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Continued from Page 9
But before Ball sent the letter off, his phone
rang. It turned out to be Kroeker.
Ball shared his disappointment and con­
cerns and gave the chief advice about how he
might make things right. “I feel like I did the
right thing,” he said about standing up to his
superior officer.
Days later, Ball received a second call from
Kroeker. He said his boss was upset and con­
cerned— and most importantly genuine.
Ball now thinks Kroeker has learned
through the years and has changed. He doubts
the chief’s words of a decade ago are his current
beliefs and thinks his challenge will not be to
convince his officers but to convince the rest of
the community.
S ome S upport K roeker
he Oregonian has come out swinging on
Kroeker’s behalf. The paper acknowledged
that part of public life requires dealing with sit­
uations like this.
“But the chief’s religious faith is his busi­
ness," the Oregonian said in a Nov. 1 editorial.
“We should not— and, as a practical matter, we
cannot—judge him for what’s in his heart.”
Others agree.
Portland Lt. Michelle Lish, a member of the
Sexual Minorities Roundtable, a sort of bridge
between the sexual minorities community and
the bureau, told the Oregonian she hasn’t seen
Kroeker do anything inappropriate to the gay
community.
And Lish said Kroeker doesn’t bring his reli­
gious beliefs to work. “I believe people have a
right to the freedom of religion,” she said.
Portlander Alan Batie admitted Kroeker’s
comments don’t thrill him but acknowledged he is
entitled to his opinions. “W hat counts is whether
he’s acting on those thoughts in his job as chief of
the police,” he wrote in an e-mail to Just Out. But
Batie said if Kroeker lets his bias influence who the
bureau serves, then he should be fired.
T
A n O ffer
to
M eet
he Rev. Roy Cole, senior pastor of the
M etropolitan C om m unity C hurch of
Portland, is asking for Katz to reconsider
Kroeker’s employment. He was one of the
original signers of the 1994 partnership agree­
m ent between the sexual minorities comm u­
nity and the bureau. “It is imperative for the
continued safety of all her citizens that Port­
land is afforded leaders who share the
core values of her citizenry and elected
officials,” Cole said.
He has extended an invitation
to Kroeker and the com m unity to
speak to each other at the church.
T he chief said he plans to continue to
address the gay, lesbian, bi and trans
com m unity and would agree to a meet
ing in the near future.
T
G lobal I ssues
u T T tit what does he think
1 I now? What has he
learned? How has he changed.7”
Balboa said about what he
hopes to hear from Kroeker.
“As a citizen, I think I have a
right to know his views. It
makes me suspect.”
And the media are now curi­
ous as well. Mazza said the Los
Angeles Times recently requested
C h r i s t i n a S ig w a r t
the tapes from him. And others say they are busy
digging into Kroeker’s past.
In fact, his name appears all over the Inter­
net because of his long tenure at the LAPD— as
does the fellowship he has been in association
with for more than a decade. And it turns out
the group is not only anti-gay but is linked to
conservative Christian groups with anti-gay
beliefs across the globe.
The Internet site of former LAPD officer Bill
Rhetts is filled with ultraconservative state­
ments. He is well-known for his anti-gay views.
Rhetts sent a carbon copy to Kroeker this
year of a letter he wrote criticizing affirmative
action efforts in the LAPD. Kroeker told Just
Out he doesn’t know who Rhetts is.
But Rhetts knows Kroeker and told Just Out
he worked for Kroeker for 10 years. Rhetts said
Kroeker speaks at many functions and churches.
G etting P ast T his
~-ew are calling for drastic measures. Most
want to see how Kroeker handles the com­
munity and are awaiting a retraction of his state­
ments—even if just ceremonial.
Others are watching Kroeker with a hawk’s
eye. One misstep and they will be ready to
demand aggressive action.
And still others aren’t that concerned. Some
chalk it up to internalized homophobia.
“Sometimes I think that we accept small
steps towards inclusion rather than expect the
full respect and human dignity that every person
in the community deserves,” said Matthew Nel­
son of Equity Foundation.
Some are blaming the election. People are
distracted and only can handle one thing at a
time, they say.
In any case, Kroeker still is showing up to
work at his downtown 15th floor office with a
smile on his face. He generally comes across as a
happy, good-hearted guy. He talks softly and
seems like he wants to make things right—even
while refusing to do so.
He said he is troubled. He said he hasn’t slept
much in recent days.
Evidently, it is difficult for someone trying
to compartmentalize his life and do the right
thing and feeling so misunderstood. Sound
familiar? j n
f
To contact M ayor V era K a t z , call
503-823-4120 or visit the Internet site
w w w .ci. Portland. or. us/mayor.
J onathan K ipp is a Just O ut staff reporter
who can be reached at jkipp@teleport.com.
503 256-3700
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