Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013, November 03, 2000, Page 24, Image 24

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    24 J u f t M t * novemùei 3. 2000
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1
9
ÉwÉ
L ine
on the
As the dead-heat race
nears the finish line,
w orried families
speak out
Ü
M
Stories by Jonathan Kipp
Photos by M arty Davis
s Election Day fast approaches,
■Eg
gay and lesbian parents are
;
'
holding their breath, wonder­
ing whether Measure 9 will
pass Nov. 7 and literally
change their children’s lives.
Their kids already have to deal with judg­
ment, harassment and ridicule— even violence.
They worry that their children’s challenges will
grow even greater should Measure 9 pass.
Certainly, lesbian mothers are speaking out
Polls indicate a dead-heat race. Although
against the initiative. They will do whatever it
voters rejected two previous anti-gay ballot
takes to protect their children.
measures during the past eight years, this years
They say school is at the center of their kids’
effort to codify homosexuality in public schools
lives, and they want them to feel supported and
has at least an even chance of winning.
protected there. They flare at the thought of the
Some privately fret this might be the year the
O
C A making life more difficult for their chil­
Oregon Citizens Alliance finally gets a strong­
dren, who already have enormous struggles out­
hold on the state’s lawbooks after years of failed
attempts. Few boast of an imminent defeat.
side the warmth and safety of their homes.
The measure would prohibit public
But the kids— who aren’t just
schools from encouraging, promot­
programmed to say what their par­
ing or sanctioning homosexuali
ents want— are speaking out,
Measure 9 passes, too. Even elementary-age chil­
ty; state funding would be
withheld as a consequence
dren understand what Mea­
I
w
ill
be
uncomfortable
for violators. Its vague word­
sure 9 could mean, in real
ing leaves many voters
terms, to their lives.
going to school
wondering what the out­
because m y fam ily
come would be if it is enact­
ove Makes a Family, an
ed into law.
international organiza-
w ill be discriminated
Some parents are worry­
tion providing a public voice
ing in private, paralyzed by
against."
for sexual minority families,
what they consider an attack on
gave parents and kids an oppor­
—
Briana
their family; others are mad and
tunity to address Oregon voters
have decided to speak out. And while
during a press conference O ct. 23 at the
fiercely protective of their children, they are
World Trade Center. The children’s words
not attempting to keep them in the dark about
were most compelling.
Measure 9.
Briana, a fourth-grader at Portland’s Buck-
O n some level, the kids understand cer­
man Elementary, said she was teased when a boy
tain people think their families aren’t as
saw her and a female friend walking arm in arm
acceptable as others. Even young children—
through the school’s playground. He asked them
whose typical worries are about family pets,
if they were lesbians.
pending art projects, spelling tests and
Briana fears such comments wouldn’t be
upcoming piano recitals— fear what might
discouraged should the initiative pass. “If Mea­
come with the passage o f Measure 9.
sure 9 passes, I will be uncomfortable going to
"If
L
One of 5-year-old N ico s mothers, Jane Scolieri, promises to fight back if Measure 9 passes
The Last Time?
L
on Mabon, at the helm of the Oregon Citizens
Alliance since its inception, has implied that
the defeat of Measure 9 could mean the end of
his organization. It lost its two previous anti-gay
efforts and has failed at multiple attempts to put
initiatives on ballots throughout the 1990s.
Defeating Measure 9 could put the final nail in the
O C A ’s coffin, as it faces mounting legal troubles, dwindling
donations and obvious public relations problems. This is a
history of the organization:
*1 Q Q
l y O
i
“I Q O O
A
OO
The OCA might go away if Measure 9 fails
The O C A was founded in Klamath Falls. Lon
Mabon was named the executive director.
The O C A ’s Measure 8 passed, rescinding Gov. Neil
Goldschmidt’s executive order prohibiting discrimi­
nation based on sexual orientation in state employ­
ment. The Oregon Court of Appeals later ruled the
measure was unconstitutional. The executive order
remained on the books.
1
Q Q
^ ^
1 Q
A ^
Q
1
9
»
T h e O C A proposed a ballot measure to declare
“pedophilia, sadism, masochism, homosexuality,
bestiality and necrophilia (sex with a corpse)
are recognized by this sate as abnorm al, unnat­
ural and perverse con d u ct.” T h e measure even­
tually was withdrawn.
The O C A rewrote the 1991 measure, eliminated
necrophilia and resubmitted it. Measure 9, a consti­
tutional amendment to the Oregon Bill of Rights,
would have forbidden the state from “promoting
homosexuality.” It failed 56 percent to 44 percent.