THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 2, 1995 TAG: 9503020488
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ESTHER DISKIN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines
Every day, officials at the city jail send cups of fruit juice and steaming bouillon into the cell where Mel White - a gay minister and former ghostwriter to Christian televangelists - continues a fast to protest Pat Robertson's refusal to meet with him.
White sets the cups aside without taking a sip. He is sticking to the regimen that he set 17 days ago: A cup of milk in the morning, a cup of Tang in the evening and water.
``How long,'' he asks, ``will it take to convince people I am sincere about this thing?''
On Wednesday, White said he is prepared to continue his fast until Robertson agrees to a meeting to discuss Robertson's statements against homosexuality, which White believes fuel intolerance against gays and lesbians.
``How can we prove our sincerity unless we are willing to die?'' he said.
Officials at Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network - where White once served as Robertson's ghostwriter and a ``700 Club'' guest - call his fast and voluntary jail stint a ``publicity stunt'' and a ``desperate media campaign.'' They say White is trying to increase his prominence as a gay leader and sell his autobiography.
``Mel White has always had control over when Mel White leaves the jail. It's not Pat Robertson who has control,'' said Robertson's spokesman, Gene Kapp. ``He is attempting to use intimidation, I guess that would be the word, to impose a meeting.''
White, a leader in the Metropolitan Community Church, a 32,000-member Christian denomination for gays and lesbians, was arrested two weeks ago on trespassing charges when he sought an appointment with Robertson. He has told his supporters not to post the $1,000 bond and free him.
He has lost 11 pounds from his 6-foot frame and now weighs 159 pounds, he said.Nurses come to his solitary confinement cell daily to check his weight and blood pressure. White, 54, said he has dizzy spells and cramps but still feels strong enough to exercise every morning.
Sandra Wiese, the jail's medical administrator, said she is keeping close tabs on White's health. If he begins to have problems, he will be sent to the hospital, where he could be fed intravenously. If he refused treatment ``then they'd have to send him back'' to the jail, she said.
White said he has received hundreds of letters from people across the country who have learned of his action from gay newspapers and computer networks. Only a few, he said, say he should leave the jail.
His 23-year-old son, who has begged him to stop the fast, is mailing him copies of computer messages.
Local organizers say they have raised about $3,000 to pay legal fees and publicity costs. A dozen supporters walk each day to the Christian Broadcasting Network to request an appointment with Robertson. On weekends, their numbers swell to 40 or 50, they said.
One who has gone to CBN is Julia Dorsey Loomis, a pastor at Emanuel Episcopal Church in Virginia Beach.
There is a real struggle in the Christian community over how to interpret the Bible regarding homosexuality, she said. And dialogue between White and Robertson would help create understanding.
``I think within the body of Christ we really have to listen to one another, especially one with whom you have a shared history,'' she said.
Supporters of White are holding a vigil Sunday at the Unitarian Church of Norfolk from 4 to 6 p.m. The speakers will include Marvin Liebman, a prominent conservative strategist and fund-raiser who worked with Ronald Reagan and others. In 1990, he announced in the National Review that he was gay and has written his autobiography, ``Coming Out Conservative.''
The Rev. Maj-Britt Johnson, of the Unitarian Church, said White's action has brought together a broad spectrum of local leaders, both gay and heterosexual, who have never worked together before. That cooperation will continue, she said, even after the standoff between Robertson and White ends.
``At some point, we may have to regroup and change our strategy,'' she said. ``But our effort has just begun in dealing with this issue and the centers of misinformation.'' ILLUSTRATION: KEN LYONS/Daily Press
Mel White, shown here on Feb. 15, has lost 11 pounds since his
hunger strike began.
by CNB