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I i'nuu'Ah'i S in e w s
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n an attempt to be more accessible to more
people, the Sexual Minorities Roundtable
will host a special community forum Sat
urday, June 3, at the downtown public
library.
Planned with the timing of Portland’s annu
al pride celebration in mind, the meeting is
being held to accommodate community mem
bers who can’t attend the regular roundtable ses
sions during the workweek, students in school,
and those who are uncomfortable visiting a
police facility.
The roundtable, a monthly gathering of sex
ual minorities and members of the Portland
Police Bureau, gives the police department an
opportunity to listen, Assistant C hief Mark
Paresi says.
“It’s lively. It’s healthy. It’s good,” he adds.
The forum will provide an opportunity for
members of sexual minority communities to
give input about their interaction with police.
Organizers hope the special meeting will pro
mote greater participation.
In addition, a new survey concerning bias,
violence and discrimination related to perceived
sexual orientation and gender identity will be
discussed and distributed.
The roundtable and the bureau will use the
data compiled from the survey to answer impor
tant questions about safety unique to the sexual
minorities community.
G ather ’R ound
Sexual Minorities Roundtable looks for community input
at a specially planned weekend meeting by Jo n ath an Kipp
Paresi says the police, among other things,
want to know if crimes are being reported and if
sexual minorities trust the police— and if not,
why not.
A new safety card and brochure, revised by
the roundtable, will be passed out at the meet
ing as well. The literature, usually available in
bars and nightclubs, lists safety tips and provides
telephone numbers for reporting crimes and get
ting assistance from police.
T he roundtable is also organizing a new citi
zens foot patrol that will soon appear on South
west Stark Street— and other areas frequented
by sexual minorities— to serve as the “eyes and
ears” of the police, Paresi says.
If the community utilizes the volunteer ser
vice as the program is designed, the patrol will
have an amazing impact, Paresi explains. The
foot patrol will provide information to citizens
and will help prevent problems, in addition to
reporting crimes to police.
W hile Paresi acknowledges that crimes
against sexual minorities are not unusual, he
says Portland is generally a very safe place. He
gives credit to the larger community and to the
police for doing their job, but Paresi says it is the
gay community that has taken a stand and
stepped forward and said, “It’s not going to hap
pen here!”
Paresi thinks Portland is safer for sexual
minorities than many cities because people here
are “intolerant of intolerance.”
■ The S exua l M inorities R oundtable special
community forum is open to all. The meeting will be
held from noon to 2 p.m. at the Multnomah Coun-
ty Central Library, 801 S.W. 10th Ave. in Port
land.
The roundtable regularly meets at noon on the
second Tuesday o f each month. For more informa
tion, contact Assistant C hief Mark Paresi at
(503) 823-0546.
Got news? Contact news reporter JONATHAN
KlPP at jkipp@telepon.com.
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Concerned about lewd behavior
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ocal police and parks officials are
concerned about inappropriate activ
ity at East Delta Park in Northeast
Portland.
Evidently, men are meeting at the
park and having sex in the public bathrooms
and near the pond.
The issue was raised at the Sexual Minorities
Roundtable’s May 9 meeting. Portland Police
Bureau representatives said they would prefer to
work with the community to solve the problem
before making arrests or conducting raids.
Portland police have worked with communi
ty members and the media in the past to solve
the problem of public sex acts at Lents Park, Pier
Point Park and Laurelhurst Park, according to
Assistant C hief Mark Paresi.
While the queer community is being asked
to assist police in this matter, Paresi acknowl
edges that some men involved aren’t gay.
“This crosses all lines of sexual preferences,”
he says.
The assistant chief admits that some of the
people who need to be informed about the inap
propriateness and the danger likely identify as
heterosexual and don’t read Just Out.
W hen sexual activity is allowed in public
places, the assistant chief says, drug use and traf
ficking often follow. He is concerned about nee
dles and other drug paraphernalia associated
with the trade. Paresi says drug activity creates
an unsafe environment for those who are going
to the park for sex, because drug users often can
be aggressive and violent.
"*** 19 . 2000 » j u * * ou t.7
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Drive-up service at East Delta Park on a recent weekday afternoon
Sexual activity in parks is inappropriate and
offensive behavior, according to Paresi, but it
isn’t always considered criminal. If the sex act
doesn’t involve an exchange of money, it may
not be illegal, he says.
As such, the bureau likes to work with com
munity leaders and help them inform others
that the sexual conduct is placing unsuspecting
people in grave danger. Paresi says that once
word gets out that men are having sex in East
Delta Park, the area will attract people looking
to victimize others.
“It’s inviting predators,” he says, “and they
will come.”
East Delta Park is listed on the Internet as a
place to pick up men, which particularly con
cerns Paresi. He fears that everyone on the
Internet is not well-intentioned.
Mark Warrenton, head of security for Port
land Parks and Recreation, says that when these
problems arise in the parks, he looks to the com
munity to help resolve the situation. Warrenton
says parks officials try to speak with whomever is
affected by the problem.
“Broad-based problem solving is our policy,"
he says.
Paresi hopes reaching out to the community
will solve the problem but says future arrests are
not out of the question.
“If it does not heal itself, Portland police will
take an enforcement approach to this,” Paresi
says.
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