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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (July 11, 1996)
Oregon Country Fair turns on Friday ■ EVENT: The 27 th annual celebration will be equipped with westcoast music, food and crafts By Andrea De Young Associate Editor The normally quiet town of Veneta will see some action this weekend as droves of Oregonians make the trip to the Oregon Coun try Fair. Now in its 27th year, the fair is three days of music, food, crafts, and entertainment. Although it is a popular event for University students, the event also attracts crowds from throughout the state. The fair will have different stages with various musical acts. There is something for everyone as the music selection varies from enviro-rock and reggae to blues and psychedelic salsa. The main stage will feature Chi na Rose and The Deadbeats on Friday. Both find inspiration in music from the Grateful Dead. Two bands, Box Set and the David Nelson Band, play San Francisco rock. The day will also feature a couple of acoustic bands. Truly diverse sounds will fill the air on Saturday. Two bands will play the blues, two others will be rocking out, and the day will end with a band called Dub Nation playing reggae. Sunday will be the day to dance at the main stage as salsa, soul, reggae and rock come blar ing over the speakers. But there will be more than mu sic at the fair. People flock to the event for the food, the crafts and an opportunity to spend three days outside in the sun. So far, it looks like the weather will coop erate. For those people who were still hoping to get a camping spot, it’s not going to happen. The spots were sold out several weeks ago. But LTD will help fair-goers by providing a shuttle bus from Lane County Fairgrounds to the Coun try Fair. Shuttles will depart from 13th Avenue and Jackson Street every 15 minutes beginning at 10 a.m. all three days. The shuttle will go to the fair until 4:30 p.m., but will bring people back to Eu gene until 7:30 p.m. The shuttle service is free. But getting into the fair isn’t. Admis sion is $8 on Friday, $13 on Satur day and $9 on Sunday. Tickets are being sold at the EMU ticket office today and are available at the Country Fair all weekend. Petition: Williams acknowledges concern ■ Continued from Page 1 Department to offset their expenses. Controversy has surrounded many of the Promise Keepers’ beliefs. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force has said that some Promise Keepers’ rhetoric is anti-gay and anti-woman. However, according to the Promise Keepers’ mis sion statement, the group is dedicated to “uniting men through vital relationships to become godly in fluences in their world. ” "Homosexuality is a tough issue,’’ Promise Keep ers National Spokesman Roger Chapman said from the Promise Keepers’ headquarters in Denver, Col orado. “We don’t check for sexual orientation at the door. Our conventions aren’t some kind of brain washing. We’re trying to keep ourselves apolitical. ” Chapman said Promise Keepers’ interpretation of the Bible does not view homosexuality as an accept able lifestyle. “With our interpretation of scripture, we can’t say homosexuality is something we can condone,” he said. “But we don’t consider homosexuality any worse than adultery or sex outside of marriage. They are all lifestyle mistakes.” Chapman also said that the notion of Promise Keep ers as sexist is unfounded. “We have thousands of woman volunteers,” he said. “There has got to be a reason for that. ” The Oregon petitioners are asking that a portion or all of the Autzen Stadium rental be used to address sexist and homophobic sentiments. The conference would also examine the broad defi nition of family values, including gay marriages and single-mother households, said Stephanie Carnahan, education and support services coordinator for the Office of Student Life, who attended Wednesday’s meeting with Williams. “The fact that the Promise Keepers work to be good fathers and husbands is terrific,” Stephanie Carna han, education and support services coordinator for the Office of Student Life said. “But it’s the manner in which they propose to do it—demanding ownership of family—that’s archaic and reeks of cavemen.” The petition had been circulating since Dead Week of spring term. Copies were circulated through the Eugene Pride Celebration, the White Bird Clinic and various Portland locations. Organizers also posted the petition on the Internet. “The petition has a two-fold purpose,” said Mar garet Butler, out-going codirector of the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Alliance. “We want to show the presence of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people and their allies because such a large number of people be lieve homosexuality is curable. It’s nice to band to gether in the face of such bad energy. "The second purpose is to ask Dan Williams for a decision about the proposed conference, ” she said. Although Williams said he appreciates the propos al, earmarking those funds could set an unwanted precedent for the future. “The conference seems to be a very good idea,” Williams said. “The concern I would have is that us ing resources generated from one activity and used for another is a real danger. I’m real reluctant because of what it means for future student activities. ” The Promise Keepers controversy was sparked on campus in June with the signing of the rental agree ment. Some students have said they were left out of the decision- making process in agreeing that the Christian group could use University property. “We’re not saying we hate the University,” Butler said. “We’re saying the University could have made smarter decisions. ” Williams acknowledged these concerns following Wednesday’s meeting. However, he said student par ticipation in the decision probably would not have changed the final outcome of the situation. “In retrospect, I take responsibility for that deci sion,” he said. “But I don’t think a campus dialogue would have changed it. We don’t pick and choose who can use our facilities based on religion and poli tics.” Although chances of using funds from the Promise Keepers’ visit are slim, Williams said an anti-discrim ination conference is not out of the question. “I’m ready to work to see if that’s possible,” he said. “But I didn’t make any promises.” The Promise Keepers’ Eugene visit has hit the com munity especially hard, Carnahan said, because of the sheer numbers of the conference attendees. “Forty thousand men is approximately one-third the size of Eugene,” she said. “The Promise Keepers typically go to Seattle or Portland or Southern Cali fornia where their presence isn’t felt because the com munities are so much larger. My sense is this is the first time they’ve been in a small, somewhat progres sive college town that would react to what they’re say ing.” Promise Keeper debate is nothing new, Chapman said. However, he said his group will continue to try to overcome the controversy. “We always deal with controversy,” he said. “As Christians, there are certain absolute values you must follow and many people don’t understand that. We’re trying to demonstrate our beliefs to a country that has become a-spiritual or anti-spiritual.” Track Town Presents... ANY MEDIUM BUILD YOUR OWN PIZZA Mint ask for the Sizzling Summer Special when ordering. Not available-with any other offer or specialty pizzas. Delivery charge may apply. Minimum $7.00 for delivery. 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