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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (June 6, 1997)
j u s t o u t ▼ ju n e 6 . 1 9 9 7 T i l Long Beach, Calif. Bennett, 41, now an executive at Southern California Edison, began coming out to family and friends in 1995, and came out to Doman in February 1996. W hile some are predicting that Bennett will be shunned by conservatives and taken advantage of by liberals, a few pundits say he’s still a viable future candidate for public office. “All this will do is let Brian know who his real friends are,” said Sam Roth, public affairs direc tor for the Orange County M edical Association, which considered supporting Bennett when he briefly announced for a state Senate seat in 1993. Political consultant E ileen Padberg said Bennett is a solid strategist who has always been seen as independent and not beholden to the G O P’s power structure. Some in the party, including Frank Ricchiazzi, founder o f the local chapter o f Log Cabin Repub licans, are not so optimistic. Ricchiazzi warned Bennett of liberal Democrats who would seek to exploit him, and said he will likely experience marginalization in strongly liberal gay and les bian organizations. Doman, who reportedly kissed Bennett and said he loved him like a son when Bennett came out to him in 1996, said Bennett “has no future in the Republican Party in Orange C ounty,” and attributed his recent public announcement to “self- indulgence.” Queer prom date gets mixed reception The fact that Jacob Eiler, a gay high school student in Anderson, Ind., brought his boyfriend to the senior prom upset some o f his fellow students but didn’t disturb the school principal. according to a press statement issued by the M on tana Human Rights Network. The law makes any sexual contact between consenting adults of the same gender a felony punishable by up to 10 years in jail and a $50,000 fine. In February 1996, a Helena district court judge ruled the law unconstitutional and ordered the state not to enforce it, prompting the state to appeal to the high court, which is expected to give its ruling by mid-summer. Casual Dining Piano Lounge Game Room Courtyard Seating 120 N W 3rd A v e Open 4:00 pm Daily Parking Validated Front & Davis Garage North Portland 224-3285 According to the statement, the prosecutor conceded that there is no compelling state interest to regulate the consensual sexual activity o f adults, but argued that there is no right to privacy regard ing sexual conduct, whether hetero- or hom o sexual. MHRN says he then suggested that het erosexual sex might be protected on the grounds of reproduction or the sanctity of marriage, prompt ing the justices to ask what one should expect to be covered under privacy laws if not sexual activity. Montana Citizens for Decency through Law, an organization the MHRN says has sponsored failed legislative attempts to censor materials in bookstores, video stores and libraries, filed an amicus brief expressing its opinion that it is inap propriate for the court to be “making political, moral and public policy decisions,” decisions it says should be up to the Legislature. The opinion was supported by the Christian Coalition o f M on tana and 19 current and former state lawmakers. The six plaintiffs in the case have the assis tance o f the MHRN, PRIDE! and the Northwest W om en’s Law Center of Seattle. Veterinary Hospital Fine & Funky Films ★ Foreign ★ Classic ★ Cult Gay Pride Special Jurfe 17-22 Your favorite gay A lesbian m ovies Tues-Thurs & Sun 12-9 pm Fri & Sat 12-10 pm 2940 NE Alberta Á 288-4067 Like any family member our pets need good healthcare. At North Portland Veterinary Hospital, we provide the very best medical care along with big doses of tenderness and compassion. 285-0462 2009 N.Killingsworth New listings: Five Bedrooms 2 Baths Updated Kitchen Hardwood Floors Music Room/Den 2 Car Garage Personal ads reveal queer gender conformity The Associated Press reports that Principal Rodney W atson said the matter generated more fuss than it merited: “Jacob Eiler claims he is gay and is escorting a boy to the prom. W hat’s the big deal?” While the evening passed without the harass ment Eiler had feared, the tires o f his car were slashed the day before the dance and one former friend rejected him outright, calling him a dis grace to the school and to the town. Eiler, an honor-roll student who plans to study nursing next year at the University o f Indiana, said he w asn’ t trying to be political or contentious— he simply wanted to go to his prom with the person he likes most. He told the AP he realized he was gay at age 13 and told his parents three years later. He no longer lives with his family and currently shares a home with a lesbian friend. “Neither o f my parents likes it that I’m gay,” he said. “My mom hates it and my dad has swept it under the rug. I’ve lost family and friends over this.” Montana’s sodomy law is foundering The state prosecutor’s arguments in favor o f M ontana’s Deviate Sexual Conduct Law were not well received by the state’s Supreme Court justices at an April 11 hearing of Gryczan ks . Montana , a constitutional challenge to the law being mounted by six gay and lesbian plaintiffs. Psychologist Michael Bailey made quite a stir at A pril’s “Sexual Orientation, Biology and Soci ety” conference in Boston by presenting research illustrating that gay men and lesbians are much more loyal to gender stereotypes than one might expect, reports the Washington Blade. Bailey’s data, gathered mainly from personal ads placed in queer publications, show that 98 percent o f gay men described themselves in stereotypically mas culine terms and 59 percent o f lesbians described themselves as “feminine” or in similar terms. In addition, Bailey found that 96 percent of gay men submitting ads were seeking men with stereotypically masculine qualities, and 80 per c e n t o f le sb ia n s s u b m ittin g ads so u g h t stereotypically feminine partners. Responding to criticism that these results might simply reflect the sort o f people who place per sonal ads, Bailey cited further studies he had done involving people who never placed ads, which bore out the results and “suggested strongly that gay men and lesbians have a preference for part ners who are sex typical.” But not always. Bailey noted that while lesbi ans tended to describe themselves and their de sired companions in feminine terms, they pre ferred partners to behave in more masculine ways. Ultimately, Bailey was hesitant to over-inter- pret his findings, but he indicated that the gender makeup o f couples has a lot to do with observed differences between homo- and heterosexual pairs, and said that “homosexual people are basically just like straight people” in many ways. Compiled by Christopher D. Cuttone Classic Alameda Craftsman $309,000 Alameda View $589,000 View, view, view Four Bedrooms 3 1/2 Baths Master Suite with Private Study Hdwds thru-out New Kitchen & Baths Marble Entry Tim Walters 503-287-8989 ext. 127 Pager: 503-301-7009 Platinum Club Member t ir CQUAL M O U SIN G OFFOftTUNIT T m RPAITOR* R E A L T O R