\input defs \input output \input fontsize \nopagenumbers \font\rm=cmr12 \rm \baselineskip=14pt plus 1pt minus .5pt \parskip=14pt {\noindent\parskip=0pt\obeylines 2 April 1990 \vbox to 0pt { % TO address, etc New Pacific Academy } \leftskip3in\vbox{ % FROM Tom Jennings HOMOCORE Zine / Fido Software 164 Shipley San Francisco CA 94107 (415)-764-1688 (w) (415)-882-9832 (h) } } \vskip.6in % LETTER BODY here I first met Deke at the 1988 Anarchist Gathering in Toronto.¨ Events conspired to bring a number of us out gay¨ punk/anarchist/\&c people together at this gathering; to make a¨ long story short, the event was a monumental and critical event¨ for gay liberation, and is still under appreciated. In any case, Deke was one of a small number of gay and anarchist¨ people that attended the gathering from all over the country (St.¨ Louis MO in his case); all of us had experienced alienation from¨ the so-called ``gay community'', but also a sense of something¨ about to happen, which began to unfold in Toronto that summer. Deke was the first person I recall to articulate just what was¨ happening to us there: that there were a lot of us who were¨ working to make a gay sensibility and community that drew from¨ gay history but was not a part of the assimilationism we saw¨ around us; the rest of the people present went through that¨ magical ``Me too!'' awareness that we were not each alone. What went on that weekend was basic ``networking'' (to use that¨ icky word) and we are, two years later, still benefiting¨ incredibly from it. Upon return to St. Louis, Deke did another¨ issue of his zine, kept up correspondence with many of the people¨ from the Toronto \circleA\ gathering, and within a year had moved¨ to San Francisco, leading a wave of homo-punk immigrants. It is not possible to say how much Deke has helped with HOMOCORE¨ zine. It would be more accurate to say that without him it may¨ not have continued, nor have been successful. He has provided¨ basic direction and energy, as well as ``shit work'' with¨ production. When I was ready to drop it, Deke kept orders and¨ correspondence current, and kept me going long enough to complete¨ the ``next'' issue. Deke is extremely articulate (maybe too much so -- ask him!), and¨ our resident homo-punk intellectual. He is a good worker (with an¨ adequate coffee supply), and can speak well to large crowds¨ clearly and with humor. To not include him would not only hurt¨ him, but our radical gay community as well. Deke did not ask me¨ to write a letter of reference; I wrote it knowing only that he¨ was applying, and I think it's extremely important that you¨ include him. The NPA will benefit as much as he will. \vskip.4in {\leftskip3in\obeylines\parskip=0pt Sincerely, \vskip.5in Tom Jennings } \bye