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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (June 17, 1994)
just out r ¡une 17. 1004 Y 3 c£a^m^a/Lci/ 3 " ^ Small dose of healthy denial T o the Editor: The film Living Proof [shown recently at Cinema 21 ] was very w ell done. The perfect blend o f humor and reality. I noticed that so many o f the subjects seemed to be using what they called “ healthy denial” to work themselves into a posi tive state o f mind. For some it was a “ we don’ t have to die from this disease” attitude, which takes a kind o f rebellious stance towards a media and society that says we w ill all die— those o f us infected with the vims. It becomes an angry response to a death sentence. The narrator tells us, “There are more people living with H IV than there are people who have died o f A ID S .” The film then focuses on the living and gives the viewer a chance to witness the beautiful, life- affirming face o f AID S. A ll in all, the film strives to balance the effect o f so much death, doom and gloom that is already out there. I, too, am tired o f doom and gloom. After I got out o f the hospital, I was convinced the end was near. Family, and people I hadn’ t been very close to, reached out to me. I surrounded myself with those who would be willing to face the horror o f death that I was experiencing so dramatically. I needed that, and so did they, at the time. AUTOBODY 2454 Salem E. (503) 232-3600 BURNSIDE • PORTLAND. OR 97214 Family Owned & Operated Since 1952 „.T ravel A gents H I nternational 917 S.W . W a sh in g to n St. P o rtlan d , O R 503 223-1100 .*••. \ V .\S \V . V.*. V . V .• . W .W . S W . N V . V .* A 'A V S W V .W W N W Unions can protect you 800-357-3194 A S V . W .S N ^ '.'. V .V . V N S S N W .V . N W iW •N\SSN\S^\\SV%S\V ' N W . \ W . * . W . \ \ W . ,A*.\S V .\\V .V .?.V .* • V . V . ’.NV.*. V A '. WS*.* X \ s s s \ \ * .\ \ v X \ \ s * .N\S\SW .SS,,S S S V .N S U S \,.N N\\\SSSW . s v .;.\ s \: a v .\:.\ s v !\ v .v (<Rfason S of Seven) 5m £1 0 0 * 0 0 0 F lig h t In s u r a n o o .. .w ith o u r C o m p llm o n ts l Travel Agents International includes a $100,000 Flight Insurance policy w ith every airline ticket w e issue. (Does not apply to tickets purchased through an air consolidator.) Proudly Announcing: TravelAgents International Jfas been selected by the N ational Lesbian Çay Lawyers Association as the Official TravelAgency f o r their annual N ational Lavender Law Convention, mon, coming to (Portland October, 1994. 9 Youth advocate and teacher w ill he missed f WHEEL ALIGNMENTS & TIRES Portland TRANSITIONS Richard S. Gurney passed away in his home M ay 28 from complications o f AID S. He had been battling the disease for over 10 years when he succumbed to Kaposi’ s sarcoma at age 55. Bom in Chicago in 1939, Gurney was schooled in Madison, Wis. He graduated from West High School in 1957. He attended Arizona State Uni versity and received his teaching degree in 1961. Gurney taught for 31 years before having to retire, due to HIV/AIDS-related disability. He taught for two years in Grandview, Wash., fo l lowed by five years at Jefferson High School in Portland. The last 24 years o f his teaching career were at Aloha High School in Beaverton. Gurney became an activist for equal rights for all sexual minority teens in his last years as a teacher. A fter his retirement, he worked on sensitizing schools and staffs on providing safe havens for gay, lesbian and bisexual students. He also became a big brother to youth needing a role model. 8302 N. Lombard • 286-1330 W illiam M. Trayfors Ann Montague, co-chair Service Employees International Union Lavender Caucus ^ c / ià y LOCATED IN HISTORIC ST. JOHNS PROUDLY SERVING THE GREATER PORTLAND AREA N o w I am o v e r the shock, and I need to re cover some kind o f nor malcy in my life. I feel like cutting myself o ff from the people I reached out to be cause I don’ t want to be seen as “ the dying one” any more. I ’ m enjoying the time 1 spend with my friends who are H IV positive because there is an easy acknowl edgment o f the situation, along with a desire to get on with the living. T o the others, I am "the friend who has A ID S .” They w ill ask me, “ H ow are you doing...physically? H ow are you dealing with not w orking? D o you need anything?” These are all very kind and thoughtful, but they drain me. They drain the desire to m ove on and live. T o live freely and positively with a small dose o f “ healthy denial.” T o the Editor: In response to the letter by Pat Mohr [ Just Out, April 1, 1994] regarding her concern about em ployment discrimination against lesbian and gay state employees at Oregon State University: Those employees who are represented by Oregon Public Employees Union do have legal protection from employment discrimination. Mohr is right that until we have a state civil rights bill all state employees will not be protected unless their union contract specifies “ no discrimi nation on the basis o f sexual orientation.” In the meantime, if you do not have a union— get one. I f you have a union which does not protect you— you need to get it into your contract. o A Good Luck and Travel Safe, to all members, partners and friends of t e a m P o r t l a n d at the Gay Games in NYC. Thanks for all of your support! DOES YOUR OFFICE HAVE BUSINESS / CORPORATE TRAVEL? We combine the benefits of a large corporate Agency, with the convenience and attention to detail found in Individally owned and operated agencies. Richard S. Gurney a.ka. Agnes Gooch He was a member o f Educators for Equity, the National Education Association Gay and Lesbian Caucus, Project 10 in Los Angeles, B A N G L E in San Francisco, and A M F A R . Gurney is survived by his mother, Agnes A. Gurney, o f Madison, Wis., his son, Alex, and his wife, Karla, o f Anchorage, Alaska, his grand son, Erik, and his companion and lover, Daniel. Upon his request, no services were held. Gurney’ s ashes were spread over the ocean. A ll remembrances should go to the Brinker Fund o f the Cascade A ID S Project, 620 SW 5th Ave., Portland, OR 97204. Let us introduce T.A.I. services and benefits to your Travel Arranger. 223*1100