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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 19, 2001)
g ju s t ou t » October 19 . 2Q01 U m FKm inew s PHOTO BY C e n te r Townhouses 2 Bedrooms, 2 Baths NEW PRICE $ 189 , 000 — $ 209,000 ■ NE 60th & G lisan Innovative Design Convenience erf the MAX T rans A ctivists P rotest C oncert A Model Open Sat. & Sun. 12-5 v .- <■*■ .v :<.'. . • :■ Crooin & Captan Realty Group, tnc Where good girls shop when they're looking for Daddy 36 Sw third Ate Portend, ML SOM M hde ■:?• i:?A bout a dozen protesters held signs and dis tributed fliers outside the Butchies concert O ct. 16 at the B C om p lex to raise awareness about the rock b an d ’s participation in the M ichigan W om yn’s M usic Festival. T h e event, held every A ugust, is restricted to wom en who were b o m women. Protester Lisa Zeepp, who identified as a gen- derqueer fem me, called the policy transphobic. “ I support safe space for all wom en not based on anatom y,” she said. K atie Kaput, a transsexual dyke, said the pol icy is no different from one that would exclude lesbians. “W e d on ’t think that people who co n sider them selves trans allies should be support ing them iri helping that policy continue.” A ce Popsoda, a trans boy who protested o u t side the Butchies concert A pril 24 at the C rys tal Ballroom , said the band has not responded despite repeated requests to reconsider. “T here have been countless attem pts to try to reach the B u tch ie s...an d nothing has really worked.” T h e protesters, collectively know n as the Transformers, hope to raise awareness, convince the band to reconsider its support o f the policy and, ultimately, to m ake the festival inclusive. Popsoda urged the trans com m unity to com e together regardless o f gender identity. “People in the trans com m unity who aren’t trans wom en ignore issues that d o n ’t affect them ,” he said. “T h at really angers me a lot.” The Butchies have issued statements saying they support the trans community but recognize the continued need for separatist events. The band pointed out that the festival does not conduct gen der checks and that a large contingent o f staff mem bers identify as trans, albeit female-to-male only. “W e d on ’t think that our support o f the trans com m unities and womyn b o m womyn com m u nities are in direct contradiction to each other; our support o f one does not dim inish the support o f the other,” the Butchies said. “T h ey are both equal in our hearts.” For more information e-mail transformers@freeze.com or visit the Internet site ivuw. strap-on. orgjaction. html. G ood G overnment G roup C ollects V oter S ignatures T he G o o d G overnm ent Initiative likely will qualify for the M ay 2002 ballot. C h ie f petitioner R obert Ball, a gay police reserve captain and real estate investor, told the Portland Tribune he has collected slightly more than the 27,095 voter signatures required. T h e initiative seeks to am end and restate the local charter to m ake the city operate within a system o f checks and balances. “O u r elected com m ission ers supervise city bureaus, an d with their v otes as councihm em - bers, they ad o pt o rd in an ces,” B all said. “A s long as both the law m aking an d the ad m in is trative bran ch es are the responsibility o f the sam e elected officials, there exists a natural c o n flict.” U n der the initiative, adm inistrative duties and responsibilities would be vested in the mayor, who no longer would be a m em ber o f the C ity C o u n cil. T h e am en dm en t also would increase the num ber o f council m embers to nine; two would be elected at large, and seven would be elected by districts. “ P ortlan d is th e largest city in th e U n ite d S ta te s th at co n tin u es to o p erate under the co m m issio n form o f go v e rn m e n t,” B all said. “A s our city grow s an d b eco m es m ore diverse, it is im p o rta n t th a t w e, as citiz e n s, are in volved in co u n cil decisio n s. W h e n all c o u n cil m em bers h ave only legislative d uties and seven district co u n cil m em bers h av e their offices in their d istricts, P ortlan d c a n beco m e n o t ju st ‘T h e C ity T h a t W orks’ but ‘T h e C ity T h a t W orks T ogeth er.’ ” MCC N orthwest D istrict H olds F inal C onference M em bers o f th e M etro p o litan C o m m u n i ty C h u rc h o f P ortlan d ; G e n tle S h e p herd M C C in V ancouver, W ash.; S w e e t S p ir it M C C in S a le m ; an d S iste rS p irit trav eled to S a lt L ak e C ity from O c t. 5 to 7 for th e fin al N o rth w est D istrict C o n fe re n c e o f th e U n i versal Fellow ship o f M etro p o litan C o m m u n i ty C h u rch es. T h re e clergy an d ab ou t 10 laity atten d ed . During the next two years the denom ination will transition into a structure adm inistered by regional elders, who will replace elected district com m ittees. O n e last com m ittee was elected during the conference to com plete the work o f the district. M C C Portland m em ber C h u ck H arvey stepped dow n after a three-year stint as district coordinator. H e has held other positions on this body and was coordinator o f the district confer ence for several years.
