Inside view of
CAP merger
To the E ditor:
W.C. McRae’s analysis o f the recent m erger
between Cascade AIDS Project (CAP) and
CHESS, and the controversial Executive D i­
rector election was well w ritten and con tri­
buted substantially to the printed record o f
local gay history. It also reflected Mr. McRae's
typical, and generally adm irable, bias in favor
o f any person identified as “ victim ." U nfortu­
nately, this approach can easily lead to black
and w hite images o f the good guys vs. the bad
guys. To the extent that the article im plied that
the m ajority who voted in favor o f Tom Kober-
stein were politically m otivated, or that they
did so out o f anim osity toward Brown M cDon­
ald, o r ou t o f partisanship, the analysis falls
sho rt o f historic reality and does a disservice
to m any w ho have labored long and at great
personal sacrifice on behalf o f the lesbian/
gay com m unity.
First o f all, tne assertion that the action
am ounted to a “ D ism issal" is incorrect; the
action was a straight-forw ard selection o f the
first perm anent Executive D irector o f the
newly merged Cascade AIDS P roject follow ­
ing an extensive search and careful review o f
m ore than 80 highly qualified candidates.
Generally, failure to con firm an interim office
holder into a functionally new position is not
Paulus defeat:
women's loss
To the E ditor:
The day N orm a Paulus lost the governor’s
race was a sad day fo r the wom en o f Oregon.
N orm a Paulus, a qualified, experienc­
ed, fem inist candidate, would have been O re­
g o n ’s first w om an governor (in 1976 she was
the first w om an elected as O regon’s Secre­
tary o f State).
Those fam iliar with her background
know how m any doors she has opened for
w om en. As governor, she w ould have con­
tinued to do so in a way no m an possibly
could. Her m ere presence w ould show that
w om en’s hopes for political careers are
realistic, and she w ould have provid­
ed a trem endous role m odel fo r future gen­
erations. A role m odel wom en w ould greatly
benefit from .
A lthough wom en are not excluded from
the po litica l arena, they are certainly kept at its
perim eters. This is shown by the few execu­
viewed as disciplinary. O n the contrary, nearly
all o f those voting in the m ajority honor Brown
M cD onald fo r his m any im portant con trib u­
tio n s during his year and a half as Executive
D ire ctor o f the original CAP, and his five
m onths as Interim Executive D irector o f the
expanded organization. His continued parti­
cip atio n w ould have been m ost welcom e,
and the loss o f his dedicated service is, in ­
deed, a tragedy.
Secondly, this vote was the only one in six
m onths o f m eetings where the vote could be
considered as “ old CHESS" vs. “ old CAP"
partisan. Votes to merge, to appoint an In­
te rim Executive Director, to conduct an open
search fo r a perm anent Executive Director,
and the process fo r doing so, all had very
broad s u p p o rt More specifically, the m issing
d ire cto r referred to by McRae was not as­
sociated with the "o ld CAP"; on the contrary,
he was the Co-chair o f the m erging CHESS
board. A lthough the vote was by secret b a llo t
sim ple m athem atics clearly shows that at
least one m em ber o f the m ajority cam e from
the “ old CAP" board. To be even m ore speci­
fic, tw o board m em bers were diagnosed per­
sons w ho had no previous service with either
m erging board; they were appointed by the
CHESS board together w ith only six
transitional m em bers to ensure client in p u t
Thirdly, finances were not a critical issue in
the m erger decision. B oth organizations, as
w ell as the newly expanded CAP, have always
been financially pressed. At the tim e o f
tive level positions held b y w om en in govern­
m e n t Because this governm ent is an institu­
tio n b u ilt by and fo r m en, there are m any
roadblocks fo r w om en (as in any traditionally
m ale carer). Those who do break through the
barriers find little support o r acceptance from
th e ir m ale peers.
In a recent Portland area poll, \5% o f the
respondents adm itted they w ould not even
consider voting in a w om an as governor.
It is particularly distressing that m any les­
bians did not show their support or provide
leadership on this issue.
These are ju s t a few o f the m yriad o f
reasons why it is im perative that w om en work
together, crossing party lines if necessary,
realizing that all w om en are an im portant
asset
These courageous w om en deserve our
s u p p o rt as we deserve and need them to
represent us.
If we w on’t support ourselves, w ho will?
t
M itzi M cM ullen-G ray
Portland, O regon
m erger, CHESS had the m ore stable finan­
cial base and a qu ick review o f the account­
ing records w ill reflect that fa c t This m ea­
surem ent is o f little consequence since it was
generally agreed that both education and ser­
vice efforts w ould be best served by financial
consolidation.
Virtually anyone you talk to who is currently
involved as a Board m em ber, staffer, o r vol­
unteer fo r CAP w ill tell you that healing is
rapidly taking place and that CAP is m oving
forw ard w ith a new dynam ism , despite the
personal pain o f everyone closely involved in
the election. This w ill becom e increasingly
evident in the near future as the general public
and you r readers witness the im pact o f new
program s and Mr. Koberstein’s leadrship. I
hesitate, therefore, to draw attention to the
past yet another tim e.
I do so only because Mr. McRae's article
could to o easily be read as an indictm ent of
the m ajority, or o f the Right to Privacy PAC/
Rose C o u rt/C ity N igh t’s “ good old boys,” as
being m ore interested in political position
than in m eeting the m anifold challenges of
an epidem ic in ou r m id s t All o f these people
have knocked them selves ou t on behalf o f
local AIDS efforts; they have shown again and
again th a t they consider this m atter to be well
above and beyond any pre-existng historical
o r philosophical loyalty. These people have a
rig h t to be included; m ore im portantly, doing
otherw ise w ould be a grave disservice to
those w ho look to us for support and leader­
ship. A ll o f the people w ho voted have served
w ith distin ctio n ; none o f them are political
puppets. I can say w ith com plete assurance
th a t they voted based prim arily on the m erits
o f the candidates and in very conscientious
service to persons m ost challenged and
threatened by AIDS.
The AIDS effort is a burden w hich m ost or
all o f us w ill eventually have to bear. We can
do so now — together, in a sp irit o f m utual
support, pride, and even jo y — o r la te r— with
reluctance and recrim ination. The difference
co u ld m ean either success o r failure fo r all o f
us, and it w ill be m easured in term s o f hum an
rights, dignity, pain, grief, and o u r very lives.
In p o in t o f fact, Portland is blessed with one
o f the m ost unified and dynam ic com m un ity
based AIDS organizations in the entire na­
tio n. I tru st that neither you nor you r readers
w ill get so stuck in underdog jo u rn a l­
ism that they fail to judge the w ork o f
Cascade AIDS Project based on "m e rit not
politics."
Thank you for your countless special ef­
forts in support o f CAP, diagnosed persons,
the w orried well, and the lesbian/gay co m ­
m unity. All o f us engaged actively in the local
AIDS e ffo rt hope to continually m e rit your
sup port and that o f your readers.
Yours in m utual struggle.
Thanks for
LaRouche Initiative
defeat
pending exclusively on our “ liberal friends"
have always been politically stupid
approaches — now they are literally lethal.
As history reviews the gay m ovem ent the
question m ay be asked o f all o f us, “ W hat did
you do d u ring the epidem ic and the w itch­
hunt that follow ed?” Thanks to the dedica­
tio n and w ork o f those who defeated Prop 64
in C alifornia, m ore o f us are likely to be
around to answer that question.
Again, congratulations and thank you to
C alifornia’s lesbian and gay com m unity.
To the E ditor:
C ongratulations to California’s lesbian and
gay co m m u n ity fo r their w ork in sm ashing
P roposition 64, the LaRouche Initiative that
cou ld have m eant m andatory testing and
quarantine o f AIDS “ suspects.”
The cam paign to defeat Prop 64 holds two
lessons fo r the nation’s lesbian and gay
com m unity.
F irs t in addition to being a m edical reality,
AIDS is also a political crisis. The Radical
R ight does not m iss this point — our failure to
do so w ould be tragic.
A nd second, as w ith the defeat o f the anti­
gay B riggs Initiative eight years ago,
C alifornia's gay and lesbian com m unity has
dem onstrated that only a high profile,
grassroots, coalition effort can win and de­
fend o u r rights. A ccom m odationism and de­
Steve Fulm er
CAP B oard M em ber
David Scondras
Boston C ity C ouncil
For information
Regarding advertising
call
236-1252
SANDRA K. PINCHES, Ph.D. THE OPEN DOOR NEW AGE CENTER
Counseling and Psychotherapy
Specializing in issues of:
• Lesbian and Gay Couples
• Intimate Relationships
• Sustaining Relationships
Co-dependency
Partners of Alcoholics
Adult Children of Alcoholics
1809 N.W. Johnson, Ste. 7 • Portland, OR 97209• (503) 227-7558
You are invited to share a viewing of
Louise L. Hay s Doors Opening: A Positive Approach to AIDS
Books • New Age Music
Workshops
Astrology • Numerology • Tarot
Meditation • Healing
1644 N.E. Hwy. 101
Lincoln City, Oregon 97367
994-2488
Just O ut, December, 1986
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