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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 20, 1998)
LCP hypocrisy (Editor’s note: The following letter was sent to the Lesbian Community Project. A copy tuas also sent to Just Out and has been edited for clarity.) T o LCP: This letter is to tender my immediate resig nation to protest LCP’s elimination of the affir mative action requirement that three of the 12 board positions “be designated for women of color.” L C P s new bylaw stating the board will “strive to be at least 50 percent community members of color” is unacceptable. Adopting “strive” in place of “shall” is aban doning an adamant “we will” in favor of a whiny “we’ll try.” As to how well LCP complies with its whiny new “commitment” to “strive,” LC P’s bylaws were also changed to reduce the number of board members from 12 to six, and of the six people elected [at LC P’s annual membership meeting on Oct. 16], five were white and only one was a person of color. The last time I checked, 50 percent of six came to three. Exac erbating LC P’s hypocrisy is its upcoming “six- week series for white women” entitled Disrrum- tling Racism: Doing O ur Part, Anti-Racism Activism and Liberation. According to the LCP flyer distributed at the Oct. 16 meeting, among the topics covered in this series— which is “open to all white women"— are “white privilege, internalized white supremacy [and] white culture,” etc. Apart from LCP’s dangerous exclusion of women of color from its structured examination of racism, there is the irony that this organiza tion— which has not only just abolished its affir mative action policy and betrayed its new “com mitment” to racial diversity— presumes to instruct the rest of us on our shortcomings. When 1 first joined LC P back in 1994, our executive director and six of our 12 board mem bers were women of color. The LCP board’s decision to shape the world to reflect its newly adopted definition of “diversity,” which includes men and “men-identified” females, seems guar anteed to succeed, given that we already live in a society biased in favor of whites, men and het erosexuality. And since LCP is obviously unwilling to even comply with its watered-down bylaws, I have a suggestion— change the name of the organization. For some reason, “Aryan Male Community Project” immediately springs to mind. 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Media coverage of these events needs to be aggressive so that more people are made aware.” B o b T er ry Portland to udì e r e it c a m e fro m . “It reminded me how I spent a lot of my life escaping from small town prejudice to a city w with a semblance of civility and tolerance. Call 503 - 643-5002 for more information about our spas and the exceptional level of service that accompanies each one. Life has rewards. We've got one of them. Oregon Got a question that keeps you up at night? W ell get the answers you need! Contact Just Out via fax at (503) 236-1257; via e-mail at justout@justout.com; or via the U SPS at P.O . Box 14400, Portland, OR 97293-0400. v V. L ife Lias rew ards. Locations in Clackam as, Beaverton, Salem & Bend www.orhotspringspas.com \