2 ▼ o c to b * r 2 0, 1 0 0 9 T ju s t o ut just out steppin’ out s in c e 1 9 8 3 PUBLISHER AND EDITOR Renée LaChance contents VOL 12 NO. 24 OCTOBER 20,1995 COPY EDITOR Kelly M. Bryan REPORTERS FEATURE Boh Roehr Inga Sorensen Rex Wockner Pumps and circumstance CALENDAR EDITOR On the eve o f Coronation ’95, we take a look at the bejeweled history o f the Imperial Sovereign Rose Court (PP- 19-23) Kristine Chatwood PHOTOGRAPHER Linda Kliewer ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Meg Grace ADVERTISING REPS DEPARTMENTS E. Ann Hinds C. Jay Wilson Jr. World news Costa Rican police will undergo training to respect drag queens (P- 4) CREATIVE DIRECTOR E. Ann Hinds GRAPHIC DESIGN Rupert Kinnard National news TYPESETTER Jann Gilbert DISTRIBUTION Ambling Bear A National Coming Out Day celebration was to take place at Pioneer Courthouse Square on Oct. 11. People eager to participate came out fo r the event, not knowing organizers had canceled it fo r fea r o f rain. 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Our e-mail address is JustOut2(9aol com. guest editorial Our kids, our schools, our future When necessary, we must challenge our own internalized pedophobia enough to genuinely care about kids ▼ by Steve Fulmer rights has been a growing sense of the political clout we can t takes a whole village to raise a child.” This African muster. In the process of fighting Oregon Citizens Alliance proverb has become a motto for people who advocate ballot measures, we’ve made many new friends and strength­ for children. Its message is as real for sexual minority ened old bonds. The mainstream faith community, big busi­ people as it is for anyone else, yet the gay, lesbian, ness, moderate Republicans and leaders of other marginalized bisexual and trans communities remain shy of “kids’ groups now stand proudly beside us. issues.” Perhaps it’s because so many of us do not have Likewise, the HIV pandemic has demonstrated the awe­ children. Perhaps it’s because of the insistence by self-righ­ some power of people who care about one another to transcend teous "save the children” hatemongers that all sexual minority and even lead government response. Again, all kinds of people people are pedophiles and child molesters. And maybe it’s have reached beyond previous barriers to share our struggle for because too many of us have “come out of the closet into our life, liberty and happiness. The time has come for us to return living rooms,” but choose to deny the importance of coming out the favor— to use our new strength on behalf of the whole in boardrooms— or even in the privacy of a secret ballot. village. Don’t misunderstand: This isn’t a pitch for injecting sexual If you are a registered voter and live in the core Portland area rights into every conversation from sewers to educational you will be receiving a ballot for the local school bond levy. reform, but a reminder that if we expect to be treated as equal Measure 26-31. This is Portland’s first opportunity to support members of society then we must take all of society’s issues seriously, including sewers and educational reform— and espe­ local kids since Ballot Measure 5, Oregon’s statewide property tax limitation, put conservative (and often militantly anti- cially the issues of kids. It’s important that we expose the myths of pedophilia as an obstacle to our equality. It’s important for urban) legislators in control of local school funding. Fill it out, kids that they have as many advocates as possible. And it’s vote yes for Portland kids, and return it by Nov. 7. important to the future o f all sexual minority people— the old, As individuals and as a community, we must take our the young, even the unborn— that tomorrow’s leaders be better rightful place in the affairs of the greater village. educated, more tolerant and more creative. In our civil rights rhetoric, we like to say, “We are your Over the past two decades. Steve Fulmer has been active children (your brothers and sisters, sometimes even your moth­ in a variety o f gay and lesbian organizations in Portland. He is currently serv ing as an out member o f the Multnomah ers and fathers)." Well, the village children are ours. too. After all. our futures depend on today’s kids. We will come to depend County Commission on Children and Families, as well as on on them as surely as they depend on us right now. the Sexual Diversity Task Force and the Multi-cultural / One of the silver linings of the struggle for sexual minority Multi-ethnic Task Force o f Portland Public Schools. I The Supreme Court hears arguments on Amendment 2; A contingent o f black gay men goes to the Million Man March (PP- 5-10) Local news The Sexual Minorities Roundtable launches a Crisis Response Team; Meet 10 historical queer Oregonians (P P - 1 M 7 ) ARTS Books Virtual Equality by Urvashi Vaid examines our movement’s past, present and future (pp. 30-31) In Virtually Normal Andrew Sullivan trades freedom fo r equality (P- 33) Linnea D ue’s Joining the Tribe focuses on the needs o f queer teens (p. 34) Cinema Optioned! The tortured path from theater to screen (p. 35) Theater Miracle Theatre Group and Imago will astound and delight you (P- 36) Music Introducing a new music column: Tongue in Groove (p. 37)