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Ms. Oregon Leather talks about fantasies,
fighting discrimination and feeling invisible
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he’s a Jewish schoolteacher who wor
ships regularly, doesn’t smoke or
drink— and she also happens to be
the reigning Ms. Oregon Leather.
Upon receiving the title— which
she’ll cany for one year, till August 1999— Fal
con crossed the stage for her silver-studded sash
of office in a wheelchair. Like much of life, the
stage was accessible, but that didn’t make it easy.
“There was a really steep ramp, and some
women pushed me up it,” says Falcon, who, as a
leather titleholder, will represent Oregon
leather enthusiasts at events across the nation,
giving talks and participating in discussions
about relevant issues.
“It gives me the chance to say things I’ve
always wanted to say about inclusiveness and
m
m
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n a tive G ro c e r
Though Falcon came out as a lesbian while
in college at Lewis & Clark, she still is not fully
out as a leather fetishist and titleholder. Indeed,
she strips off the soft cowhide before going to
her job as a high school social studies and Eng
lish teacher in Portland.
“One of the reasons I use the name Falcon is
that in my professional life I have to be careful.
I don’t have to be paranoid, but I do have to be
cautious,” she explains.
A t school, she uses a tacit “don’t ask, don’t
tell” strategy, although, when asked what her
students would think, she laughs: “T he kids
would like it but the parents wouldn’t.”
How does her lifestyle color Falcon’s
approach as a schoolteacher?
“I talk about civil rights, I talk about dis
crimination,” she says. “I insist on an
atmosphere of no bigotry in the classroom
and no violence of any sort.”
She keeps posted a clarifying placard
for her students: Violence is any word,
thought or action that hurts a person’s feel
ings, body or things.
Still, Falcon says, “I feel like I have to
be invisible in all the worlds, like I can
only put a part of me out wherever I am.”
he Ms. and Mr. Oregon Leather titles
are awarded annually during the cul
mination of Leather Pride Week in
August. T h e contest opens with two
events— a Friday night meet-and-greet, as
well as a formal confab by the light of
day— that ostensibly count for a large per
centage of the final score but are somehow,
not surprisingly, overlooked.
T h a t’s because, just like the Miss
America pageant, all eyes are on the night
time stage extravaganza and its three
leather-showcasing competitions, with
contestant interviews sandwiched in
between: first, the formal fashion ensemble
with speech; second, the street look and
impromptu question; then, finally, the
“fantasy”— the part in which contestants
act out the leather fantasy of their choice
live onstage, with a partner.
In her winning fantasy, Falcon portrayed an
Amazon initiating a new member of the tribe,
giving the neophyte “tests of courage” with a
blindfold, tied wrists, blade play and wax.
She wore a leather halter top, pants and
boots, a gold chain as a symbol of rank, and held
a curved, snaking, feathered staff.
Falcon’s formal attire featured leather pants,
white blouse, leather vest and tie. Her street
look consisted of cutoff shorts, leather chaps,
vest and boots, with a white T-shirt.
“It was actually during Leather Pride that I
made the decision— I was a late entry to the
contest,” she says. “I was at a barbecue and I
heard some things 1 didn’t want to hear, but I
heard others encouraging me to enter.”
She continues: “T he leather community is
no worse and no better than any other commu
nity. There are issues of invisibility, there are
areas where we can do better and areas where we
are really great.”
Falcon has already appeared at a few gather
ings, including Powersurge, the biennial
women’s leather conference in Seattle, leading a
discussion called “Is There BDSM After Disabil
ity?"
She says, "T h e answer is yes, of course."
T
Falcon
disability,” Falcon says. “T he community is
stronger when we accept all of us, and I really
think we can do that, but it’s going to take some
effort.”
Falcon, 34, has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, a
rare genetic disorder. It’s a problem of the con
nective tissue that causes the joints to dislocate
easily, a condition she’s endured since babyhood.
Falcon can walk, but gingerly; she’s used a
wheelchair for a little more than three years,
mostly as a way to prevent injury.
Falcon’s leather is black, like her hair. She’s
got a taciturn way of speaking, often biting off
the first word of a sentence, but she also laughs
frequently, in sudden gusts that animate her
large-spectacled eyes and her wide smile.
“I’m a dom,” she says. “O n a butch-femme
scale, I’m more of a butch, but closer to the cen
ter than the far end.”
Her devotion to leather started in 1986.
"Had a girlfriend at the time who was a leather
dyke. One day when she was in the bathroom I
tried on her jacket. She caught me,” Falcon
laughs, adding, “But later that summer I got my
first leather jacket at a garage sale.”
She still has the jacket, which is black with
zippers up the front and wrists.
“I’d had the fantasies for a long time,” Falcon
says. “It’s about more than leather."
by L . S . Loving