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A t a Lesbian Community Project membership meeting, the group
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n May 20, the day before the Les
bian Community Project held its
first membership meeting since
1998, transgendered speaker
Leslie Feinberg gave the group
and dozens of visitors something to chew on:
“Some people say we should put aside our
differences,” she proclaimed. “I say, ‘No.’ Lets
bring our differences to a common table.”
Twenty-four hours later, a diverse collection
of LCP members assembled around the tables of
Portland’s Bijou Cafe, munching on popcorn
and cookies. Feinberg may not have realized
how literally her plea would he taken.
Before the meeting began, member Janna
MacAuslan plucked her acoustic guitar while
women of every age, appearance and self-defini
tion mingled— it was clear this was not the same
LCP that met under tense conditions a few years
prior.
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In 1997, the long-standing Portland organi
zation struggled with a $25,000 debt; in 1998, it
faced a dilemma involving the inclusion of all
types of women— lesbian, gay, straight, bi,
trans— in the LCP “statement of purpose.”
Before October of that year (as reported in
Just Out, Nov. 6, 1998), LCP’s statement of pur
pose began: “The Lesbian Community Project is
committed to the individual and collective well
being of lesbians.”
After that edgy membership meeting, the
new mission statement (which was never for
mally adopted) said LCP was “dedicated to
building a world in which all human beings
experience full justice, equity, democracy and
liberation in all spheres of life."
Many members expressed concern that this
new statement was too broad and allowed room
for straight people, even men, to participate in
the organization. Others argued that LCP’s
devotion to the lesbian cause was implicit, no
matter how it was defined.
For this year’s meeting, the board decided to
vote on reinstating the original mission,
acknowledging that “there is not universal sup
port for this working statement.” The action was
not received with much controversy, hut it did
relight a few burners under women who felt
strongly about issues around inclusivity.
“1 came to this meeting because 1 heard it
was going to be a move away from trans issues,”
one member said.
Nerissa Ediza, a queer youth activist
employed at Basic Rights Oregon, was also
attracted to the discussion of semantics. She
noted how the original statement of purpose
excludes her because she identifies as bisexual,
not lesbian.
Later in the meeting, musical performer
Donna Luckett said, “When I
got away from LCP, it was
when 1 thought people were
trying to define me.”
A common argument was
that there are plenty of organi
zations for sexual minorities in
Portland, including bisexual
and trans groups. A few
women in attendance said
LCP is the only organization in
town that should he dedicated
solely to lesbians.
A t the end of the meeting,
the members voted on whether
to return to the original state
ment or modify it again. So as
to keep self-identified lesbians
satisfied, but at the same time
be more inclusive, some mem
bers suggested the statement
should continue to use the
word lesbian while adding “self-
identifying women who love
women" at the end.
By a significant margin,
however, the members voted
for the original statement of
purpose.
Since the mid-’80s, LCP
has held a seat among Port
land’s most respected commu
nity organizations. During its
tenure, it has sponsored events
like Women in the Woods— a
entertainment
weekend-long camping trip for
lesbians, hosted many dances,
and brought several prominent speakers, such as
Feinberg, to Portland.
Over the past two years, LCP has undergone
quite a personnel shuffle. Staff organizer Deke
Law resigned in late October 1999 to move to
Hawaii. Following her departure, then-acting
hoard chair Catherine Sameh began to pull
together a hiring committee to fill Law’s shoes.
In January of this year, Kristan Aspen began a
three-month interim position as staff organizer.
Aspen will now step down from her position
until after Labor Day. Sam eh has also
announced that she wants to devote more time
to her managerial position at In Other Words, a
nonprofit women’s bookstore.
“LCP would not be here if Kristan Aspen
had not stepped in," said board member Ama
zon Knightly at the May 21 meeting.
Following suit, much of the rest of the meet-