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f you are fiscally and socially conservative
and a member of the sexual minorities
community, where do you party when it
comes to politics?
Gay, lesbian, hi and trans people fac
ing this dilemma are forced to choose between
the lesser of two evils. Some think they have
nowhere else to turn hut to the Democrats
despite their liberal leanings.
Others are working from within the Repub
lican Party to convince fellow conservatives
that there is nothing “special” about wanting
the right to work and live without being
harassed and ostracized. To many Democrats,
however, this is tantamount to betrayal.
This is the vituperation that sexual minority
Republicans wade against. And it is widespread.
Jerry Keene, a Dorchester Conference board
member who twice narrowly lost races for the
Oregon Legislature, says the basic philosophy
of gay, lesbian, hi and trans Republicans is to
recognize that the source of bigotry is frequent
ly ignorance. They quietly are influencing
senior political leadership by personalizing the
issue— by showing them sexual minorities are
just people.
“1 remember going to the Dorchester C o n
ference dinner with my partner of 13 years,”
Keene says. “If my partner didn’t show up to
this dinner, fellow Republican political leaders
would have asked, ‘Where’s your partner?’ If
you see yourself as a victim, you get treated
like one.”
When Keene came out during his candidacy,
longtime Republican leader Larry Campbell
thought about it and quipped, “ Hell, it’s proba
bly an advantage.” The rhetoric appears to be
softening.
After Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson
blamed the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on gay
men and lesbians, among others, the outcry
was intense. Even President Bush condemned
the remarks.
HRC E ndorses S mith
Oregon Republican gets nod for co-sponsoring hate crimes legislation
by Jim Radosta .
A
“We hope our support will help them,
as they have helped us, to form a win
ning, bipartisan coalition in support
of equality.”
Sm ith received the endorse
Sen. Gordon Smith
ment for supporting a number of
of Oregon for re-
H R C ’s key legislative priorities; he
election in 2002. He was the only
co-sponsored the Employment
Republican on the list.
Nondiscrimination Act, the Ryan
H RC released its initial Senate
W hite
Com prehensive
A ID S
endorsements Dec. 10. According
Resources Emergency A ct and a
to political director Winnie
bill to extend Medicaid coverage to
Stachelberg, the election will have Gordon Smith
those living with HIV. The organi
a significant impact on legislation
zation also says he fought hard for
promoting equality for gay and les
James Hormel’s nomination as ambassador to
bian U.S. citizens.
Luxembourg.
“We are proud to endorse these 15 terrific
Most notably, according to H R C Smith has
candidates, all of whom have been reliable
advocates and allies on Capitol Hill,” she said.
s expected, the Hu
man Rights C am
paign endorsed U .S.
messages," Keene says. “If you listen to the words
that are being sent out, you are not hearing this
anymore.”
The Log Cabin Republicans is the nation’s
largest gay and lesbian GO P organization, with
more than 50 chapters across the country. It was
run mostly as a grassroots political group until
the mid-1990s, when it became a lobbying
organization in Washington, D.C.
Some in Oregon think the Log Cabin
Republicans has been hijacked. Lee Coleman
served as executive director of the Oregon chap
ter until January.
“When they endorsed that all-purpose bigot
[U.S. Attorney General John) Ashcroft, I had
had enough,” he says. “Ashcroft gave ’em 20
minutes (for a meeting] and said to them that
the laws that are on the books will stay there,
but there will be no new laws. They’ll kiss any
ass in Washington.”
Keene steers a different course.
“These guys in Washington have done a
great job working with the White House and
Congress," he says. “They do a ton of behind-
the-scenes work that nobody ever sees, and then
people say that nothing happened. I don’t think
people realize what a significant course change
the White House made when it decided to keep
Conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh
said, “Suggestions of this kind are one of the rea most if not all of the Clinton administration
sons why all conservatives get tarred and feath policies on gay rights.”
But is maintaining the status quo a fair stan
ered with this extremist, bigoted, racist, sexist,
dard
by which to judge an organization’s success?
homophobic label or image that isn’t true.” Ear
lier this month, Robertson resigned as head of “If gay Republicans were not out there making
things happen, if there was only one party for us,
the Christian Coalition.
the Democrats, things would be a lot worse,
“There is a subtle shift away from anti-gay
because control keeps switching back and
forth,” Keene says.
galvanized support within his own party for the
The Log Cabin Republicans mission is to
Local Law Enforcement Enhancement Act. He is
steer the party of President Abraham Lincoln
a lead sponsor of the hate crimes measure and
each day enters incidents into the Congressional back toward its inclusive roots. Meanwhile, the
G O P faces a huge image problem: Only the
Record to highlight the problem.
party extremists are vocal; everyone else prefers
“Gordon Sm ith has earned our support by
to whisper.
working for fairness and speaking out against
Those voices might grow louder as the polit
discrimination,” Stachelberg said. “His record
shows that he is a true friend and a depend ical pendulum continues to oscillate slightly
toward the right. With Bush reportedly gamer
able ally who has the courage to go against
ing 25 percent of the gay vote in the agonizing
the grain when necessary and do what is
ly close 2000 presidential race, the evidence is
right.”
clear and somewhat surprising.
H R C also endorsed incumbent Democratic
The Log Cabin Republicans will tell you
Sens. Max Baucus of Montana, Joseph R.
this actually is helping the cause. The way
Biden of Delaware, Jean Carnahan of Mis
they see it, if more sexual minorities join the
souri, Max Cleland of Georgia, Richard J.
Durbin of Illinois, Tom Harkin of Iowa, John j GOP, more people will become aware that
F. Kerry of Massachusetts, Mary L. Landrieu of character is what counts, not who you sleep
with.
Louisiana, Carl Levin of Michigan, Jack Reed
of Rhode Island, Robert Torricelli of New Jer
Winston Churchill once said, “ Politics
sey and Paul Wellstone of Minnesota. In addi begins in the nursery." It’s now apparent that it
doesn’t stop in the bedroom. J H
tion, the organization supports challengers
Tom Strickland o f Colorado and Gov. Jeanne
KELLY R eilly is a professional journalist living in Port
Shaheen of New Hampshire.
land. Her e-mail address is kelly_reilly@hotmail.com.
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