Volume 15, Number 2, May 1993, p.3

Letter to the Editor about boycotting Colorado

In response to "Debate about Colorado" in the last issue of WAAC Newsletter, WAAC member Bob Inge wrote the following letter. It expresses a viewpoint not represented by either of the previously-published statements on this subject. (--Editor)

14 January 1993

Dear Editor:

I am writing in response to the editorial by Glenn Wharton in your latest newsletter. I respect Mr. Wharton's opinion and personal decision to boycott the Denver meeting, and I understand your decision to include his letter in the newsletter, considering the very strong stand AIC has taken. However, I am very concerned that WAAC, as an organization, may be tempted to go the route of AIC by becoming a mouthpiece for conservators on controversial social issues for which there are a variety of opinions within the conservation field. I belong to AIC and WAAC because I am a conservator interested in furthering the cause of conservation, not so I can be represented on social issues.

I personally agree with Amendment 2, and voted yes on it because, like the majority of people in my state, I do not believe that the manner in which a person chooses to have sex qualifies him/her as a minority. I believe the essence of civil rights means equal rights for all, not special laws for special interest groups. Whatever one's opinion on this, I know for sure that sexual preference has nothing whatsoever to do with conservation, that conservators from all types of backgrounds and beliefs need to work together towards our common interest--conservation--and be careful not to become polarized over issues that are incidental to our common goals.

Sincerely,