nûvemher 19.1999 * Jatat anK .5
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J E W E L A. R O B I N S O N
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Practice vs. preaching
To the E ditor :
During the showing of Journey Toward a Hate
Free Millennium, we were treated to yet another
display of religious intolerance. [Please see Just
Out’s Nov. 5 story “Semismooth Sailing” for
more details.]
A small hut vocal group made prejudiced
statements (based largely on ignorance and mis
understanding) against a minority of historically
oppressed individuals.
And then there were the protesters outside
the theater...
In the documentary, an individual stated
that religion has caused more deaths than any
other force in history. A significant part of the
audience cheered, whistled and clapped.
I was disturbed by this audience reaction for
the same reasons I would be disturbed by a group
of people cheering, laughing and applauding the
idea that acceptance of homosexuality corrupts
society.
Such statements denigrate and insult the
character and beliefs of persons of a specified
group based on an incomplete understanding of
that group. Such statements perpetuate igno
rance and prejudice.
I read a brilliant letter to the editor recently
published in The Oregonian. The author advo
cated a vision of panhumanism, “(a]n entire
planet whose citizens treat one another with
dignity and respect.”
As the LGBT community, we are uniquely
poised to fulfill this vision. We are the only com
munity on the planet whose members cross
every racial, ethnic, geographic, ideological,
religious, gender, age and socioeconomic divi
sion in existence.
We have the ability to fulfill this awesome
panhumanistic vision, but we seem to lack the
commitment as a community to do so. And
without the commitment to individually prac
tice what we preach, this author’s excellent
vision of panhumanism will remain hollow and
unfulfilled.
I’m not sure why we— including myself—
continually fail to treat each and every person
with dignity and respect. Perhaps we are afraid
of our own weaknesses and failings. If we can
blame some external force or institution (reli
gion, schools, capitalism, the Republican party,
the military, or just another person) for igno
rance and hatred, we don’t have to admit that
we commit the same acts of prejudice and igno
rance as everyone else. Perhaps we are arrogant
or insecure in ourselves, so that our first instinct
is to treat others with suspicion rather than
trust, to always see the worst in others rather
than the best.
I really have no idea about the causes, hut I
think I understand at least part of the solution.
To eliminate prejudice and hatred, we must
seek the truth about the people around us
through compassion, understanding and love,
before we judge them.
As another speaker (a priest, no less) in the
documentary said, we cannot demand uncondi
tional love and respect from others unless we are
willing to give it ourselves. We cannot choose to
love, respect and treat with dignity only those
people similar to us, the people we understand.
We must make that extra, and often painful,
effort to seek full understanding about those
OFFICE (503) 281-4040
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around us without exception. Because, if we
make demands of others we ourselves are unwill
ing to fulfill, we are nothing more than hyp
ocrites.
1730 N.E. 10th Avenue
Portland, OR 97212
J oel C orcoran
Portland
Film review revision
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To the E ditor :
We would like to thank our co-hosts Kurt
Hunter, Craig West and Mark Heinkel, and
everybody who attended our annual fund-raiser
Halloween Party II.
For the second year in a row, this event raised
money for Portland’s sexual minority communi
ty. Door receipts this year totaled more than
$715, all of which will go to this year’s benefi
ciary, the VOICES program of Outside In.
Since 1968, Outside In has been making a
difference in the lives of homeless youths and
other low-income and marginalized people.
One-third of homeless youths are sexual minor
ity or are questioning their sexuality, and have
often faced intolerance at home and school.
VOICES is an activity-based, weekly support
group for these youths, providing support and
peer community through acceptance and cre
ativity.
The Halloween Party was organized last year
to be an annual event where funds are raised
and donated to less visible organizations. Last
year’s recipient, the Gay and Lesbian Archives
of the Pacific Northwest, received $530.
Ou'
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To the E ditor :
The person covering American Beauty I
think missed the point [“The High Cost of
Hate,” Just Out, Nov. 5],
Spacey’s character wasn’t killed because the
killer thought he was gay; he was more a catalyst
for the killer’s admission of his own feelings. The
killer was tom between dealing with his own
sexuality and years of having it engraved in his
head that being gay was wrong.
Spacey was killed because of the killer’s
humiliation at rejection— not because of homo
phobia. Well, not directly. Does that make
sense? Spacey’s character wasn’t at fault, just in
the way.
& Í3
Prudential http://www.
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She’s still got it...
The Portland Area Business Association
honored Darcelle XV with its 1999 Commit
ment to Our Community Award during the
group’s Nov. 8 awards banquet.
PABA bolsters gay-owned and gay-friendly
businesses. Darcelle was recognized for her three
decades of fund raising and community
activism.
-,
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