feöruary 15. 2002 ». ( n i ont. 5
out
flfflietizd?
How d° >'OM react to gay-baiting radio disc jock-
J
4
k
eys .7 Should we lighten up and learn to laugh at
ourselves, ignore them and hope they go away, or rise up in righteous anger?
|||Q >
think we have to leam to pick our battles.
I save my righteous anger for the O regon
Citizens A lliance and others who actively
are campaigning against our basic rights. W e
can afford to lighten up and laugh a little,
ca n ’t wc?
I
B ret P alma
Beaverton
Human Rights
Advisory
Commission
• •
have
never
.heard these so-
called gay-baiting radio disc jockeys, nor do I
know what the term “gay-baiting” means. But 1
most definitely think you should get a sense of
II
to LCP. In the past six months alone, you have
published several articles about LCP written by
a paid employee of LCP. (See, for example, Kris-
tan Aspen’s “United We Stand,” which
appeared Aug. 3, 2001, under the heading of
“Northwest News.’’)
Although such a practice might not have
seemed problematic to the paper’s management
at the time, your veracity regarding events at
LCP is now open to question for two additional
reasons— not only because you repeatedly had
the bad judgment to publish “news" about LCP
written by an individual with a personal finan
cial interest in LCP but because her pleasant
portrayal of LCP proves in hindsight to be so at
odds with the straggle that actually was occur
ring. Perhaps Just Out needs to “tend to a little
necessary housecleaning” itself.
M argaret D eirdre O ’H artigan
Pnrtlarul
R em od el b e h a v io r
To the E ditor :
know you can’t do anything about this, but I
am so frustrated I could just scream.
My partner and I have been trying to remod
el our house. In the process we wanted to use
people who were in our community or were sup
porters of our community. I called each of the
contractors in the Just Out ads and Portland’s
Gay «Si Lesbian Community Yellow Pages, and
all of them told me that they were too busy or
that the job was too small, or they didn’t show
up for their appointments at all.
I know that this really doesn’t have anything
to do with you and the paper and that these peo
ple just buy ads. I am just frustrated and don’t
know where to turn. I was hoping to put some
money into the businesses run by our communi
ty, but now I am going to look elsewhere.
I
P enny S hepherd
Portland
S u rv iv a l off th e fitte s t
To the E ditor :
ccasionally, an article will be printed sug
gesting the quality of service in nonstraight
businesses is not up to the quality found in many
straight businesses. I will give an example.
Several weeks ago, I telephoned in an order
for two hard-bound books by the same author to
a well-known feminist/woman’s/lesbian/chil-
O
humor and quit taking these things and these
people so fucking seriously.
S hirley D. J ackson
Portland
next IkMIU
h
™ can
w e, as members of the sexual
minorities community, take steps
to increase education and aw are
ness among voters and keep the
Student Protection Act II from
even qualifyirjg for the Oregon bal
lot? Respond at www.justout.com.
(Don’t forget to include your name,
city and daytime telephone
number.)
dren’s bookstore. I read a great deal, and
although both of the national chains will
respond to my requests immediately, I try to
support local businesses.
Several weeks and three letters of inquiry
later, there has been dead silence— nothing,
nada, zip, goose egg. 1 happen to know about the
industry; within the past 15 years, more than 50
percent of the independent booksellers have
been driven out of business by the national
chains. Many niche stores are hanging on by
their fingernails.
In a state with the highest official unem
ployment in the nation, with 10 percent of the
public eating at food banks and food kitchens,
with both business and personal filings for
Chapter 11 and Chapter 13 going through the
stratosphere, you would think this bookstore
would covet the business. It certainly does not
stop them from requesting and receiving money
from me for various causes throughout the year.
Business is business. Money is money. Eco
nomic survival is just that.
If a business, straight or nonstraight, especial
ly during an ever-deepening recession, has an
“attitude”— and this one certainly seems to—
then it will pay the price. The ultimate price.
K aren B oynton
Portland
M ille r tim e
To the E ditor :
hank you for the excellent article on Pat
Miller, a truly courageous, groundbreaking,
custody-fighting lesbian mother [“M iller’s
Tale,” Jan. 18J. Oh, the tales I could have
shared with you!
What a blast from the past to see Pat in Just
T
Out and to remember the wonderful and terror-
filled days of our fight for her kids. 1 still talk
about her and Juanita Blondell to my friends
and colleagues.
So many amazing memories. I remember
telling Pat to “dress up” for the trial and how she
came bounding up the courthouse steps dressed
in her shiny black leather motorcycle pants and
jackets.
When 1 stared at her, aghast, and said, “I told
you to dress up,” she said: “We did! These are
our finest duds!” The judge was speechless.
I did not know Juanita died. It grieves me
deeply.
I still can see the love in her own eyes direct
ed at Pat and the strength with which she pro
fessed that love and refused to hide it from the
judge. I adored her and was proud to be her
lawyer and friend.
So many women came after Pat, fighting so
hard for their children and their right to parent.
Some triumphed, some fell, but the trail on
which they struggled was hewn by pathbreakers
such as her and Juanita. Women like them
made victory possible for hundreds, and women
like them are the clients who gave meaning to
my life’s work.
K atharine E nglish
Wilsonville
L e a th e r le s s o n s
To the E ditor :
would like to thank Ms. Oregon State
Leather 2001 Tobin Britton, Blackout Pro
ductions and supporting communities for their
generous contribution of $939.57 toward the
Tony deBlase Scholarship project. With the
prcKeeds from their recent fund-raiser, the bal
ance is now $6,762.51 toward our goal of raising
$25,000 to create an endowment.
The community-based project is being
established for students entering the fields of sex
education, sex therapy, research or studies that
further the understanding of human sexuality,
especially alternative sexuality. It is named after
the man who is considered one of the most
important leather people of his generation in
remembrance of his vast work as an educator,
but it commonly will be known as the Leather
Scholarship.
Donations can be sent directly to 1122 E.
Pike St. #1001, Seattle, WA 98122-3934.
Make checks or money orders payable to the
Pride Foundation, and be sure to indicate
clearly that your gift is for the Tony deBlase
Scholarship.
You also can make a donation by phone with
your credit card. Simply call the Pride office at
800-735-7287 or 206-323-3318 and ask for
Marie Gagnon.
Contributions are tax-deductible. For more
information about the project, please visit the
Internet site www.leatherdaddy.com/scholarship.
1
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