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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (June 18, 1999)
(une 18. 1999 • J u s t o n t fTiTi^iTl news %eattyCooi PHOTOS BV TB*CIA W eeding O ut HIV Antiques & Treasures In Eugene, Radical Faerie and HIV-prevention worker Trent Seager is planting seeds (or change yanking out a dandelion root. “I visit twice a year.... 1 miss the hickory and oak forests. It was very nice growing up [there]. It wasn’t very progressive though, it was pretty stifling.” He found a similar climate at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind. Seager says many on the 35,000-stu- dent campus seemed too close-minded to have a true dialogue about sexuality. He was dissatisfied academically, as well, and dropped out. He eventually made his way to the Pacific Northwest to attend school in Bellingham, Wash. Seager credits a group of lesbian friends at Fairhaven College at Western Washington University for coaxing him out of the closet at 23. overing directly overhead, the And they challenged him to step into the bright sun casts short shadows. shoes of others, and to challenge others to do it Trent Seager is taking advantage too. of the warm June day, yanking “Gays and lesbians are very quick weeds and spreading mulch in the to say they want to end homopho garden behind his old Victorian bia,” house says in Seager. “But, I say we have Eugene. to look within first. We have to deal “It’s about community, not condoms,” he with our own racism, sexism, clas- says, his eyes still focused on the ground. sism, ageism before we can expect Seager knows community well. A 30-year-old other people to deal with their man who heads up Eugene’s Gay Men’s Health homophobia.... You can’t get rid of a Network, he lives in the Du’-Ma Community single oppression, you have to tear it House with seven other roommates who cook, all down.” clean, eat and garden together. Seager—who embraces the word “It’s all akxit being progressive,” he says queer for its inclusiveness— is also a akuit the commune, “not just being queer.” strong advocate for gay, bisexual and Seager kneads his hands through the soil trans men in Native American, around currant bushes. It’s much like his work for African American, Latino and rural Lane County’s HIV Alliance, where he’s been communities. He says he’s even can digging for a year at what he says are the roots of celed and postponed retreats when HIV infection: a lack of community. he thought there wasn’t enough “You come out of the closet, but you don’t diversity in the group. come out into anything,” he says. “You come out “We know HIV infection affects into a straight world. [There’sJ a longing to mostly the disenfranchised popula belong—to find your family in a way that you tions. They abuse drugs, they’re peo haven’t been given. Certainly Seattle, San Fran ple of color, they’re working class, cisco—even Portland—are portrayed as being they’re rural men. So, what I really that, but they’re not.... Men put themselves at address is holistic health.... We have risk because of rejection within our community.” to make our lives worth living as Seager adds: “Feeling they’re ugly or not good much as we make our emblems [of enough—that’s more threatening than the [Ore gay pride] worth wearing,” he says. Seager’s desk at the HIV Alliance gon Citizens AllianceJ. I think [OCA chairman] Lon M akin brings us together. I think it’s our is cluttered with messages and notes near his own emphasis on looks, our issues with racism, computer. He spends roughly half his time here organizing, planning and responding to e-mail. classism, that rip us apart.” His outreach territory is Lane County. The Seager knows about being on the outside. A bisexual, he grew up playing in the forests of east thousands of square miles contain an awkward mix of urban and rural Oregon that stretches ern Indiana. “I was a little nature kiy,” he laughs while from the coast to the Cascades. “We have a lot of Portland groups that think they are Oregon—and they seem to think they speak for the whole state. Everyone thinks they’re dealing with rural Oregon,” he says. “They think they’re the progressive, cutting-edge ones—and we’re still just dealing with homo phobia. The real front lines are the rural counties." If Portland is progressive, then Seager’s approach is pio neering as he strives to expand the frontiers of HIV prevention by bringing events out of the Eugene I by Tim Joyce metro area and into more rural comers of the county. The Gay Men’s Health Network is funded through state and federal dollars, and Seager credits Portland’s Cascade AIDS Project and the Rural Organizing Project for many useful ideas. Whether a retreat at the Oregon coast, a facilitated discussion on dating, or even handing out condoms at Eugene’s gay nude beach on Glassbar Island, you won’t see Seager pushing anyone into talking about safer sex. He’s more likely to talk about his earth-based spirituality and his involvement with the Radi cal Faeries, or rehabilitating birds of prey and hunting with them in his spare time. “I rarely ever bring up safe sex. If I get queer men together, sex is going to come up. I just make sure the right information is out there,” he says. His office mate Heidi walks in and sits down to call a Latino client. (formerly Antique Attitudes) 7372 £>W Capitol Highway Portland. OP 97219 • 5 0 3 -2 4 9 -6 2 6 7 We are located In Multnomah Village near The Bridge. Call for directions. drive with Pride Ask for: * Christina Sigwart 503 256-3700 - s * OLDS-ISUZU-VOLKSWAGEN clsigw art@ hotm ail.com 122nd & East Burnside 1 800 283-0592 - - VANCOUVER HOMES Great opportunity for: Homes below $145,000 Duplexes New Construction Homes on Acreage FREE buyer consultation and $75 home inspection discount. KEN SPU RLO CK , GRI She holds the phone to her ear with her shoulder. While it rings, she says, “Trent most definitely walks his talk." She pauses and speaks Spanish into the phone, then hangs up. “He helps me lixik at the bigger picture,” she adds. Seager says he’s grateful his Kisses allow him to talk about the issues—like self-esteem and community—that are at the root of the spread of HIV. “1 think the face of HIV is changing. If out reach projects and organizations don’t change, we’ll lose the trust of the community,” he says. “I’m not an expert in this field. I count on the community to tell me what they want.” Whether weeding the garden or rooting out the problems of the queer community, Seager says he loves his job and being an activist. “It’s one-on-one contact, that’s how we make changes," he explains. “But we have to answer the question—are we the rainkiw or aren’t we.7" ■ T im JOYCE is a television reporter in Eugene and regular free'lance reporter for Just Out. 360-901-4944 503-240-8753, ext. 116 Houseken@aol.com John L. Scott Real Estate Vancouver West Coventry Cycle (V W orks The Bedt Little Bicycle Shop in the W hole Wide World (COME SEE WHY!) Open Tuesday-Sunday 230-7723 2025 SE Hawthorne
