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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 6, 1995)
» '! • V news ! J S u e Aee/> /oo \ . I i n cjooé Sf» r i'-f5 I Leather, uniforms and fantasies Cards • Gifts Uniforms and leather often go hand in glove, and this October, they’ll be even closer than that. If your fantasies involve soldiers in basic training, soot-covered firefighters, cops with boots and hand cuffs, or leather-clad bodies, you will fit right in the weekend of Oct. 6-9 at the 18th International American Uniform Association Review and Na tional Leather Association Living in Leather X. The groups have worked together to offer an action-packed weekend featuring dozens of events to choose from. Planners anticipate over a thou Balloons • Gift wrap Journals • Pens • PTC. Presents of Mind 3633 SE Hawthorne 230-7740 s a n d n a rtirin a n ts fn r th<» rn m h in p d <»v#»nts ran eH > •« rt.--: • j M - I X ....... . :> % : ? t :/:i; 1 ijb^Clinic Portland, Suite 520 n 97210- The new Mr. and Ms. NLA Portland Orchid Cavett (left) and Boy Bill Spencer Events include meet and greets, a guided uni form shopping trip, an Officer’s Mess Dinner on the River Queen with featured speakers and enter tainment, brunches, a paintball game and a swap meet. Contact Andy Mangels at 228-6935 for a com plete schedule and information. The PDX Eagle and The Dirty Duck are two of the participating bars and the Cypress Inn is the host hotel for the Uniform Review. Latina lesbian activist to speak in Portland The executive director and co-founder of the National Latino/a Lesbian and Gay Organization (LLEGO) comes to Portland as part of a Commu nities of Color Lecture Tour on Saturday, Oct. 7. Letitia Gomez has worked to give Latino/a gay men and lesbians a voice in Washington, D.C., and is the first lesbian co-chair of LLEGO. In 1986, various Latino/a gay and lesbian groups met at the International Lesbian and Gay People of Color Conference in Los Angeles and discussed the need to network on a national level. As a result of that meeting, a group now called the National Latino/a Lesbian and Gay Organization was formed. Gomez has been active in the lesbian and gay rights movement for over 12 years. She believes the gay and lesbian community “can be the model for working cross-culturally, if we would only stop and realize our collective power and resources." Following Gomez’s lecture, The Mambo Queens, an African Cuban rhythm group, will perform. The event is co-sponsored by The Les bian Community Project and Beyond the Closet and takes place Saturday, Oct. 7, at 6 pm at the Portland Metropolitan Community Church, 2400 NE Broadway. There is a $3 donation. Call LCP at 223-0071 for more information. Candidates announce bids for public office A handful of candidates who may be of added interest to the sexual minorities community re cently announced their bids for public office. Neighborhood activist and Portland attorney Frank Dixon, a Democrat, hopes to become Oregon’s first openly gay state senator. Dixon announced his candidacy Sept. 14. Dixon, who has been a Democratic precinct person and treasurer of the Oregon Lesbian and Gay Democratic Club, is running for Senate Dis trict 6, a seat currently held by state Sen. Dick Springer. The district represents Northwest and close-in Southwest Portland. As a second lieutenant in the Army, Dixon served on active duty between 1973 and 1975, in the reserves from 1977 to 1988, and holds the rank of major USAR (retired). As a consumer attorney, Dixon has represented union auto workers and Veterans for Human Rights, an Oregon group that assists military veterans and personnel, particu larly gay and lesbian servicemembers. Dixon has served as president of the Northwest District Association and chair of Neighbors West/ Northwest. He has served on both the Portland Police C hiefs Forum and the Portland Police Internal Investigations Auditing Committee. Dixon lives in Northwest Portland with his partner, Dan Volkmer. Pledging to work “for the families of Portland,” longtime activist Laurie Wimmer, a Democrat, is running for Oregon House District 12. The seat is currently held by Rep. Gail Shibley, who recently announced her bid for a spot on the Portland City Council. District 12 includes portions of North west and Southwest Portland. Wimmer is the executive director of the Or egon Women’s Commission. She lives in North west Portland with her husband and two children. Gayle Sorlien, a lifelong resident of Quincy, Wash., has filed for City Council Position One, making her what is believed to be the first openly gay candidate in North Central Washington to run for public office. Sorlien serves on the boards of the Quincy Valley Diversity Council and the Quincy Valley Habitat for Humanity. She is a member of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, and the St. Paul Lutheran Church in Quincy, which has a population of about 4,000. While in the military, as with other lesbian and gay servicemembers, Sorlien says she was sub jected to harassment and investigations for being suspected of being a lesbian. After serving more than seven years in the U.S. Army, she was honor ably discharged in 1983. Foundation sets deadline for fall grant applicants The McKenzie River Gathering Foundation, Oregon’s multi-issue social change foundation, is launching its fall granting cycle. MRG funds organizations that address the root causes of social injustice and environmental deg radation through community organizing and edu cation. The foundation will also select recipients for its “Fight the Right Funding Initiative” grant this fall. MRG will distribute $20,000 to as many as three recently formed coalitions challenging right-wing efforts in Oregon. Special attention will be given to applicants from geographical and issues areas which are often overlooked. Completed applications are due Oct. 16. To receive an application, call MRG’s Eugene office at 485-2790. Compiled by Inga Sorensen and Renée LaChance