Session: 123456789101112131415161718         Page 414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452 of 617

No, gay rights were not even discussed at that time. But I can give you some history of that struggle for the gays.

When I was district leader in 1963, and in particular in 1965, we were having a really terrifically severe problem in the 6th Avenue, 8th Street and Christopher Street area with male prostitutes. It was vile. You couldn't walk along that street without being solicited. Now, I happen to believe, as Trudeau summed it up, when he said that the government has no business in the bedrooms of the nation. That's Pierre Trudeau of Canada. On the other hand, I also believe that public solicitation, whether it's male or female prostitution, is something that people do not have to be subjected to - and I'm not opposed to prostitution, and I believe in the principle that consenting adults can engage in any sexual behavior that they want to. But there are rights for those who don't want to get involved and who are offended -- and they don't have to be subjected to harassment. So, for example, on prostitution my position is that we should adopt the English position, which is that prostitution is only illegal if it includes public solicitation or pimps. But someone who engages in prostitution in the privacy of their home is not engaging in an illegal act. And I believe that that is a very sensible position. I don't believe in a red light district. I don't think the government should cordon areas off. I just don't think it's the