Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (May 17, 1996)
12 ▼ m ay 1 7 , 1 9 9 6 ▼ ju st o u t local news TRIANGLE i PRODUCTIONS! [ COMEDY! yO ^ Reignite the passion ' $hO>uLo bE Organizers of a May 19 vigil seek to counter AIDS apathy by outing grief—and celebration So QcU-Pied ' T by Inga Sorensen (G A Y P E E -A ) Unique selection o f gay books, magazines, calendars 9 cards Prints from the SOHO Gallery o f S.F. Popular Gay Movie Titles (rental only) • Novelty Items 331-1125 • 2544 N E B roadw ay Portland, O R 97232 BY C H A R LES B U SC H , th e c re a to r of “ Vam pire Le sb ia n s o f So d o m ” 4 percentage ofproceeds donated to local A ID S organisations Women 40 & Older You may qualify for a free Women’s Health Check ( Pap test & mammogram) M ay 17 - J u n e 22 Thurs., Fri.f Sat. - 8 pm Eligibility Family size Gross Monthly 1 $1,612 2 $2,158 3 $2,704 4 $3,796 add $546 for each additional member Preview: May 16 Main Street Playhouse 904 SW Main Street = TICKETS: FASTIXX = locations and by phone s at 224-8499, Jelly Bean l Card Shop & triangle £ productions! box office at 223-6790 ★ THREE ★ A N T I Q U E ★ ★ S-T-tt-R-S ★ ST*RS ★ ★ ★ ★ MALLS ★ ★ ★ ★ (503) 239-0346 ★ 7030 SE Milwaukie Ave. Portland, OR ★ (503) 235-5990 ★ 305 NW 211. Ave. Portland, OR ★ (503) 220-8180 ★ ★ Monday to Saturday, 11:00 am - 6:00 pm Sunday, 12 noon - 5:00 pm (Call us for directions!) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ tive privacy. I think we need to be more public— and to celebrate as well as grieve.” The Rev. Roy Cole, pastor of Portland’s Met ropolitan Community Church, agrees. “We do need to try and re-energize the com munity as well as the public at large,” says Cole, who has seen two MCC members die from AIDS complications in the past three weeks. “I think there has been sort of a national turning away from AIDS. People are very tired.... In our com munity we used to be able to say to people: ‘Be here for the cure.’ Well, now people are realizing that a cure may be a long way off. That’s a difficult reality to deal with emotionally, intellectually and spiritually.” He adds: “While that’s hard to process be cause of its enormity, it is important for us to continue remembering those who have passed away, and to try and stay involved in any way we can. »» Contract promotes women’s equity the United States’ commitment to carry out the international Platform for Action, which calls for the removal of obstacles that block women’s full participation in society. Contract endorsers “pledge to work together to overcome discrimination based on sex, race, class, age, immigration status, sexual orientation, religion and disability. We seek to end social, economic and political inequities, violence and the human rights abuses that still confront mil lions of American women and girls.” Other contract endorsers include state Reps. Kitty Piercy, Avel Gordly, Anitra Rasmussen and Margaret Carter, as well as retiring state Sen. Shirley Gold and Oregon Superintendent of Pub lic Instruction Norma Paulus. Inga Sorensen ★ 7027 SE Milwaukie Ave. Portland, OR ★ RS ★ less scourge,” writes journalist Andrew Jacobs. “Like famine in Africa and violence in the inner city, AIDS has been added to the list of problems that society ritually wails about—but has largely given up solving. In 1991, AIDS appeared in more than 2,000 headlines in the New York Times', last year it showed up 500 times.” “I, too, feel like we’re just not hearing much about [AIDS] in the media anymore. AIDS isn’t in the public eye the way it used to be, and that disturbs me a great deal,” says Bob Leverenz, executive director of Our House of Portland, a hospice serving people with AIDS. “We need to reignite the passion. How exactly to do that is a tough question, but we must try.” Leverenz is helping organize a local vigil as part of the 13th International AIDS Candlelight Memorial and Mobilization. Activities honoring those who have died of AIDS complications will take place across the country and the world. Call 248-3674 ext. 8266 Shop Portland's largest and finest selection of antiques, collectibles and extraordinary junk. W e have over 250 dealers in three locations in the city. ★ C According to Leverenz, a vigil and ceremony will be held May 19 at Pioneer Courthouse Square in downtown Portland. It begins at 6 pm. The Ainsworth Singers will perform, and proclama tions from Portland Mayor Vera Katz and Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber will be read. There will be speakers, dancers and music, as well as a presen tation of a quilt panel and the lighting of the candles. The gathering runs roughly three hours. Leverenz says in years past, the local cer emony has been held in a more private setting, such as Portland’s First Congregational Church. “We’re very pleased that this year we’re hold ing this in a very public and visible place,” he says. “I wanted to see us step out from the very cloistered confines of a church, for instance, where we have grieved and consoled each other in rela- Lesbian Friendly Providers For more information ST*RS ★ an She Make AIDS Hot Again?” screamed a recent New York maga zine cover. Perched next to the head line was a photo of glamour actress Sharon Stone, who has taken on the role of spokeswoman for one of the nation’s leading AIDS organizations, the American Foun dation for AIDS Research, a New York-based foundation that has fallen on difficult times. The gist of the article is that AMFAR and other AIDS organizations throughout the United States are “literally begging for cash,” due in large part to an overall decline in interest in the disease. “Bored, burned-out, or convinced that the disease is no longer their problem, most Ameri cans have come to view the epidemic as a relent- ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Oregon Reps. Gail Shibley (D-Portland), Cynthia Wooten (D-Eugene) and Kate Brown (D-Portland) are among a group of state dignitar ies who recently signed the “Contract with the Women of the USA,” a dozen principles for policies and programs to improve women’s lives and advance their equality in Oregon and nation wide. The contract is modeled after the Platform for Action adopted last September in Beijing during the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women. It is part of a national effort to help implement , « ... . ...................................