>From: AFA Action Alert <afalert at afa.net>
>Subject: Marvel to 'strip' openly homosexual cowboy in comic book
>
>Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2002 04:00:00 -0600
>
>AFA Action Alert!
>
>Marvel to 'strip' openly homosexual cowboy in comic book
>
>"If the new Rawhide Kid comic series is not an attempt to promote
>homosexuality, then why purposefully change a character into a
>homosexual?" - Ed Vitagliano, AFA Journal
>
>Marvel Comics <http://www.marvel.com> plans to break new ground in
>the comic book industry by introducing the first openly gay title
>character in a comic book. Marvel expects a February debut of "The
>Rawhide Kid."
>
>A new story line will reveal the Kid's keen fashion sense -
>including a stylish leather outfit - in what one Marvel editor
>boasted would be "the first gay Western."
>
>Marvel is the home of more old-school comics like Spider-Man, the
>X-Men and the Incredible Hulk. The Kid made his debut in 1955, when
>comic book sexuality was not an issue and Marvel was looking to cash
>in on the success of the classic TV show "Rawhide."
>
>"He doesn't come out and say he's gay," explained Joe Quesada,
>editor-in-chief at Marvel. "But it's obvious through his actions and
>the things he says that his preference is men, not women."
>
>Ed Vitagliano, news editor of the AFA Journal
><http://www.afa.net/journal>, said the comic is an attempt to
>introduce children to homosexuality. "If the new Rawhide Kid comic
>series is not an attempt to promote homosexuality, then why
>purposefully change a character into a homosexual? It seems
>reasonable to assume that there is some agenda at work."
>
>The new series pairs the original artist, John Severin, now 86, with
>Ron Zimmerman, a writer for the "Howard Stern Show."
>
>In a bubble in the first edition of the series, Rawhide Kid comments
>about the Lone Ranger: "I think that mask and the powder blue outfit
>are fantastic. I can certainly see why the Indian follows him
>around."
>
>Marvel is planning six stories over the next six months. After
>looking at the response to those issues they will decide whether to
>continue production and whether they would be interested in more
>series with gay title characters.
>
>ACTION NEEDED
>
>Ask Marvel to scrap plans for homosexual characters.