decade ago was because "there is more of a family values kind of atmosphere" there.

It's the same with Sunita Stone. "Crystal Lake is a G-rated place," she said. "There's no reason to start making things racy. If you want to go to Chicago to do that, that's fine. I'm not going to go there."

More: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060404/ap_on_re_us/gay_games