The people behind Rosie O’Donnell’s gay and lesbian family cruise and at least one leader from the Bermuda African Methodist Episcopal Church are set to have a conversation about the same sex couple travel event scheduled to visit the island in July. It’s also possible that the dialogue has already began.

Any kind of talks between the two sides would be significant because last week the AME Church said in a press release that it’s island-wide organisation had “resolved” to voice its opposition to the Rosie O’Donnell travel event.

The two sides were brought together yesterday by way of their conversations with The Royal Gazette.

When the Church’s resolution became public this past Friday, this newspaper contacted Rosie O’Donnell’s publicist in New York City for comment. It was after business hours.

On Monday that publicist, Cindi Berger of PMK-HBH Public Relations, e-mailed the Gazette <$>and asked if the AME Church might be amenable to an in-person meeting with a representative from Ms O’Donnell’s family vacations company.

When we contacted the Church’s spokesperson, Rev. Lorne Bean, he did not immediately take the offer for a sit down, but quickly requested that a reporter pass along his contact information so that he might talk directly with Ms O’Donnell’s representatives.

When the contact information was passed along Mrs. Berger indicated that Gregg Kaminsky of the family vacations company would be calling the Reverend.

The original AME Church Conference resolution said: “The AME Church opposes the same sex lifestyle of many of the anticipated passengers of the cruise hosted by Rosie O’Donnell. The lifestyle is incompatible with the Word of God and the Christian moral fibre of our beautiful Bermuda. Consequently, the AME Church of Bermuda is not (in) favour of this cruise coming to our shores in July 2007.”

Following the Church statement Premier Ewart Brown, who is also Tourism Minister, said: “The Government’s policy is that Bermuda does not discriminate against Bermudians or visitors based on sexual orientation.”

Rosie O’Donnell is an American television personality who is co-host of “The View”. She has organised several cruise vacations for gay and lesbian families. Her franchise of cruises became widely known in 2006 with the release of a documentary on HBO called “All Aboard: Rosie’s Family Cruise”.

Rosie O’Donnell announced she was a lesbian in 2002. Two years later she married her long time girlfriend Kelli Carpenter in San Francisco. The couple has three adopted children and a fourth who was conceived through sperm donation.

Talks expected over same sex cruise