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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 3, 1997)
ju s t o u t ▼ Jan u ary 3, '1 9 9 7 ▼ 9 " ' exoi t c • F S ilver examine a profusely bleeding cut on his leg and attempted to discourage him from waiting for an ambulance. Lavoie and his partner, Ken Ludden, then walked to a nearby hospital. Lavoie noted that neither of the rescue workers, later identified as firefighters, were wearing latex gloves, and specu lated that they may have been reluctant to treat him for fear of contracting HIV. Responding to activists’ requests, M ayor Marion Barry ordered the Fire Department in Sep tember to strengthen its sensitivity training on issues related to minorities, including lesbians and gay men. to grant a variety o f legal protections to gay men and lesbians. The action followed testimony at a public hearing on a proposal to seek legalization of same-sex marriages, however, the council chose to approve a substitute motion that didn’t deal with marriage but instead asked state representatives to: amend hate-crime statutes to include anti-gay crimes, prohibit discrimination against sexual mi norities in employment and housing, allow domes tic partner benefits and insurance coverage, and repeal Virginia’s law against sodomy. Activists and lawmakers alike foresee failure for the mea sure in the state’s conservative-ruled legislature. orb Barbs urniture and gifts from the world over Want to get new customers and retain existing ones? Let us do your newsletter... get great exposure for your advertising dollar! | Call 5 0 3 * 2 4 5 * 4 3 9 0 ... the Wizards are in! Woman owned since 1994 serving the community with affordable excellence 720 N W 23rd A ve. • 228-4388 Information sought on S/M-related laws Queer images unwelcome in SimWorld The National Leather Association International has launched a new project aimed at gathering information related to S/M and the law. NLA International’s Law Information Project will com pile data on cases and statutes in force around the country in order to provide a resource to attorneys and to members of the sexual minority and leather communities who may face legal problems due to their participation in S/M activities. Project volunteers are seeking detailed infor mation about cases in which someone engaging in consensual S/M was charged with, convicted or acquitted of a crime such as assault, or lost his or her children during a custody dispute, divorce or state agency action; or cases in which “profes sional dominants” have been arrested for prostitu tion. To facilitate follow-up research, volunteers need the names of anyone involved, the date and location of the court case, the case number where available and a brief description of the case. NLA International activists are also asking for information about state, county or city laws gov erning S/M activity, such as wearing uniforms, carrying handcuffs or knives, nudity in public or in bars, flagellation in bars and the selling of S/M paraphernalia. Send to Spencer Bergstedt, Attor ney at Law, 1202 E Pike St., Suite 1070, Seattle, WA 98122. Computer programmer Jacques Sevrin, 33, of San Francisco was fired from his job at Maxis Inc., producer of the popular SimCity 2000 computer game, for inserting male hunks and kissing boys into the background of the company’s new action game, SimCopter. The game was released on Nov. 20 and some 50,000 to 80,000 copies were shipped before the company discovered the additions. Sevrin was fired soon after, but Maxis spokesman Patrick Buechner denied that his dismissal was due to the homosexual nature of the unauthorized ma terial. According to Sevrin, the game’s complex 3-D background already included plenty of “standard female computer-game bimbos,” while all the male figures were “really dumpy, little squat middle- aged types.” So he inserted a few surprises into the program— what insiders call “Easter eggs”— which cause unexpected background effects like boys place your old windows with new vinyl custom fit insulated N ow you can re^___ ____________ lew windows. Your new windows will keep your home warmer in winter, cooler in summer, reduce condensation and sound proof your home. W e also have loors. storm windows and dc 20 years of experience in the same location makes us one i of Portland's most experienced window companies. Visit our showroom or call today for a courteous in- home estimate. -9481 INSULATED WINDOW C O R P O R A T I O N G arlan d H o m e r Owner Oregon BB » 19095 8124 N. Denver it s About Commitment, Same-sex marriage brouhaha continues While many members of the sexual minority community are guardedly optimistic about the future of same-sex marriage, state lawmakers na tionwide are scurrying to enact legislation to pre empt the expected outcome of the famous Hawaii court case. Already, 16 states have outlawed same- sex marriages, and two states have executive or ders in place that ban such unions. Similar legisla tion is under consideration in a number of states. In New Jersey, state Sen. John Scott has co sponsored an anti-gay-marriage bill, saying the issue is an economic as well as moral one and citing increased costs if employers were forced to provide benefits for partners o f homosexual em ployees. In Florida, legislation sponsored by Sen. John Grant o f Tampa is expected to pass with little or no opposition. Grant says the state has a compelling interest in restricting the legal definition of mar riage to one man and one woman because of insurance, pension and inheritance issues. The outcome is less predictable in Wisconsin, where that state’s only openly lesbian legislator, Rep. Tammy Baldwin, has vowed to sponsor a bill that would legalize same-sex marriages. Two anti- gay-marraige bills will also be considered. Baldwin says it is unlikely that a bill legalizing same-sex unions would pass, but said that simply introduc ing it will help educate citizens about discrimina tion against sexual minorities in tax law, health insurance, and hospital visitation and property rights. Meanwhile, in Virginia, members of the Alex andria City Council voted to urge state lawmakers WE REPLACE WINDOWS it s About Respect, kissing, Elvis impersonators and a greater number of bimbos to appear. Maxis executives were unamused and are pro viding a corrected software “patch” to customers free o f charge. Boy’s family declines to pursue Scondras Former Boston City Councilor David Scondras will not be prosecuted for allegedly groping a 16- year-old boy because the teenager will not be available to give testimony, according to a Boston Globe report. Legal representatives of the boy’s family, which lives in Washington, recently in formed the district attorney’s office that they will not return to Massachusetts and do not wish to cooperate with or participate in the prosecution of Scondras. The Aug. 24 incident was reported to the police by the teenager, who alleged that Scondras had met him in a hotel lobby, offered him a free movie ticket and touched his thigh in the dark theater. For his part, Scondras uenied any wrongdoing and alleged that the boy attacked him, giving him a broken nose and jaw and causing him to lose three teeth that police later found on the floor o f the movie theater. Scondras suggested that the police investigation was politically motivated because of his sexual orientation. it s About Rewriting history. it’s About ! S 7o*! Jitne! Tanja Kostic “ Experience the POWER of Women’s Professional Basketball!” Seattle @ 7 pm Atlanta @ 7 pm Jan. 16 vs. San Jose @ 7 pm Jan. 23 vs. Colorado @ 7 pm 7 pm 7 pm 7 pm Ml Wd Individual Game Tickets Available at all TicketMaster outlets and the Rose Quarter Box Office or charge-by-phone at (503) 224-4400 For groups o f 15 or more call (503) 236-HOOP GLfaiLI iife AMUKAN »AMITtAU liAOUl Compiled by Christopher D. Cuttone Feb. 6 vs. San Jose @ Feb. 17 vs. Seattle @ Feb. 20 vs. Colorado @ L it t M E s r
