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Fermented Grape Wine Club
Trans mission
Wine & Gifts
To th e E d ito r :
5 0 3 .3 3 5 .5 8 4 0
he Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival
protests illustrate the lack of perspective on
the part of certain elements within the women’s
and genderqueer “movements” [“Trans Activists
Protest Concert,” Oct. 19].
The Butchies defend “the continued need
for separatist events” while for years millions of
Afghani women have suffered the ultimate in
sex segregation at the hands of the totalitarian
Islamic fundamentalists known as the Taliban.
The Transformers whine about the policies of a
“womyn’s” music festival while Malaysia’s gov
ernment declared July 23 that transsexualism is
against Islamic teachings and that “men” who
have sex-change operations won’t he recognized
as female.
Meanwhile, right-wing Christian dema
gogues such as Pat Robertson and Jerry Fal-
well— inherently opposed to the separation of
church and state— continue to promote misogy-
nistic and transphobic policies for our own
country that threaten to return us to the Dark
Ages without any help from the mullahs.
Protesting the policies and supporters of the
festival does nothing to improve the lot of
countless transsexuals— at home and abroad—
whose lives are blighted and even cut short by
lack of access to adequate food, shelter and
health care. Protesting the festival does nothing
to curtail the male violence that kills transsexu
als here and abroad.
In short, protesting the festival is irrelevant
to the vast majority of transsexuals. Just as the
festival is irrelevant to the vast majority of
women.
T
w w w .form entedgrope.com
St. Stephen's Episcopal
Welcoming All People Since 1863
T I HE D O W N T O W N 1 P A R I S H #
Sunday Services • 7:45 and 10:00 am
Sunday School & Childcare at 10:00 am
Rev. Lawrence Falkowski, Ph.D. rector
1432 SW 13th Avenue • Portland, Oregon 97201
(503) 223-6424
Please join us for a three
course dining experience, and
share our passion for good
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romantic setting.
jb im n f «
tL fl'U ,
Wc armar
503 249-5001
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1303 NE Fremont St
www.creolapdx.com
C 2001 PIP Printing
M argaret D eirdre O ’H artigan
Portland
Tipping the scales ‘
To th e E d ito r :
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out of
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’m a 40-year-old lesbian fitness consultant
and sports massage therapist. My passionate
mission is to inspire and empower people to
lifestyle changes through the use of creative,
innovative and factual tools.
As queers we face potential discrimination
when we join any group or even when we go
out into the general public. Our level of appre
hension is related to our experiences with past
discrimination.
When we are out, we are open to judgment
not only for our weight or lack of physical
prowess hut also for our queemess. If we choose
not to he out or not to participate in a gym or
class, we forfeit the added support of others and
the external motivation of commitment to a
group and often financial motivations. When
we choose not to he out, we can feel vulnerable,
isolated, alone in a crowd, like a fraud, dis
counted, angry and frustrated.
Lesbians who rebel against size and weight
discrimination might he using their outward
rebellion as a defense against inwardly directed
self-hatred, repulsion and disgust, which is
incredibly painful emotionally [“Bigger Isn’t
Always Better,” Oct. 5]. I do not advocate size,
weight, gender, sexuality or any other kind of
oppression. Neither do 1 advocate excusing, fog
ging, blaming or any method of shirking our per
sonal responsibility for our health, self-care and
well-being.
How many of us feel unattractive when we
are heavy, cover up and hide behind “comfort
able clothes” with our defense being rebellion
against the oppressors? How many situations do
we refrain from participation in, and how many
activities are we not able to do? Is it because we
are heavy or because of “them” ?
I would like to challenge us as a progressive
I
I called PIP.
Ä
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and enlightened crowd to be honest and take
responsibility for our choices. If we choose not
to exercise, eat well, deal with stress and learn to
care for ourselves better, then let’s at least have
the guts to own up to our choice instead of
blaming our schedule, boss, lover or mood!
Let’s reframe our picture of health: Lack of
exercise and generally unhealthy lifestyles kill
far more of us than breast cancer or AIDS. Per
haps it is time to fight against this dis-ease with
similar vigor!
P am P edjoe
Portland
Read between the lies
To t h e E d it o r :
hinese government sources claim Falun
^ G o n g materials containing anthrax were
sent to a U .S. company in Beijing, thereby
attempting to frame Falun Gong as a terrorist
organization.
Does this make sense? What does a peaceful
meditation practice have to do with anthrax?
Why would people sending anthrax he fool
ish enough to identify themselves? Why is this
report coming out now, when the 3,000 journal
ists in Shanghai for the Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation meeting could he focusing on
China’s human rights issues?
Who to believe? The Chinese government
ran over its own citizens with tanks.
It claims no torture occurs in its jails and
labor camps despite contradictory reports from
both the United Nations and Amnesty Interna
tional. Jiang Zemin’s regime fabricated a self-
immolation incident in January (clearly seen
when the footage was played in slow motion).
It even legalized a death penalty for exposing
the establishment’s crimes. This government
tightly controls its country’s media and repeat
edly refuses international investigations.
Jiang’s current scapegoat is Falun Gong, a
practice advocating truthfulness, compassion
and tolerance. He has labeled Falun Gong’s
founder, a two-time Noble Peace Prize nominee,
an “enemy of the state.”
In more than two years of horrendous perse
cution, Falun Gong practitioners have not pro
vided Jiang with even one act of violence. Rely
ing on the public’s ignorance and apathy, how
ever, Jiang fervently is trying to portray these
people as terrorists.
With a little information and a clear mind
one easily can see what’s going on. Who are the
real terrorists?
C
S arah C ook
Portland
Thank you, readers
To t h e E d it o r :
hank you to everyone for your encourage
ment and support as we have raised
$20,000 so far for A ID S Project Los Angeles
and its efforts to provide services to people liv
ing with HIV and A ID S and to educate others
about the disease. Congratulations!
So many of you have responded so generous
ly, and your names will go on my running jersey
so you get to run the National A ID S Marathon
with me Dec. 9. And special thanks to Jim
Radosta for the flattering Just Out story, which
prompted so many of my wonderful Oregonian
brothers and sisters to donate [“Hooray for Hol
lywood,” Aug. 17].
E-mail me at JGraigory@aol.com if you
would like to participate in this group effort. We
are making a difference together.
T
J G raigory
Los Angeles