(Washington, D.C., Sunday, September 22, 1996) --- Officers of Gays and Lesbians for Individual Liberty (GLIL) today commended the ABC-TV network for broadcasting the made-for-television movie, Two Mothers for Zachary, which is based on the story of how Virginia's government broke up the family of Sharon Bottoms. Virginia courts assigned custody of Bottoms' biological son, Tyler, to the child's grandmother solely because his mother is a lesbian. Sharon Bottoms recently ended three years of litigation, citing the Virginia judicial system's stubbornness and lack of compassion. The program airs tonight at 9:00 p.m. (EDT).
"At a time of increasing criticism of network TV and the entertainment industry for their positive portrayals of gay and lesbian citizens, ABC deserves credit for airing a realistic treatment of this controversial story," said Odell Huff, GLIL's president. "The Bottoms case shows clearly how government intervention in the private lives of individuals and families is harmful and cruel."
Huff added that the the Bottoms case should be viewed in the context of recent developments such as the congressional passage of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and President Clinton's predawn signing of the bill Saturday morning. "It is bad enough that a state government -- like Virginia's in the case of Sharon Bottoms and her son -- intrudes on family life. Now the federal government is enacting extraconstitutional measures to increase its power over our ability to peacefully, lovingly form families. The prospect is frightening. Big Brother is looking over our shoulders."
GLIL Secretary Rick Sincere, who is the entertainment editor for an African-American weekly newspaper in Northern Virginia, added that the "star power of Vanessa Redgrave and Valerie Bertinelli in the TV movie's lead roles makes it more likely that average Americans who never before heard of Sharon Bottoms will watch this program." Sincere noted that "it will be quite difficult for viewers to feel anything but sympathy for a mother who sees her child torn from her arms by an unfeeling bureaucrat and handed to a virtual stranger." He suggested that Two Mothers for Zachary may be in line to receive any number of entertainment awards.
Gays and Lesbians for Individual Liberty was founded in February 1991 to advance the ideas of economic and personal freedom and individual responsibility. It has members across the United States and in several foreign countries. For more information, visit http://www.glil.org or telephone 202-903-5555.
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