4 just out « (Uly 19. 2002
out
TTT
7------ 7 / T
ZOSHOP.COM
ONLINE HOZO FOOTWEAR SUPPLY
The B e stT h in g fp m
You’ll Ever Step In!
/ V - 'S.sionu / •
7 / , it^ne
7
• j - \ i e u l v • ; , •fV/ii lit f
~ l l ntu.Sjfhere
S t raic i lit to the j oint
i2 J
I X
JS'odi) /
L
If
le r c u u j bit■^yrttec
503 - 492-2742
503 - 243-1127
111 W Columbia River Hvvy.
Troutdale
310 SW 4th Ave, Suite 407.
Portland
Largest Jewelry Selection • Open 7 Days a Week 10am-8pm • State Licensed -1 0 Years Experience www.straighttothepoiht.org
Mechanics
that fix
everything*
Including
RE/MAX
S
ig n a t u r e
P r o p e r t ie s !
Pride o f Ownership!
PDX Automotive is a certified
Eco-Logical Business.
Im p e cca b le 4 B R + b o n u s b u n g a lo w w ith h a rd w o o d
flo o rs , fire p la c e , b u ilt-in s , a ll up d a te d systems,
fenced b a c k y a rd . B e a u tifu l c u rb appeal on
tre e -lin e d street. A r b o r L o d g e n e ig h b o rh o o d .
$185,000
(503) 282-3315
r
a
r
a
Tina Schafer, g ri , abr
A fo o icate B roker,
M u lti-M illio n D o lla r P roducer
RE/MAX
Signature Properties
Mechanics With A Conscience
282-4000 X 122
lU M M M N ^ d N
O M O K W r tlM O lO w M tM n r
4 S E CarM U4 M w iram a
Q m dJ
Gerard Lillie *5934 N.E. Halsey
e-mail:
tinas@ rem ax.net
T he J apanese G arden
611 SW KINGSTON AVE.
Factions speak
louder than words
To t h e
E d it o r :
I
read with interest the letter from A n n ie O tis
as well as M arty D avis’ remark in her co m
mentary about the lack o f the word “gay” when
referring to G ay Pride [“C loset C a se ” and “Let
Freedom R ing,” July 5].
I’ve had an opinion about that for a couple of
decades that I’d he happy to share with you. T he two
points I’d like to make are a) some o f us saw it com
ing a long time ago and b) we did it to ourselves.
I remember when a national magazine was no
longer content to be “A m erica’s G ay Newspaper”
and changed its slogan to “A m erica’s Lesbian and
G ay Newspaper.” W hether that decision was
made to attract a broader audience or to answer
their extractors, 1 couldn’t say. 1 can say that at
the time 1 thought it was strangely separatist.
1 always had thought “gay” referred to both
men and women, and 1 still do. To say “gay people”
or “gay men and women’’ is inclusive o f all. There
doesn’t seem to he a male equivalent o f “lesbian.”
1 also always have used the term to refer to
“nonheterosexual” people— and therefore it’s also
inclusive o f bisexuals, transgenders, transsexuals
and everyone else who makes the rainbow o f our
community. Yet, as the years have gone by, all of
these groups have felt the need to be named
specifically— leaving “gay” to refer only to hom o
sexual males. But I d on ’t believe the term origi
nally was coined with that in mind.
1 think of it this way: W hen speaking of the
Smith family, does one need to mention Boh Smith
and G iro I Smith and Ted Smith and Alice Smith
individually, or does the name “the Smith family”
suffice? If we are truly the family we claim to he,
shouldn’t one term cover us all? Isn’t it just silly to
have to rattle off a half-dozen terms or even initials
when one term should and could refer to us all?
A n d what m essage does that send to our h et
erosexual friends? Trust me, it doesn’t show
diversity, it shows factions. Just ask around.
1, for one, would like to see the entire n o n
heterosexual com m unity either re-embrace the
term “gay” or pick a new nam e for our family
that they can live with. Let that he how we
enter into the new m illennium. M ore than .30
years after Stonew all, it’s about time we knew
what to call ourselves.
D onald F inch
Portland
Grow up
To
the
E d
it o r
:
I
was saddened to learn that M etropolitan C o m
munity Church o f Portland actually “banned”
som eone from attending their services [“Church
Bans A nim al Rights A dvocate,” July 5].
Isn’t that w hat the R om an s essentially did to
Jesus? “You’re not good enough for us, your
beliefs are scary for us, and your love for all life
is som ething we find challenging and too hard
for our egos to grasp hold of. S o in the nam e o f
‘our G o d ’ and supposedly for the ‘safety’ o f our
‘play by our rules’ congregation, we must ask you
to he ‘crucified’— or, um, I m ean, ‘banned’—
from our church.”
It’s too had they ca n ’t talk their talk or walk
their walk. 1 thought church was a place for “all”
people to go and feel w elcom e?
It’s caring people like this m an who was
“ banned” from your church that this world
needs. W hen we turn our heads from learning
how to respect all forms o f life, events like the
W orld Trade C en ter bom bing happen. T h e n the
“righteous” people look around and say, “G ee,
why did that happen ?”
I would hope M C C som eday learns to teach
love and respect for all life— queer or anim al!
We c a n ’t exp ect that kind o f respect and accep
tance to be given to our com m unity if we can ’t
give it in return.
A n d as for this m an being “dangerous”—
yeah, th at’s what they said about Jesus and
G an d h i. I used to attend this church, and he was
one o f the kindest people there. 1 left the church
when, in asking the pastor at that tim e why this
m an was being harassed just because he loves
anim als like I do, 1 was told, “ M C C has n o place
for people with radical thinking ideas like that.”
E xcuse m e? H av e you ever heard o f
Stonew all? M C C needs to grow up and get out
o f the Dark A ges.
R en M atney
Portlaiul
Bless the beasts
To t h e
E d it o r :
{
recently read the news item regarding M etro
politan C om m un ity C h urch o f Portland ban
ning R oger Troen from attending services.
W henever I hear a story where a m ainstream
church asks a gay person to leave, I am angered
hut not surprised. But it surprises and disappoints
me to see an “all-inclusive” church such as
M C C (w ith attorney and threat o f restraining
order) dem anding that Troen leave.
It’s true that he has a great deal o f know l
edge, com passion and passion regarding anim al
issues, and 1 think that m akes som e people ner
vous. If Troen were protesting the pope, the m il
itary or the Boy Sco u ts, he would be a hero to
the gay com m unity.
C o m p assion toward anim als is an intelligent
and natural progression o f inclusiveness and tol
erance for us as hum ans. It seem s to me that
S U M M ER THONG t A-THONI !
1596 off on all men's and women's thongs!
WASHINGTON PARK
5 0 3 .2 2 3 .1 5 ^ 1
WWW.JAPANESEGAR
DEN.COM
1
niceunderwear.com
B r in g
in th is a d t o receive
$1 OFF GENERAL ADMISSION.
ONE COUPON PER VISITOR. NOT VALID
W ITH ANY OTHER DISCOUNTS. EXP 1 2 /0 1 /0 2
Sale ends 8 / 0 S /02
Free Shipping!
www.niceunderwear.com