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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 2002)
novamber 1 .2ÛQ2 • nTïTiTTnWTTJnewsbrie/s “They didn’t know who Esera Tuaolo is,” he said. “What they saw was an actor." Sterling Sharpe told HBO that if his Packers teammate had revealed his sexual orientation while still in the NFL, “he would have been eaten alive, and he would have been hated for it.” The only other professional players who have come out are David Kopay in 1975 and Roy Simmons in 1992. Tuaolo, 34, now lives in M inneapolis with his partner of 5 1/2 years, Mitchell Wherley, and their 2-year-old twins. A n accomplished singer, he has performed “T he Star-Spangled Banner” on a nationally broadcast N FL game and has self-released a C D , One M an’s Island. HRC R eleases C ongressional S corecard he Human Rights Cam paign released O ct. 28 its 107th Congress scorecard, which is considered a key tool for judging how politicians vote on gay, lesbian, bi and trans issues and assessing their level of support. The numbers show an encouraging trend toward more broad-based support for queer issues on Capitol Hill. T his growth is appar ent as two key pieces of legislation boast the highest number of co-sponsorships in history. In the 107th Congress, the Employment Nondiscrimination A ct had 194 House and 45 Senate co-sponsors, an increase from the 168 House and 37 Senate co-sponsors in the 106th Congress. T he Local Law Enforcement Enhancement A ct had a record 206 House and 51 Senate co-sponsors this Congress, com pared to 187 in the House and 42 in the Sen ate in the 106th. The scoring process also evaluated office nondiscrimination policies and important votes on issues like domestic partner benefits in the District of Columbia and needle exchange programs. Here is how Oregon’s delegation stacked up: • 100 percent: Democratic U .S. Reps. David Wu, Lari Blumenauer, Peter A. DeFazio and Darlene Hooley and U .S. Sen. Ron Wyden. • 8 6 percent: Republican U .S. Sen. G or don Sm ith. He was graded down for opposing the Boxer Am endm ent, which guaranteed all federally chartered organizations access to school facilities regardless o f their position on sexual orientation. It was introduced as an alternative to an anti-gay version by U .S. Sen. Jesse Helms, R -N .C. • 17 percent: Republican U .S. Rep. G reg T Walden. His only pro-gay stance was his congressional oft ice’s adoption of a written policy indicating that sexual orientation is not a factor in its employment decisions. PH O TO S B Y JIM Continued from Page 9 W here ’ s G ordon ? hen politicians were called to the stage Oct. 26 at the Human Rights C am p aign ’s Portland G ala Dinner, the audience leapt to its feet for Democratic senatorial and guber natorial candidates Bill Bradbury and Ted Kulongoski and U .S. Sen. Ron Wyden. Republican U .S. Sen. Gordon Sm ith, who H R C endorsed, was a no-show. T he event honored Thom as Bru ner, C ascade A ID S Project executive director, for taking the nonprofit agency “to unprecedented levels of strength, diversity and effectiveness and for re-energizing the Portland metropolitan area around HIV issues in the process." Equality Awards also were presented to Ashland’s Abdill- Ellis Lambda Community Center and to Lincoln C ity’s G ail Kimberling, managing editor of the News Guard, which named two gay men as Couple o f the Year in April. W Terry Bean (center) gets dragged on stage by the Kinsey Sicks during the Human Rights Campaign Portland Gala Dinner on Oct. 26; inset, Thomas Bruner and Gail Kimberling proudly display their Equality Awards P ortland P lummets P recipitously he November issue of Girlfriends stuck a thorn in the Rose City, ranking it No. 46 on the eighth annual "Best Lesbian Places to Live” list— a steep decline from Portland’s posi tions at No. 2 in 2000 and No. 4 in 2001. Associate editor Jen Phillips, who grew up in Beaverton and attended University of Ore gon, attributed the change partially to the magazine’s new rating criteria. In order to give* smaller cities a fair shake, queer resources such as bars, restaurants and help lines now are scored per capita. Phillips added: “The economy throughout the Northwest has just taken a big dive from last year.... We just want to make sure that women are going to be able to find jobs and be able to, you know, have a nice apartment." W hen asked whether Portland’s quick drop might be part o f a larger cultural trend, Phillips agreed. “G ay men tend to go to urban centers, and lesbians tend to go to smaller tow ns...there’s definitely evidence to hack that theory up.” For all those Portlanders who already are T packing their bags in disgust, Girlfriends said the top spot for lesbians is M adison, Wis. Here is the rest of the top 10: Bloomington, Ind.; N ortham pton, M ass.; Ithaca, N.Y.; La Crosse, Wis.; Denver; Missoula, M ont.; Cambridge, Mass.; Baltimore; and Santa Fe, N.M . ROP R eceives $10,000 he Denver-based Gill Foundation made grants totaling $2,123,950 to 93 groups supporting a wide range of gay, lesbian, bi and trans initiatives and HIV/AIDS programming during its most recent cycle, including $10,000 for the Rural Organizing Project in Scappoose. The $260 million endowed organization is com mitted to securing equal opportunities for all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gen der identity. “We are very pleased to be able to support such an outstanding spectrum of LG BT and HIV/AIDS organizations throughout the Unit ed States,” grantmaking director Anthony C. Tapia said. “Particularly in these challenging times for all nonprofit organizations, the Gill Foundation continues to support organizations working to eliminate discrimination based on sexual orientation.” * The foundation, established in 1994 by T software pioneer Tim G ill, is the country’s largest funder o f sexual minority organizations. Since its inception, it has invested nearly $40 million in nonprofits throughout the United States. j n Compiled by JlM R a d o sta , S arah L eimert and M arty D avis Why Categorize it. Just enjoy it Buying or selling your home is an important choice. Let Celia & Terri guide you through the process ! C E L IA LY O N T E R R I POPEJOY ( 503 ) 260-6231 ( 503 ) 330-0400 Bella Casa Realty Inc. W e all do it. Let's talk about it. ControCfactor.com "Moral Reality" Tues 11:30p on Ch 11 11 1523 SE Ankeny • Portland, OR 97214 503-231-SELL (7355) “Building ‘Blocks for four future ”
