Protest of AIC Meeting in Denver

The 1993 AIC annual meeting presently is planned to take place in
Denver, Colorado, but since the passage in November of Amendment 2 to
the Colorado constitution, some conservators are protesting the Denver
site.  Amendment 2 forbids specifying gay/lesbian/bisexual groups or
individuals in civil rights laws, ordinances, policies, etc., and its
passage also overturns existing laws that had been enacted earlier in
some Colorado cities.

This issue has come to my attention as editor of WAAC Newsletter.  I am
informed that numerous AIC members (including some conservators in
Denver) are urging the AIC to relocate the conference to a different
state.  I also have been told that AIC has already paid $40,000 in
unreturnable deposits to service providers in Denver.  Obviously, the
meeting was planned prior to the passage of the amendment; on the other
hand, it is felt by some that it is of paramount importance to take a
stand against the deprivation of civil rights to any group.

You may want to voice your thoughts about this issue directly to Paul
Himmelstein, President of the AIC Board, or "chat" about it on this
list.  I have been told that the AIC Board will be meeting on December
5, so if you hope to influence the outcome of this controversy, you
probably should take action very soon.

    AIC
    1400 16th Street NW, Suite 340
    Washington, DC 20036
    phone: 202/232-6636
    fax: 202/232-6630

Elizabeth Welsh, Editor, WAAC Newsletter
(Western Association for Art Conservation)

                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 6:28
                 Distributed: Friday, November 20, 1992
                        Message Id: cdl-6-28-002
                                  ***