Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (March 1, 1992)
ju s t out steppin* out s in c e 1 9 8 3 PUBUSHER AND EDITOR contents Rene£ LaChance CO-EDITOR Ariel Waicrwoman VOL. 9 NO. 5 MAR. 1992 CALENDAR EDITOR Linda Shirley FEATURE STAFF REPORTERS Inga Sorensen Greg Duran Outting the Violence STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Linda Kliewer The last bastion of silence in the lesbian and gay community is exposed ADVERTISING Linda Shirley Amanda Colorado (p- 1 7 ) Profile CREATIVE DIRECTOR E. Ann Hinds Smokey Sat ter lee, the recycling queen, is profiled PROOFREADER (p. 25) Eddi Bako TYPESETTER Amanda Colorado DEPARTMENTS FORMATTER Letters (P- 3) World news Meg Grace DISTRIBUTION Coyote Distributing SUBSCRIPTIONS Carol Steinel Chloe De Segonzac (p. 5) On Valentine's Day Queer Nation organized a Love-In on Max to remind people that queer love is good love. Over 100 lesbians and gay men and 25 police officers participated. Participants, (not the police), passed out flyers to commuters. editorial CONTRIBUTORS Lee Lynch Matt Bailey Marilyn Davis Rex Wockner Yolanda Alexander Sandra de Helen Nurse Consuelo Just Out is published on the first day of each month. © 1992. No pan of Just Out may be reproduced without written permission of the publisher. The submission of w ritten and graphic materials is welcomed. Written material should be typed and double spaced. Just Out reserves the right to edit for grammar, punctuation, style, liability concerns and length. We wiD reject or edit articles or advertisements that are offensive, demeaning or may result in legal action. Just Out consults the Associated Press Style Book and Libel Manual on editorial decisions. Letters to the editar should be limited to 400 words. Graphic material should be in black ink on white paper. Deadline far submissions is the I5th of the month proceeding publication. Views expressed in letters to the editor, columns and features are not necessarily those of the publisher. Display adverlirfng will be accepted up to the 17th of each month. Classified ads must be received at the office of Just Out by the 17th of each month, along with payment. Ads will not be taken over the telephone. Subscriptions to Just Out are available far $17.50 far 12 issues. First (lass (in an envelope) is $30 for 12 issues. A free copy of Just Out and/or advertising rales are available on request The mailing address and telephone number for Just Out arc PO Box 15117. Portland. OR 97215; (503)236-1252 National briefs ip. 6) Local news (p* 12) OCA watch (p.10) Religion (p.9) Doffing our fedoras "Offensive names are perpetuated by their use in newspa pers and other media." his is a direct quote from The Oregonian editorial re garding their decision not to use sports teams names that are offensive to racial, ethnic, or religious groups. It’s a stunning blow against institutionalized racism, and we, at Just Out doff our fedoras to them. It takes a lot of courage to be the first to rip away one of the last bastions of “socially acceptable” racism. The Oregonian is the only newspaper nationwide to listen to the voices of Native Americans who have been challenging the dehumanizing sports team names for decades. This issue is really cooking over aiThe Oregonian. The public responses are running high against the new policy, with some people cancelling their subscriptions in protest. What is it about most European Americans that makes us/them resist such simple, cooperative changes? When is it going to sink in that EVERY PERSON deserves to be treated with respect and dignity? This is really a basic concept that is apparently difficult for some European Americans to implement. The Oregonian could use some letters supporting the editorial board’s decision to put their policy where their words are. T A publishers struggle I have a commitment to unlearn my racism. It has taken my entire lifetime in this institutionalized racist society to leant racism; it is taking a great deal of time to unlearn it, too. For me, unlearning racism is an uncomfortable and an evolving process. It begins with educating myself about racism and the ways this society and European Americans manifest it. At each new level of consciousness, I share with the people around me materials and ideas I have absorbed. The education process constantly challenges my comfort levels and creates as many questions as I find answers. When I began to incorporate my budding antiracist lifestyle into my work at Just Out, it was like trying to chew through i brick wall. Just Out is a monthly paper, so creating change ii like swimming through molasses. Racism wasn’t created by people of color, yet they arc the ones who have to deal with it daily. European Americans have the privilege of making a choice about dealing with theii racism. For me there is only one choice to make. It is oui responsibility as European Americans to educate ourselves and everyone around us about racism, and to eradicate racism from our language, our actions and our lives. As European Ameri cans, and racism’s creators, we have to learn how to recognize it and challenge it when we see or hear it. I often fall short of my expectations for myself. I don’l always recognize racism when I see it and don’t always challenge it in the moment. I do denial well, so when I hear my European American friends or co-workers using insidious racial slurs I think, “oh they’re not being racist, they're my friends.” European Americans question my ideas when I tell them I have been told or I have learned that something is offensive to people of color. They say I’m splitting hairs or they ridicule me for reaching some new level of antiracism. It is difficult to stand up to that kind of social pressure, but it is nothing compared to what people of color face every day. We have to listen to the people who are being oppressed and commit ourselves to end that oppression. Revolutions begin with an individual and a commitment: Just for today, I will not be racist or oppressive to anyone. The Oregonian has taken a big step towards chipping away at the brick wall of institutionalized racism. I hope that we can all join together to chip away at that wall to make a hole big enough for everyone to pass through. Renée LaChance COLUMNS Amazon TVail (p-31 ) Just Dish (p. 30) ARTS Entertainment Michael Kearns corf esses to a "little sexual daliance" with Rock Hudson, Holly Hughes is in town for a lecture and free workshop; Minh Tran will perform "Labor of Love" and Sandra de Helen reviews Kind of Heart (p. 26)