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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 17, 1997)
, 8 ▼ Jan u ary 17 109 7 ▼ ju st out Travel the world, but call us first. H A W T H O R N E ifiR ^ E r a North Portland Veterinaiy Hospital 232-5944 1 - 800 - 232-5944 1939 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Portland, Oregon Like any family member our pets need good healthcare. At North Portland Veterinary Hospital, w e provide the very best medical care along with big doses of tenderness and compassion. 24-hour, 7-day-a-week live answering service. Voice Mail - Paging & Operator Revert Pagers/Dispatch 285-0462 2009 N.Killingsworth 800 Numbers - Order Taking Portland Salem Vancouver 503-223-1191 503-391-7270 360-693-3601 national n ew s Florida man with AIDS challenges suicide ban A terminally ill man with AIDS in central Florida is seeking to overturn the state’s 129- year-old law against assisted suicide in order to legally control the timing of his death, reports United Press International. Charlie Hall, 35, contracted HIV from a trans fusion during surgery in 1981 and presently suffers from several related illnesses, including a brain cyst which is causing seizures and a gradual loss of vision. Hall is the last living of three original plaintiffs in the suit; the other two died of cancer. The case is backed by the Hemlock Society of Florida and the Palm Beach County chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. The trial is being held in Palm Beach County because that is where Hall found a physician who is willing to write him a life-ending prescription. Hall’s trial is expected to last one week and is being heard at the same time that the U.S. Su preme Court is hearing appeals of two lower court decisions that favor physician-assisted suicide. Gay father has right to kiss partner A Washington state appellate court has over turned portions of a Whatcom County Superior Court decision which required Ward Wicklund, a gay father, to refrain from displaying affec tion with his partner in ) f front of his four chil- p j dren. According to an v& C? W Associated Press story, .v** * the original ruling in- ** eluded the children’s mother as well, and said neither parent should participate in “hand holding, kissing, etc.” with a significant other in front of the children “unless the parent is married to the person.” The appellate judges found the trial court had abused its discretion by restricting parental rights on the grounds of sexual orientation, and noted that there was no evidence that Wicklund had behaved inappropriately in front of his children. Queers celebrate Clinton’s inauguration On Jan. 18 noteworthy lesbians from across the nation will gather for the first inaugural event hosted by and for lesbians, the Women’s Inaugu ral Gala. The event is also a fund-raiser for the National Center for Lesbian Rights, based in San Francisco, and two Washington, D.C.-area ser vice organizations, the Lesbian Services Program of the Whitman-Walker Clinic and the Mautner Project for Lesbians with Cancer. Roberta Achtenberg and Debra Chasnoff have been ap pointed honorary co-chairs for the event. In related news, the Lesbian and Gay Bands of America, a San Francisco-based association of 24 bands from across the country, is one of the dozen or so performing groups chosen from among hundreds of entries to provide pre-parade enter tainment at the 1997 presidential inauguration. In 1993, it was the first openly gay organization to participate in a Presidential Inaugural Parade. Two die in fire at Wisconsin gay bar A fire that killed two men and destroyed the Main Club, a gay bar in Superior, Wis., is under investigation as a possible arson. Local authorities said the fire was considered suspect due to the speed with which it spread and because of the bar’s reputation as a place for gay men and lesbians. according to an article in The Saint Paul Pioneer Press. No evidence has yet been found as to the cause of the blaze. Autopsies are expected to confirm that the two men died of smoke inhalation. Assistant fire chief Brad Buhr told reporters that the building’s construction and age may have contributed to the fire’s rapid spread, but city records show the building had had a solid inspec tion record for more than four decades. Authorities estimated damage to the bar at more than $41,000. Neighbors and patrons of the bar place that estimate much higher. “The Main” was a cherished institution for the local gay and lesbian community and served as ground zero for activism and a variety of social causes. It was the area’s first bar to openly cater to gay and lesbian customers. Utah prepares statewide policy on school clubs Nearly a year after a controversial gay and lesbian student group prompted the Salt Lake City School Board to eliminate all clubs not aligned with school curriculum, the Utah state school board is preparing to approve policy giving local boards more control over approval of school clubs, reports The Salt Lake Tribune. According to the state board attorney, the new regulations are meant to protect school districts from liability. The proposed rules would require students or staff who wish to organize a club to develop a charter describing planned activities, and man date different degrees of club supervision de pending upon the age of students involved. While the policy specifically states that a local school board cannot prohibit a club simply because it is controversial, it does allow local boards to control the time and place of meeting; deny access to the school newspaper, yearbook, bulletin board or public address system; require written parental consent to join; and decide if a proposed club name is acceptable. In a special session last year the state Legisla ture passed a law enabling school districts to deny access to clubs that “materially or substantially encourage criminal or delinquent conduct, pro mote bigotry or involve human sexuality.” Arizona to consider anti-gay legislation Conservative state lawmakers in Arizona are planning to propose legislation that would ban gay groups from high school and university campuses and upgrade sodomy from a misdemeanor to a Class 6 felony, according to The Arizona Republic. The legislation is supported by the state chapter of the Traditional Values Coalition, a handful of conservative lawmakers and outgoing House Speaker Mark Killian. A measure banning same- sex marriages in the state passed easily last year, and the current measures are expected to pass as well. Rep. Ken Cheuvront (D-Phoenix) blames the appearance of sexuality-based legislation on the infusion into state government of Mormon politi cians with strong ties to Mormon politics in Utah. Not all Mormon lawmakers are supporting the bills, however. Rep. Mike Gardner (R-Tempe) said after what he called a “bizarre” meeting with the chairman of the Traditional Values Coalition that he will not support the measures because they seek to solve a nonexistent problem. Two students harassed in Arkansas schools Two high school students in Arkansas are being charged as adults for allegedly beating William Wagner, a 16-year-old gay student at Fayetteville High School. According to a story in The Northwest Arkansas Times, the incident oc curred three blocks away from the school, where Bradley Hufford, 17, and Jerry Lynge, 16, who