The Virginia
delegation to the Republican National Convention had to
brave the Minneapolis-St. Paul area without a
handy guidebook, all because the guide included
information on gay-friendly local attractions.
According to ABC News, a campaign official from the Virginia
lieutenant governor's office canceled an order for 150 of
the guidebooks because they included six to eight
pages dedicated to gay and lesbian nightclubs.
"Having a section
dedicated solely to GLBT will be a BIG problem for
many of our folks," office aide Melissa Busse wrote to Rake
Publishing, who distributed the guides. "We simply can't
hand them out."
Lt. Gov. Bill
Bolling later told ABC News he was unaware of the decision
and said later in a statement he wishes "it had not
happened."
Even without the
books, owners for LGBT clubs in the Twin Cities say that
they've seen an uptick in business during the convention.
"We've had a
quite a spike," said Robert Parker, who manages the
Gay 90s club, "mostly from people who are curious, come
down, and wind up leaving and having a good time."
(The Advocate)
