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colors they would have worn if they were in
Germany when the Nazis were in power. Cus
tomer demand for information has been so great
that Zell has made available copies of the flier
explaining the display.
Zell says he and his wife and co-owner Nancy
Jambor have always kept their politics out of their
restaurant. This is the first time they have taken
a stand on an issue in their business.
“I feel very strongly,” said Zell, “that the issue
in Ballot Measure 9 is an issue of rights, and
taking rights away from people. It affects every
body.”
Zell’s also sells No on 9 buttons and the menu
board urges diners to vote.
Thousands gather to
oppose Ballot Measure 9
More than 10,000 people came to Pioneer
Courthouse Square on Oct. 4 to show their oppo
sition to Ballot Measure 9. The crowd spilled out
of the square and onto the sidewalks across the
street. No counterprotesters were visible. The
rally’s theme, “Many Voices, One Message,”
was reflected in the long and diverse list of
speakers.
Urvashi Vaid, keynote speaker at this year’s
Lucille Hart dinner and head of the National Gay
and Lesbian Task Force, brought out-of-state
encouragement “On behalf of lesbians, gay men
and our allies across this country,” she said, “I
want all of you here on the front lines against the
far right to know that the entire national gay
community sends its love, support and heartfelt
wishes for success.”
“There is no peace,” Vaid continued, “when
organized hate groups like the Oregon Citizens
Alliance wage campaigns to legitimize the preju
dice that leads to this violence; when hatemongers
like Pat Buchanan are embraced by our presi
dent, when the platform of the party that once
stood for individual freedom endorses govern
ment regualtion of the private lives of its people,
when we are the target of a jihad — a religious
war — declared upon us by those who seek to
reinvent society to insure thier own personal
supremacy....
“In the rather small minds of our enemies
here in Oregon, the powerful democratic concept
of civil rights has come to sound like a dirty
word. If weread the OCA’s lips, we keep hearing
about special rights and never hear about civil
rights. The distortion is deliberate... .The claim
that we seek special rights is wrong; we already
enjoy the special privilege of being the number-
one targets of hate violence in America today; we
have the special right to live with the fear that our
house could be torched by racist and anti-gay
skinheads like Hattie Mae Cohens and Brian
Mock’s was in Salem....
“This,” said Vaid, “is our Birmingham. This
is our Selma. This is the battle of our lifetime.
Justice, normality and history are on our side.”
Presidential candidateBill Clinton dispatched
a representative to express his opposition to
Ballot Measure 9. The representative, Bob
Hantoy, is an environmental consultant for
Clinton and the first person with AIDS to address
a presidential convention. Clinton’s telegram
urging Oregonians to vote no on 9 said this is a
“time to heal America, not divide i t ”
Sharon Gary-Smith of the Women’s Founda
tion focused on the connections between differ
ent oppressions. “We need to stop it now, be
cause who is next? This is the beginning, not the
end. If you’re not fighting for each and every one
of us, we have no fight at all,” she said.
Former governor Neil Goldschmidt, whose
anti-discrimination executive order was the tar
get of the OCA’s first anti-gay campaign, opened
the rally. He discussed how his Jewish roots
made him aware of how it feels to be outside of
mainstream society. He also gave a prayer in
Hebrew advocating unity among all people.
Other speakers included Jeanette Pai, founder
and co-chair of the Asian Pacific American Alli
ance; Michael Powell, owner of Powell’s Books;
Irv Fletcher, president of the Oregon AFL-CIO;
Sherry Harris, the first African-American les
bian elected to the Seattle City Council and
Rabbi Emmanuel Rose.
Parents join the fight
Regardless of who wins or loses at the polls
Nov. 3, the OCA’s Ballot Measure 9 will leave
behind a bigger, stronger and more organized
community of gay-rights activists. Parents and
Friends of Lesbians and Gays is growing by
Visitors association
opposes 9
Thirty days until election rally attracts 10,000
leaps and bounds. The number of P-FLAG chap
ters in Oregon has tripled in the last few months,
bringing the total to 14. Two more are in the
process of being organized.
“What is happening,” Cherie Garland, presi-
dentof the Rogue Valley chapter, told the Medford
Mail Tribune, “is the OCA is awakening a sleep
ing lion in these people, and they are forming
groups much faster than would’ve otherwise hap
pened.”
Even in the most conservative pockets of rural
Oregon, parents are stepping out of the closet and
into the battle.
“Our children need us,” said P-FLAG Re
gional Director Candace Steele, “because we can
speak in the straight communities when their
voices are discounted.”
OCA organizer Monte Stamper told the Mail
Tribune that his group expected this. “I have a
hard time understanding why parents stump for
their children’s sex lives,” he said.
Several parents explained to the Mail Tribune
that they feared for their children’s safety because
of the OCA and Ballot Measure 9.
Local stores make good
Businesses across Portland and Oregon are
getting involved in the fight against Ballot Mea
sure 9. A stroll downtown reveals window after
window with No on 9 displays. They range from
the simple bumper sticker in the window of Row
ers in Flight to the bright display consuming Zia
Salon’s window. Even businesses without dis
plays are standing opposed to Ballot Measure 9.
Recently a stack of OCA papers was found on the
free publication shelf at the Third Eye on South
east Hawthorne Boulevard. An employee ex
plained that someone had put them there without
permission. She dumped them in a recycling bin
and loudly explained that the store had no room
for hate.
While many businesses have put up No on 9
displays and donated money, some have taken
even greater steps to educate their customers
about the measure.
Powell’s Books, with its full block of prime
downtown window space, has what is probably
Portland’s most striking display. Windows are
full of huge signs with slogans such as “H ate is not
a family value. Vote no on 9.” According to
employee Melody Libby, the artwork for the
signs is available to any interested party from the
Kinko’s on Northeast Broadway at 7th Avenue.
Libby said other businesses have approached
Powell’s for help in setting up similar displays.
Once inside the store, Powell’s customers get
a more in-depth education on the measure’s rami
fications. Five hundred to 1,000 titles in the store
now carry warning labels pointing out that if
Ballot Measure 9 passes, these books could be
banned from public libraries and schools, includ
ing universities. While the overwhelming major
ity of customers are appreciative of the store’s
efforts, some have expressed disapproval, and
employees report that the warning tags are disap
pearing on a regular basis. Powell’s has also
raised $20,000 from anti-9 button sales.
Owner Michael Powell spoke at the O ct 4 No
on 9 rally about the economic disaster Ballot
Measure 9 could bring Oregon.
“Nine could be the most devastating thing to
happen to Oregon’s economy in our lifetime,” he
said Powell also cited moral reasons to vote
against the measure. ‘That kind of fear, that kind
of worry, should come to no one in this country,”
Powell said.
Powell’s Special Project Coordinator Bill
McRae also cited ethics for the store’s anti-9
efforts. McRae says the decision to make a public
statement against Ballot Measure 9 is based on the
store’s concern for gay employees, its opposition
to censorship and its good citizenship. McRae
said the measure would “taint the very backbone
of the state.”
Anti-9 efforts continue a bit farther do wn 10th
Avenue at Conant and Con ant Booksellers. Roy
Conant says the store is planning to bring Jack
Castaglione, author of A Straight Person's Guide
toGay People's Anguish, to Portland. Castaglione
is also known for his work against gay-bashing in
Long Beach, Calif., where he chairs the Hate
Crimes Subcommittee of the city’s Human Rela
tions Commission. He is also active with the
police chief’s Gay and Lesbian Advisory Group,
the Lambda Democratic Club and Dignity.
Castaglione will give two presentations of his
book, one at 7:30 am and again at 7 pm on
Monday, Nov. 2, at Sun’s Cafe, adjacent to Conant
and Conant A documentary produced by KCT-
TV, Long Beach’s Public Broadcrasting System
affiliate, will be shown. The bookstore has also
presented several events focusing on bigotry in
general recently.
Conant also plans to help out financially. He
will donate 20 percent of profits for Nov. 2 to the
No on 9 campaign. No on 9 buttons can be
redeemed for a discount at Conant and Conant
after the election.
Conant says these efforts are a natural product
of the store’s philosophy.
“It’s the philosophical basis of why we’re in
business,” he said. “It’s simply not right to
practice that kind of exclusionary politics.”
Educational efforts aren’t limited to book
stores, however. ZeH’scafeonSoutheastMorrison
Street has set up a display titled “What color is
your triangle?” It features triangles in several
colors and an explanation of which groups where
assigned which colors in the Nazi concentration
camps. OwnerTom Zell says he has seen straight
people standing at the display figuring out which
The Portland/Oregon Visitors Association has
been warning Oregonians for several weeks about
the economic disaster Measure 9 could bring to
the state, and after much internal debate, the
association has decided formally to oppose die
measure.
“The visitor industry,” said POVA Vice Presi
dent Bruce Fery, “led by this organization, wel
comes all peoples to our state regardless of their
color, creed, national origin or sexual orientation.
To allow this measure to pass would jeopardize
the future of this industry, the state and Orego
nians in every community.”
POVA has estimated that Oregon could lose
over $21 million in convention business if Ballot
Measure 9 passes. Conventions that could cancel
include the American Alliance for Health, Physi
cal Education, Recreation and Dance, which would
bring more than $4.5 million, the National League
for Nursing and various education and library
groups.
This is the first time the group has taken a
position on a ballot measure. POVA released a
statement explaining their reasons for getting
involved. It reads in part: “Passage of Measure 9
would blacklist (sic) Portland and Oregon as a
convention and visitor destination by fostering a
negative message—one of exclusion, hate and
bigotry.... As the recognized voice of the [tour
ism] industry, POVA also must speak out against
this threat to the visitor industry and, thus, to
Oregon’s economy. As one of the state’s vital
economic constituents and the leader of Oregon’s
fastest growing industry, POVA must add its
name to the list of opponents.”
A POV A press release also mentions the clear
threat of a boycott of Oregon and the effect of lost
funding for police and fire services.
Facing our neighbors
Oregon’s neighbors are becoming quite
alarmed about Ballot Measure 9. Washington
State politicians and citizens are voicing their
concerns. In a press conference at the Lloyd
Center Red Lion, Washington Gov. BoothGardner
spoke quite strongly against the measure. He
pointed out that Oregon is closely tied to Wash
ington by our regional boundaries. Gov. Gardner
affirmed the diversity of people living in the
Pacific Northwest and voiced the fundamental
threat that Ballot Measure 9 poses. He was
followed by themajority of Seattle’s City Council
members.
The overriding message coming from our
neighbors was one of serious concern about esca
lating hate crimes, loss of trade—specifically
with Japan—and an abhorrence of this type of
discriminatory legislation even being on the bal
lot. Many told stories of looking to Oregon for
leadership in specific humanitarian areas. There
seemed to be almost puzzlement at the oxymoronic
quality of Ballot Measure 9 happening in Oregon.