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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 1, 1987)
Gerì Craig : A recovery of balance with other people in some kind o f empathetic understanding that I wouldn't have had if I didn't have those experiences. " In the recovery programs that I've worked on I've been able to alleviate a little guilt, and some remorse, that I had about my life . . I think I now know more than ever that there's a lot o f hope. I have a lot o f hope. And because of those experiences I have a really eclectic sup BY ANNDEE H Q C H MA N port system in my life. . . Not long ago my lover and I did a commitment ceremony. We n 1978. Geri Craig's activism brought her to had about a hundred people and I was amazed at her own backyard. After years o f confronting this body of people who emerged, this body and working to change the oppressions o f o f people who were . . . a rainbow o f colors, and racism, sexism and homophobia, Craig fought men and women, and straight and gay, and old and freed herself from an addiction to alcohol and kids. I felt incredibly grateful for my life atuJ drugs. then, incredibly privileged and lucky. Since then, she's used that experience to sup port others in recovers' from drug and alcohol " I 'm one who believes in working for sixial addictions. A founder o f the Live and Let Live change. I've always believed in that I think that Club, she also works with 12-Step Haven, a it's necessary. I also think it s important that we resource center fo r women and children in re- have a network of people to support us in our | covers'. Craig helped launch a residential treat- struggles, that we don't try to do this stuff alone, that we get nurtured and loved and cared about along the way so that w e're able to do this, you know, for the long haul. That's how I teel — that I'm in this for the long haul and. having been given a second chance to do it a different way. to be clean and sober, it 's been really necessary for me to take care of mvselt ment program for Xattve American women and children: she sersed as executive director o f the emotionally and spiritually . And I feel like I Portland h envmst Women's Health ('entei from have that in my life, and that s a wonderful 1984 to /y,\o. most recently, she worked fo r Right thing. If there's something that I don't have, it's Step Reco . ers . a chemical dependency treatment the kind o f alienation and loneliness that a lot of program fo r gay men and lesbians. people have I'm a lucky ducky. Really. When Craig discusses the politics o f addic "T here has to be a balance. One of my tion, anecdotes anchor the theory close to home. teach. rs in my lire once told me . when 1 was Her no-nonsense speech is spiked with phrases at the [Portland Feminist Women’s Health really didn't understand. That it was threatening like ‘ fa r o u t'' and ' ‘lucky ducky,' ’ a peppery to people around me. It was like. ‘God. if Geri’s Center) and 1 had agreed to take that position of laugh and a quick grin. ,4 midwest twang curls saying she’s an addict and an alcoholic’ — and I executive director for two years, and at the end through now aiul then, showing her Chicago o f that time I felt like I needed to leave, that certainly wasn't doing that because I wanted to upbringing And her hands won't sit still. They — what does that mean about me?’ someone else needed to do that. And I struggled shape the air as she talks, they reach and wave: with that a long time . . . And this teacher ‘ ‘One of the motivations for me wanting to get they periodically lift a coffee cup. They do not, clean and sober was that I felt I was really sort of o f mine told me. she said. ‘Geri. geese fly in however, hold a cigarette. Craig recently quit ; a . . . paper tiger, with all my running-around formation. But what they do. by nature, is ro smoking after a 25-year habit. struggles to deal with sexism and racism and tate the position of lead goose.' So. you know, homophobia and all those things. But I had al even a goose has the sense to get out of the wind "In 1978. actually just about nine years ago once in a while. coholism. and that was what was going to get me next week, when I got clean and sober. I kind of , first.” "Y ou just can't run on empty all the time. Craig's work history seems to be an obstacle- And there s different ways to fill ourselves up came to gnps w ith my own chemical dependency and kx)ked around. I was kxiking for some sup course o f charged issues: racism. women's re When I Icxik at the reasons that drugs and al port for that, and at that time there was very little productive rights, alcoholism, the mental-health cohol seemed to work for years in my life, it in the way of community support, certainly in the system. She says it wasn't a path planned in was because they filled up some of those empty advwn e: she simply traced her passions to their places. And when that stopped working. I had lesbian community, or the feminist community, logii ill end c h i looked back to see a pattern only to find something else or any kind of community that I had been associated with, afterwards "T in also involved with another organiza 1'here arc a ioi ot reasons why there s a high "W hen I first came to Portland I worked in a tion called 12-Step Haven, which is a resource collective day-care center . . |later| I worked at incidence [of chemical dependency! m the gay center for women and children in recovery, and the Women's Mental Health Project. Interestingly and lesbian community. One is that it's histori my lover and I have had the opportunity to do cally been true that where lesbians and gay men enough, through that project, and while 1 was foster care and respite care for children who have hung out is in bars That has been our first struggling, trying to get clean and sober come from chemically dependent families. It s and not maintaining sobriety, we decided to do a i been an amazing experience to realize that, sanctuary , our only place. And so even a lot of lesbian sobriety workshop. We didn't think any our political activities and stuff have centered probably, in truth, my life is about halt over, around alcohol, certainly. And. sure. I think that body would come. W people came | and to l*xik at these little ones and see what kind I was the first time that I'm aware of that it is a reflection of what gtxts on in the dominant ot influence, what kind o f value I can have in |aicoholism | was ever addressed in the lesbian culture at large. But it wasn't being addressed children's lives, to give them a vision ot hope and how it can be different. very well. vommunity here. " I feel very fortunate to not have had to do "S o a handful o f us got together. We had been " I was very sad to see Right Step | which my recovery alone. I mean. 1 couldn't. That was try ing to have some gay 12-step meetings at other closed in August! leave the community. I think the thing. The hardest thing was admitting that I recovery organizations in Portland. Wc had a having that treatment center in our community had a problem and then asking for help. I was Sunday night meeting at the AlanoClub could have done us all a lot of good in being part raised to be self-sufficient, thank you. and cer in northwest Portland, anu wc were as' ed to o f the solution to the problem. leave there to make room f •• .■ *»mtm. t'd<vto«-s tainly in my spectrum o f things, in my political “ I would love to see a drug- and alcohol-free analysis, which was: there are no individual who wanted to have their meeting then space in the community. It's not unusual now to solutions and. you know, ‘buck up. buckaroo.' go m gav bars and see non-alcoholic drinks on Actually it turned out to be our chance to make that kind o f thing, that was probably the hardest lemonaue out of lemons because a group of men t lie menu That always d(x?s my little heart g<xxJ thing. and women who were recovering got together But it vvt>uId he nice to h»v*» •» place that didn't "T h e first year from any kind of destructive and formed a non-profit organization that was the have alcohol at all hspecially when you look at dependency is — was. for me — the hardest things like AIDS and the connection that a com Live and Let Live Club. because so many changes happened. So many "W hat it felt like we were doing was saving promised immune system certainly drugs ch an g es— where I went, what I did. who I our asses, rather than getting into great socio and alcohol compromise your immune system hung out with. It was the most dramatic, cer — has on the disease, or on the ability to make political debate about the incidence of chemical tainly. in terms of physical recovery, and emo decisions about safe sex . . . it's like playing dependency in our communitv. Ir:!ially. that’s tionally and spiritually. I mean, the world Russian Roulette what it felt like We wanted tocreate something looked different. And felt different, because I A frien d has descrioed Craig as being tot ourselves, and also for other people. w asn't using a chemical to deal with any of that. "w illing to sa\ things that are enormously un ' ' I sort of liken it to w hen I was in my early 20s Lots and lots o f things changed popular.' ' Craig laughs, trying the phrase on anu going to San Francisco and first getting in " I like to look at my life as sort of an inter for size. She grins and nods— "yeah, sure . .. volved in heavy-duty leftist politics and discover esting series of connect-the-dots I followed / guess s o '' — as if both pleased and surprised ing the evils of class . . . and all of a sudden it was at how well it fits. enough dots to get me to recover I mean. I right on to be working class. Now for the first learned a lot. I learned some valuable lessons time it feels right on to be clean and sober. And it " I have a lot of passion behind the things that through experience that I’m now able to share didn’t feel that way in 1978 It felt like. . . people I believe in . . . it just seems like the right thing I like to look at my life as sort of an interesting series of connect- the-dots. / followed enough dots to get me to recovery. I .rpro£(*^ to do. Last night I was in Powell’s Bookstore, you know, real yuppie bookstore, la di da, Friday night, eleven o ’clock, and some long haired boy had taken offense at a street person, a homeless person, an older man, who came in there The guy was yelling at him for smoking a cigarette . and the next thing I know, this guy had just picked him up and was bodily throwing him out the door and then went out there and was kicking the shit out o f him. "A nd 1 didn’t think about it, 1 just went out there and started screaming at this long-haired guy, ’You can't do this. I mean, it's not OK to do this.’ So. yeah. I didn't think about what this guy was going to think And I don’t know why. It's ju s t. . . 1 knew it was right, you know. And I don't think that necessarily makes me special or anything " I thins. it s important sometimes to go out tin the edge I think that some of the privilege, some of the freedom that I have in my life ttxlay came about as a result of other people who have gone out on the edge and I feel a debt and a gratitude to continue to do that There have been plenty of freedom-fighters, lesbian activists, political activists, people who have believed in freedom and equality for the greatest numbers When I was working at the health center, people used to say. ‘My God. you got a bomb: how can you continue to go to work there?' Because it 's right Because it is the right thing to do Because other people have done it." Craig isn't sure where her convictions will land her next. " I imagine myself in some similar sort o f . . . something within human services. I can't imagine myself doing anything other than that. It's pretty much all I've ever done. 1 may stay in alcoholism treatment and drug addiction treat ment. or some other aspect of social service. Domestic violence I have an interest in that, in w om en's health. I’m not sure. We ll see what happens, as the little dots connect some m ore." • C L A R I C E JOHNSTON D. M . D. DENTISTRY for adults and children • Treatment explained and discussed • Weekdays, Evenings and Saturdays • Flexible payment plans • Nitrous oxide available • New patients welcome 233-3622 230 N.E. 20th (Three blocks north of Burnside) Just Out • 13 • December. I9H7