Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 7, 1997)
14 ▼ fobruary 7 . 1 0 0 7 ▼ ju st o u t f * Food The Way Mother Nature Intended Organic Produce Natural Groceries Delicious Deli From Scratch Cruelty-Free Personal Care Vitamins, Homéopathies, & Herbs Environmentally Safe Cleaning Products Food Front c o O '» < " r 9 C oo p e ra tive G ro c e ry 2 3 7 5 N W Thurman St. Portland 0/tih p Ooily 222-5658 The Perfect Limousine for Every Occasion Tiffany Limousine has 12 limousines for your selection. We have the the perfect limousine, with 1-10 passenger availability. Prices start as low as $40.00 per hour. Tiffany Limousine 235-2341 C obb & W oodw orth Attorneys at Law 920 Crown Plaza, 1500 SW First Avenue Portland, OR 97201 503/226-0088 • 226-9005 (FAX) Serving the legal needs o f our com munity in the following areas: * * * * * Accident & Injury Claims Divorce A Custody Unmarried Couples Criminal Law A DUD Insurance Law * Litigation, State A Federal * Wills, Estates, Trusts • Incorporation A Business Transactions • • • • I Conservatorships Real Estate AIDS Lssues Employment Law for Employers • • • • Personnel Policies Workers Compensation Discrimination Wage and Hour M ontgomery W. C obb • B radley J . W oodworth ERIC B o s s é , Associate Attorney • G ail REEVES, Legal Secretary ' f f f f f f T V f f f f r COMMON CONCERNS L o n g D is ta n c e Classic Value, Uncommon Vision L o n g DiS tance For Onh^ ' 1 2 c / m i n . 24 hrs a dä^ > anywhere^ in th e U.S <rii\ o w iu d and 5 '( (il e u n ed! C allin 5 ( u rd s jin ¡lila h lc . ed to A l l ! ’»-related c h a ritie s! C all 71 •U local news On the ban wagon Washington appears likely to join the passel of states that have legislated against same-sex marriage v by Inga S orensen ohn Wilkinson chooses to embrace the bigger picture. “We think this is a great opportunity for our community to get proactive,” says Wilkinson, the media relations di rector for the Legal Marriage Alliance of Wash ington, an organization which advocates for equal marriage rights for same-sex couples. Though Washington state legislators are cur rently mulling over three bills that seek to deny equal marriage rights to gay and lesbian couples, Wilkinson believes the public dialogue around the same-sex marriage issue will only be beneficial. “People are now seeing gays and lesbians as people who are in committed relationships. We are starting to be defined by our relationships rather than what we do in bed, which is a major, major shift in thinking.” LMA, along with the grass-roots civil rights group Hands Off Washington, helped organize testimony before House and Senate committees that held hearings in early February on proposed legislation barring same-sex marriages. The fi rs t anti - mam age mea sure, House Bill 1130, was introduced by Republican Rep. Bill Thompson in mid- January. Two dozen GOP co sponsors have signed onto the bill, which reads, in part: “In the Defense of Mar riage Act, Congress granted authority to the individual states to either grant or deny recognition of same-sex mar riages recognized as valid in an other state. [DOMA] defines marriage for purposes of federal law as a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife and provides that a state shall not be required to give effect to any public act or judicial proceed ing of any other state respecting marriage between persons of the same sex if the state has determined that it will not recognize same-sex marriages. “The Legislature and the people of the state of Washington find that matters pertaining to mar riage are matters reserved to the sovereign states, and therefore such matters should be determined by the people within each individual state and not by the people or courts of a different state,” the bill continues. “It is a compelling interest of the state of Washington to reaffirm its historical commit ment to the institution of marriage as a union between a man and a woman as husband and wife and to protect that institution.” Additionally, HB 1130 cites a 1974 case in which the state Supreme Court ruled that same- sex couples may not marry in Washington. According to Wilkinson, a Senate version of the measure, SB 5398, is wending its way through that chamber, as is Senate Bill 5400, which is essentially the same proposal except that it in cludes a referendum clause, meaning that if passed it circumvents a gubernatorial veto and goes di rectly to the people for a vote. In response, LMA and HOW have sponsored community meetings statewide to strategize about how to respond. LMA also hosted a recent public meeting with Evan Wolfson, co-counsel in the same-sex mar riage battle in Hawaii. Wolfson spoke Jan. 25 at a Seattle church. State Rep. Ed Murray, an openly gay Seattle Democrat, meanwhile, countered the trio of anti marriage measures by introducing House Bill 1203, which would extend equal marriage rights to same-sex couples. That bill was a portion of former Gov. Mike Lowry’s final legislative package. Lowry, a long time gay and lesbian rights backer, collaborated on the proposal with both Murray and LMA. HB 1203 states, in part: “It is a compelling interest of the state of Washington not to discrimi nate against otherwise qualified candidates for a civil marriage license on the basis of the gender of the applicants.” It also m aintains that strong, healthy families pro mote social stability and eco nomic growth, and that these families are sup ported and protected by the contractual obliga tions and benefits con ferred by civil marriage licenses.” A similar measure was introduced in the Senate. Those bills are not ex- pected to receive a hearing in the Republican-controlled Leg islature. One or more of the anti-mar riage bills, meanwhile, will almost undoubt edly pass. Freshman Gov. Gary Locke, a Demo crat, has promised to veto any anti-marriage mea sure, and there may not be quite enough votes in the Legislature to override him. At that point, the majority Republicans can move to place the ques tion on the November ballot. “I think this is really galvanizing our commu nity,” says Wilkinson. “Like you folks in Oregon, we’re tired of being on the defensive. We’re looking to do something proactive.” That, he says, may take the form of a statewide initiative protecting gay men and lesbians from employment discrimination. “Of course our goal is to see equal marriage rights, but that may be simply too much right now,” he says. “Protection from employment discrimination will likely have more support and be more palatable at this stage.” Murray has introduced House Bill 1044, which would bar employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Meanwhile, the Lacey City Council voted Jan. 23 to extend its fair housing ordinance to prohibit dis crimination based on sexual orientation. The town of Turn water had acted similarly not long before. r What do we want? A Great Advertising Opportunity! When do we want it? NOW! Call 236-1253 to advertize in the 1997 lust out pocketbook