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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 16, 2001)
novamber 1 fl. 2001 . EJïEEïll out RUTH T H O U G H T SHE HAD T W O L E F T FEET. opposed survivor benefits for domestic partners, blamed the terrorist attacks on progressives and continued to lobby against gays in the military even as soldiers are sent to risk their lives. And now this. I urge you to speak out by e-mailing Commissioner John Busby at SA_Infor- mation@usn.salvationarmy.org. 1 also would sug gest that rather than giving to national organiza tions, choose the charity that best reflects your val ues, check out its policies and give directly to it. So when you’re out shopping and you see the little red bucket, tell the friends you’re with about the Salvation Army’s policy of discrimination. Because in a season of giving, we should value above all the gift of human dignity and equality. R oey T horpe Basic Rights Oregon Executive Director Older but w iser and compassion. I was moved to tears by some of the special articles and letters to the editor and want so much to make a difference and to com bat the hatred that the gay community has had to endure. N o one should have to live in fear. I am a grandm other and have three chil dren who I have brought up to respect others and treat everyone in the same m anner and, above all, not to be judgmental. They are fine examples today. Your publication has helped me further to understand the gay com m unity and how terri bly difficult life has been for you. I am encour aged, in my association with much younger people, to see an acceptance of their fellow man. They are much more generous th an my peer group, o f w hich I am som etim es ashamed. So, this letter is to say that I support gay rights to the fullest and those of my gay friends. Thank you again. To the E ditor : I recently was sent a copy of your newspaper, Just Out, and 1 want to thank you for your courage M ary R W astcoat New London, N. H. (B O Y , DID W E PROVE HER W R O N G .) irtte B ro k ^ ^ a tW e i ,k e t e t ^ ke ^ e n t ln n ° v a B^ver n e ^ ce \> te n er tW e A.t*etv ü fe: Visit our website or call 503-289-2209 for the class nearest you. $ 7 P e r W eek to experience this feeling— kind of like being pushed out on a cultural ice floe to die. Sorry, folks, not yet. J esse J ordan Portland • • • throw up. It diminishes all the years of coming out, the marches we did, the press, the votes on laws and ordinances and all of the explaining we did to all of our straight friends. It is the epitome of hate to me, and I hate it. B on n ie T inker Love Makes a Family Executive Director • • • his obviously is a generational issue. Older people who grew up with the word being used in a malicious way are offended by it. Those who are younger and who have grown up in a more accepting environm ent have not had to endure the word and therefore don’t have the negative reaction to it. I have used this analogy to those I work with: If someone is coming up to stab me and I take the knife away and stab myself, 1 still am going to feel pain. T he w ord'm eans “strange” and “odd,” and I don’t see myself as either. T • • • L ike Joe Jackson says in the song, “Don’t call me a faggot unless you are my friend.” Same goes for queer. It can be a word that makes me feel proud or pained. Depends on who’s saying it and how it’s said. B ryan U t t o San Diego • • • E ven though 1 am 4? years old, the word makes me feel cold, sweaty and ready to • No contracts or membership fees. • Convenient times/locations jazzercise www.jazzercise.com s a 65-year-old I’m for taking “queer” back. I use it with gay friends and with straight friends who know I’m gay. A G lenn H eiserman Portland • • » P ained isn’t the word; insulted is more like i t As a youth with epilepsy and a left hand that never has worked correctly, 1 have been called such hurtful things as “gip,” “chip,” “retard” and “spaz.” I get the same kind of reaction from “queer.” It is one of those words like “nigger” and “spic” that never should be a part of anybody’s vocabulary. T h e only way we can stop the hurt is to purge these words from our society. We need to stick together in unity, not divide by using lan guage that can hurt so many people. S c o t t E. S tierle Portland • • • I N ick E llington Hillsboro •No experience necessary. • W e fit every body. P aul S. H oefle PrineviUe I think a strong case can be made for using the word “queer.” It’s much easier to say than “LGBTQQ” or “sexual minorities,” and every one knows what it means. W hen someone is startled to hear it used positively, there is the opportunity to explain that “gay” used to be the bad word and that “queer" was a euphemism. Besides, our move m ent’s future is in the hands o f the youth, and they already have decided that “queer" is the way to go. I’m ready to follow their lead! 8 week minimum purchase New customers only first identified as a “queer fellow," but it made my ex uncomfortable, so I settled on “gay.” It doesn’t make a lot of difference to me, but if it lessens the segregation between LGBT factions, I’ll be here, QUEER and without fear! The Waddell & Reed Rules o f Investing Success Start. Now. O f you haven’t saved enough for retirement or your kid’s college, now’s the time to start. And the place to start is with a plan from your personal advisor at Waddell & Reed. We can take you through a step-by-step process to create a plan specifically tailored to your family’s needs and goals. Then we can offer you a full range of mutual funds and other investment products to help you reach them. It doesn’t matter where you are today. The question is, where do you want to be tomorrow? Start to find the answer with a call to Waddell & Reed. WADDELL T homas H orton Portland Financial Services* next 1 14.4! hi Do you feel H IV prevention tactics are effective in reaching out to high-risk groups, or do they enable dangerous sexual behavior by failing to stigm atize prom iscuity? Respond a t w uw .justout.com . (Don’t forget to include your nam e, city and daytim e telephone num ber.) w addell.com M em b er S IP C Eric B row n, D istrict M anager 500 N E M ultnom ah Portland, O R 97232 503.238.6036 Investin g . W ith a p t a n . SM
