4
uary 2.2001
H m
i o u t
RE/MAX
S ignature
Campus counterpoint
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s a fairly recent graduate from University of
Portland, 1 would like to add some infor
mation to Jonathan Kipp’s recent article “C am
pus C onflict" [Jan. 19).
I com m end Kari Kruse for working to
en act ch an ge at the*university. S h e obviously
is co m m itte d an d p assio n ate ab o u t this
im portant cause. U nfortunately, Kruse fails to
give credit to those at the university who do
support and advocate for gay and lesbian
students.
T he article states no direct services are pro
vided for gay and lesbian students. T his is not
actually correct.
Sim ilar to N otre Dame, the cam pus does
have a gay and lesbian support group run by
the O ffice o f Student A ctivities. It has been
running since at least 1994, when I arrived as
a freshman.
Fliers are posted around campus and in all of
the university dorms advertising this group. Dur
ing my association with the group, they did not try
to reprogram me or tell me I was wrong; it was just
a place to connect with other G L B T students.
1 have not been a part of that group for a
number o f years, but I do know it still actively is
advertised and available for anyone who wants
or needs it. It also might come as a surprise to
people that Just Out has a distribution stand on
campus, located near the Student Activities
office. University students don’t even have to
leave campus to get a copy of the most up-to-
date Portland G L B T news.
Kipp also reported on the editorial written by
Jeff Lee in O ctober 1998 titled “Killing Is
Wrong, hut S o Is Homosexuality.” I agree it was
a disturbing article that made my skin crawl as I
read it.
W h at w asn’t reported was the university
com m unity’s response. T h e next two issues o f
The Beacon were filled with letters to the
editor from faculty, staff and students oppos
ing L ee’s statem en ts and voicing their support
for G L B T students. T h ere are always going to
he people who agree with his com m ents, hut
the university com m unity’s response to his
article m ade it clear he was in a m inority at
the university.
N o one is completely evil or completely
good. T his is definitely true for University of
Portland.
But while criticizing what is wrong, we also
must recognize what is right. There is work to be
done, but there is support on campus for G L B T
students.
T h ere are numerous faculty m embers,
including priests and nuns, as well as students
who are supportive and accepting o f G L B T stu
dents. T his is confirmed by the fact that many o f
FUEL’s members are heterosexual.
I support Kruse in her efforts to advance the
acceptance of G L B T people everywhere, but I
hope she is able and willing to recognize the
efforts o f those around her. They might not be
doing exactly what she would want, but they are
helping in their own way, and for that I am
thankful.
J ean M ulcahy
& S .
u n a e r ie
m en
for
w om en
Jo t, o f J O V £
oi L , L ion S ,
SPARTA0JS
224-2604
300 S W 12th Avenue
&
potion.
UAPWIDWiCOUZhS
DOO!
given the environment he was speaking in.
B ut I was raised fu n d am e n talist, an d
maybe th at’s why I heard it that way. (H o w
ever, my children will be relieved to learn I
am not buying boat oars.)
I think there are som e serious issues relat
ed to the interface o f the queer com m unity
and the Portland Police Bureau. Bringing in
the FBI to “h elp” the police do group surveil
lance is one o f those.
I find talking about K roeker’s religious
beliefs to be tired and ineffective. Furthermore,
the more some Christians feel “persecuted,”
the more they think they are doing right. A sk
Joh n Ashcroft.
1 am trying to do the Bible text o f “ By
their fruits will you know th em .” W hich
m eans I am paying atten tion to what K roeker
is doing now.
I was positively impressed with his Jan. 21
appearance at M etropolitan C om m unity
Church o f Portland. I will watch how he
responds to concerns that queer cops have about
slow or no response for backup cover.
Considering he’s for cops and says he doesn’t
like discrimination against queers, I expect he
will work to eliminate that problem quickly. I’m
scrutinizing the present, not the past.
B etty H ale
orously if necessary. P ortland Police C h ie f
M ark K roeker just h as h ad an experience
an alogou s to the com in g-out process: H is core
integrity was held up to scrutiny through the
lens o f stereotyping, w hich h as a tendency to
dehum anize. H av in g h ad this h appen to me
from ch ild h o od to the present day— I am now
65— I can appreciate h is situation.
O n the night o f Jan . 9, I attended a public
m eeting in hopes o f opening the lines o f com
m unication between Kroeker and the gay and
other m inority com m unities. He was consistent
in not apologizing for his values. Som ew hat
grudgingly, I must adm it I applaud his honesty.
M ayor Vera Katz exercised her professional
best judgm ent in hiring Kroeker, and the
brouhaha notw ithstanding, I think she did an
excellent job. O f course, 1 will be rightfully
outraged if it becom es apparent he is homo-
phobic in his actions, and 1 will take steps
accordingly.
But I am willing to practice what I call the
three C ’s— com m on sense, courtesy and compas
sion— toward Kroeker or anyone else. I never
would prostitute my values by apologizing to
anyone for them and hope these meetings with
the communities that make up our city will open
the lines o f com m unication and fellowship.
T h at would be dem ocracy at its best. S o I’ll
defer judgment.
Portland
L aurie C hilcote
Defer Judgment
Portland
To the E ditor :
One Portland
am a gay man. It is a title I wear proudly, like
human being, Am erican or Christian.
U n der no circum stances would I apologize
for my core values, w hich I would defend vig-
1
To the E ditor :
T
he m ost satisfying m om ents o f my first
term on the Portland C ity C oun cil have
n o t a b le s
Tom Blush,
1 9 5 4 -2 0 0 0
T
homas Richard Blush died o f A ID S-related
lymphoma Dec. 28. He was 46.
He was bom Dec. 18, 1954, in W hitefish,
Mont. He moved to Tumwater, W ash., as a
teen-ager.
Blush graduated from University o f W ash
ington with a music degree in 1977 and moved
to Portland in 1980. He worked as a service rep
resentative for A T & T /U S West in Seattle and
Portland for about 13 years until he was forced
to retire because of declining health.
In retirement, he spent much o f his time work
ing on his home and garden and playing piano. He
lived his last few weeks in hospice care at
Hopewell House surrounded by family and friends.
Blush is survived by his partner of 17 years, Rick
Hawes; mother, Helen Eglsaer; sisters, Leslie Kan-
zler and Claire; and brothers, Robert and Alan.
A funeral Mass was held Jan. 27 at A ll Saints
Catholic Church. Disposition was by cremation.
Omega Funeral & Crem ation Service handled
the arrangements.
Remembrances may be made to C atholic
Charities CH A T, Hopewell House or C ascade
A ID S Project.
Portland
Michael Davis, 191 2-2000
Present tense
ichael L. “Miss D” Davis died in an auto
mobile accident Jan. 14. He was 38.
He was bom Feb. 10, 1962, in West Palm
Beach, Ha. He moved to Vancouver, W ash., 32
years ago.
Davis worked as a waiter at the Last Fron
tier in La Center. He also was a member o f the
Vancouver M en’s C h oir and volunteered on
holidays, cooking and serving meals for the
homeless.
To the E ditor :
hen I first heard concerns about Portland
Police C h ief Mark Kroeker’s religious
beliefs, I wondered if he were pagan and danced
naked in the woods on full-moon nights, would
there be as much anxiety? My take on his
decade-old lectures was that it sounded like a
caring individual espousing progressive thoughts,
W
M
•t
He is survived by his mother, G eraldine H. of
Vancouver; father, Ray L. o f O cala, Ha.; sister,
Debra Fusco o f Vancouver; brother, Mark; and
grandmother, Louise Russell o f Sandford, Fla.
A memorial service was held Jan. 20 at
H am ilton-M ylan Funeral Hom e. Disposition
was by cremation.
Rem em brances may be made to the Council
for the Homeless, 2500 M ain St., Vancouver,
WA 98660.