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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (April 1, 1992)
4 ▼ a p rii 1902 T ju st out A re a d in g a n d b o o k s ig n in g w ith a u th o r LADD’/ EDITIOn/ BOOK/IORE — V — MON-SAT 11-6 «SUN 12-5 1864 SE HAWTHORNE 236-4628 K a th e rin e V . F o rre s t F rid a y , A p ril 17 7:30-9:30pm Wide selection of women's music M ary J e an 's F lo w ers and G ifts Let us help the Easter Bunny with gorgeous Easter Basket arrangements! $15.95 and up i, METRO AND WORLDWIDE FLOWER DELIVERY PHONE ORDERS GLADLY ACCEPTED 13822 SE Oatfield at Courtney Milwaukie 653-8444 Ifou Have A Right To Mare Than Just A House. With any luck, we'll all need a retirement plan To the Editor: I certainly “can’t imagine living in a retire ment community with natty, het old men,” as described by Lee Lynch in the March ‘92 article “The Deepest Closet,” or abusive attendants or doctors for that matter. We should attempt to create retirement living arrangements for the lesbian and gay comunity. This aim should be an integral part of our diverse community’s interest groups that deal with “daily living" issues. Many of us will not be in a position to provide entirely for ourselves and will have to rely in part on whatever subsidized housing comes available. The worries and unpleasant experiences of the elderly (high cost of rent in relation to income, necessary medical expenses combined with the inability to pay, housing shortages, long waiting lists, housing not appropriate to physical needs) were brought to my attention in my first few days as a property supervisor with a successful non profit housing development and management company in California. Although I have elderly relatives who can support themselves, they do seem to eventually move into elder community settings or medium-sized retirement residences because of their specific health needs. Because there is such an increasing demand for any type of retirement housing that, unless the lesbian and gay community organizes itself to make available these retirement community liv ing settings, we will be struggling to get into the typical retirement housing and have little or no choice as to its internal or external demographics. I am quite interested in knowing what specific group(s) are presently working on this issue, and what progress they have made. P.S..It is nice to experience the unifying taking hold within the lesbian and gay community as well as the growing support and involvement from other individuals and groups outside of the lesbian and gay community. Elaine Doe Portland Wield economic power As an activist in Portland’s lesbian anti gay community for 20 years, I am fighting mad. The (XIA’s latest attempt to legally make us second class citizens by amending the Oregon Constitution is an outrage. H ere’s what I’ve decided to do: for evt»ry client who wears an anti-OCA button, ’ volunteers o r in some way helps out, I will donate 5% of my net proceeds to Hie CatnftaijQi For A Hole Free Oregon — the group running the statewide campaign against the OGVs initiative. I am proud to provide ethical, professional and caring real «»late services. 1 am also proud to be a member of Oregon’s lesbian and gay community. W hether you are in the market to buy o r sell, join with me to fight those who would deny us that pride. Cat hy Siemens Bridgetown Realty (5 0 3 )2 8 7 -9 3 7 0 Bridgetown Realty letters (503)238-0135(hom e) To the Editor: Bigot Busting is the process of handing out counterinformation where the OCA is trying to gather signatures. It’s very effective; when a balance of information is made available to the public very few sign their petitions. Unfortunately many area malls are allowing the OCA to gather signatures at their malls, but evicting the Bigot Busters; thus giving the OCA a monopoly of access to the malls where they are gathering thousands of signatures! Recently the OCA was at Lancaster Mall gathering signatures and the mall security evicted the Bigot Busters. I ’ve sent a letter to the manager of Lancaster Mall, along with a few of the mall tenants cut up credit cards, stating that I object to the OCA being given a monopoly of access to the mall and that I won’t be shopping there in the future. I ’ve also contacted the card issuers in forming them of the reasons for terminating my accounts with them. It is crucial that we have equal access to the voting public. We have economic power; let’s wield it! Contact your local mall management and retailers and let them know you won’t patron ize establishments that grant the OCA exclusive access to their patrons. Conversely, please do vigorously patronize Freddies and other retailers who support non-discrimination. If you haven’t already joined the anti-OCA struggle, what are you waiting for? These Nazis aren’t going away and will make life for us unbearable unless we (this means you and I) stop them! If you don’t believe it, pick up a copy of the OCA initiative impact statement that’s available and see how comfortable you will feel about your life if the OCA intiatives pass. Greg LeBlanc Roselodge I’m no prude! To the Editor: In response to your request in “Letters” of 2/92 I will toss in my two cents' worth. Phone sex ads bore me. I am not a prude. I am sure the advertising revenue is great from them and obviously they must generate business or they couldn’t afford to keep the ads going. They also must be the safest sex around. I’d like to see them gone, BUT the revenue helps me to pick up this paper for free. Ron Knapp Tillamook Childishly thumbing your nose To the Editor: The person(s) who came up with the title of “Queer Nation” for politically active homosexu als should be [edited because of violent content] from the Broadway Bridge! The term, itself, is offensive and denigrating to all homosexuals. Undoubtedly, this title was chosen for its shock value but, unfortunately, it is this very shock value that will continue to negate everything that the organization is trying to accomplish! Childishly thumbing your nose at the “straight” community will only raise their hackles and re affirm what they already believe in regard to gays and lesbians. When their hackles are raised, they are not listening-when they are not listening they are not learning. If you are truly serious about re-educating people, give yourselves a title that will reflect your commitment, conscientiousness and cour age. Pat Fuller Estacada To hell with the OCA To the Editor: There is no doubt that women’s experience concerning exploitation is different than men’s. The phone sex ads in your paper are not offensive to me. They are at times funny, sad, erotic and lewd; but never have I been offended by them. I disagree with the two women’s letters in the Feb. issue. I cannot agree that we should censor our selves just because the OCA may use these ads against us. The straight culture also has these services. I am always amazed just how similar our two cultures are. I don’t know why these two women are against these ads except to express their opinion. A more meaningful complaint should have come from a male concerning exploi tation. So far, I don’t know of any male feeling exploited. Concerning offering more ammuni tion to the OCA, to hell with the OCA! I think I am in the mainstream o f gay culture, not into leather, nor a drag queen; that is to say, pan of the invisible majority of gay people. I don’t think curtailing any part of our lives, including phone sex, is a valid response to the hate generated by the OCA. If we start to compromise our culture, diverse as it is, when will it stop? And why give the OCA credit for doing that? Keith King Portland
