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Hooray!  Two list mates received a response,  although it was not from
Oprah, but from the Satellite Sisters themselves.  Their e-mail is
[log in to unmask]  I suggest everyone who wrote to Oprah
magazine through [log in to unmask] forward their letter to the
Satellite Sisters direct mailbox.  They seem to have gotten the message,
but it can't hurt to reinforce it!

I received 25 responses from list mates and 20 told me they had written
to Oprah magazine.  Some excerpts...

"... makes my blood boil...Really disappointed in OPRAH."

"Yikes, What were they thinking?"

"This hit a sore spot"

"Maybe the letters will cause Oprah to feel the need to show more
compassion toward people with problems not of our own choice."

"I replaced 'gluten-free children'  with 'diabetic children'.  I believe
some people think a gluten-free diet is arbitrary, and therefore an
annoying choice.  They need to be educated."

"How obnoxious!"

"How outrageous!"

"I would never think something so disgusting would come from Oprah."

"Outrageous and ugly.  The dull office mate eager for a girls night out
does not sound very accepting either."

"I grew up with the producer of Satellite Sisters and will be contacting
her on this."

"I wrote to Hearst and did not even receive the courtesy reply."  (No one
has, as far as I know.)

"I have asked everyone in my address book to respond to the
magazine(about 200 people).  I was furious."

"Unfortunately, based on postings I have read over the years on this
listserv, Oprah et al do not seem to be all that receptive in getting the
facts about celiac disease...Maybe the person we need is Dr. Phil."

"Two steps forward (The Today Show) and one step back (Oprah)."

And quotes from  letters sent to Hearst:

"In a magazine that encourages women to be confident, it is unusual to
find attitudes which help erode the confidence of a group of women
(celiacs or the mothers of celiacs) who are already fighting just to fit
in."

"There are children out there to whom gluten is poisonous to their
systems.  These children already feel different enough without being
pointed out in a national magazine as being socially undesirable.  The
celiac community is striving to make these children feel that they can
have a normal lifestyle without making the condition a focus of their
lives."

Thank you all for stepping up to the plate.  It certainly helped me deal
with my anger and frustration knowing I was not the only one who was
appalled and upset by this insensitive remark.  You are the best!!

Linda Gill

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