3.2002
28
8 p 5 ?ï 9 0 llt : primary edition
Livability and civil rights
for all
To the E ditor :
s a community, we are used to fighting
direct attacks on our civil rights by single-
issue, extremist groups. However, this election
cycle, a new threat is posed by the extreme right
wing.
They have put up a slate of candidates and
ballot measures designed to give them more
control over public policy in our region and our
state. If they win this election, it means they will
get more funding from special interests who are
opposed to civil rights and livability.
You might have never have of heard of Orego
nians in Action— and after this month, you’ll wish
you never had. OIA is an extremist right-wing
land speculator advocacy group; one of its candi
dates is challenging Oregon Court of Appeals
Judge David Schuman.
Schuman helped guaran
tee that the landmark Tan
ner decision acknowledged
historic
discrimination
against gay men and les
bians and ensured equal
benefits for sexual minority
domestic partners. You can
be sure OIA, which is affili
ated with Bill Sizemore and
other
extreme
right
wingers, opposes civil rights
and livability.
But attacks on our quality of life don’t stop
there. The attacks on our state’s world-famous
land-use planning program once came from the
Oregon Citizens Alliance. Now they’re coming
A
from O IA — aka the Neighbor
hood Preservation Committee.
O IA
is
sponsoring
Measure 26-11, an attempt to
force sprawl onto some of the
state’s best farmland and to ere- oi
ate massive sprawl throughout
the Portland region. OIA also is
running a candidate in the race
for Metro Council president,
and all indications are that she
is as extremist and anti-livabili
ty as the rest of its slate.
Do not he fooled— Mea
sure 26-11 and the OIA candi
dacies for Oregon Court of
Appeals judge and Metro
Council president are part of a
larger right-wing agenda to
gain a foothold in our judicial
and regional politics. These folks have one goal:
attracting more money to overturn
our civil rights and destroy our qual
ity of life.
The best way to heat the
extreme right wing is to vote them
down. We urge you to vote no on
Measure 26-11. There are better
alternatives.
Vote yes on Measure 26-29,
vote for David Schuman as Oregon
Court of Appeals judge, and vote
for David Bragdon as Metro C oun
cil president. Vote yes on livability
and civil rights for all members of
our community.
J acob B rostoff and F rank D ixon
Portland
posed of a few city neighborhoods. This means
the costs of elections will be dramatically less.
Being in touch will matter more than
money. Candidates can walk the district to
get elected, and councilors will know more
about us— and he more accountable.
This means our council will better
reflect our entire city. Whether you’re a sex
ual minority, a progressive, a senior citizen
feeling forgotten in East Portland, a small-
business person with no voice or a single
mother being pushed out of your neighbor
hood because of gentrification, your ability
to connect to City Hall will improve.
As every community fights for equality
and representation, there is no better way to
cause change than by having a seat at the
table. Measure 26-30 will ensure our entire
city is represented.
J ay H arter
THIRTY
NORTHWEST
23RO
PLACE,
PORTLAND,
K en S alaman
Portland
To the E ditor :
M
easure 26-30 is important to the sexual
minorities community because it will
mean more diversity.
No openly gay man or lesbian ever has been
elected to our City Council. That can change
after Measure 26-30 passes.
Now, all of our commissioners are elected
citywide. This makes the costs of elections
extremely high.
It also means that unless you are supported by
a few “special interests” it is very difficult to raise
the necessary money to win. Cities with district
elections more frequently see members of the
sexual minorities community on the council.
Measure 26-30 will require councilors to live
in—and he elected from— a specific district com
1 1/2 CL 12 a 2
TWI ST.
and
5 O 3 - 2 2 A - O 3 3 A .
RI NG
DESIGN
Take the offensive
To the E ditor :
I
want to thank you for your continued cover
age of the Good Government Initiative,
which will be on this month’s primary ballot as
Measure 26-30 [“Union Endorses Good Gov
ernment Initiative," April 5].
Time and time again, we members of the sex
ual minorities community have had to he on the
defensive, voting no for measures that only
would harm us. How great it is finally to be able
to vote yes on a measure that will help us!
1 urge everybody to vote yes on Measure 26-30
for fair neighborhood representation and a more
diverse City Council. And by diversity, I speak not
AS
BY
Y O U
JOHN
RI NK.
ARE