July 4. 2003 * J m M M A jg
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T o w n H all F ocuses
o n Q ueer L egal R ig h ts
he Human Rights Campaign and Basic
Rights Oregon are joining forces to present
“Fighting for Fairness," a town hall meeting
about queer legal rights, from 6 to 9 p.m. July 10
at M etropolitan Com m unity C hurch of Port
land, 2400 N.E. Broadway.
The event will kick off with a sixrial hour fea
turing host Sam Adams, Mayor Vera Katz’s chief
of staff. This will he followed by one hour of pre
sentations and one hour of questions and
answers m oderated by S enate D em ocratic
Leader Kate Brown of Portland.
Panelists will include Dan Furmansky, H R C ’s
Western senior field organizer; Roey Thorpe,
BRO executive direc
tor; and attorneys Carl
Kiss, Richard Schneider
and Ruben Rivera, who
will discuss em ploy
m ent, financial and
immigration
issues,
respectively. Inform a
tion also will be avail
able from event co
sponsors M CC, the Les
bian Community Proj
ect, the Lesbian and Lisa Bennett
Gay Immigration Rights
Task Force, the National C enter for Lesbian
Rights and Love Sees No Borders.
Lisa Bennett, H RC FamilyNet deputy direc
tor, plans on explaining how families can pro
tect themselves using current laws as well as
how they can get involved and effect positive
change. She also will discuss the implications of
O ntario’s approval of same-sex marriages and
the U.S. Supreme Court s decision overturning
the 13 remaining state laws banning sodomy.
“1 think that that was absolutely a sea change
in our environm ent and that we’ll really see
more and more people emboldened to claim the
rest of their rights that are indeed their rights,”
Bennett told Just Out. “There’s a certain level of
optimism that people feel now, and it’s an
incredible moment to seize that."
S enat e H ears
G ay R ig h t s B ill
he state Senate Rules Com m ittee heard
testimony June 19 regarding a bill that
would ban discrimination on the basis of sexual
orientation and gender identity.
A total of 15 people testified, including
Beaverton Mayor Rob Drake and Oregon Libor
Commissioner Dan Gardner. O ther testimony
served to document the widespread discrimina
tion that still exists against people who are gay,
lesbian, bi and trans throughout the state.
Senate Bill 786 adds sexual orientation and
gender identity to Oregon’s civil rights laws and
covers the areas of employment, housing, public
accommodation, education and public programs.
Several municipalities— including Portland,
Multnomah County, Salem and Eugene— have
similar legislation, but folks who live or work else
where are not protected by existing law.
“Many people believe that this kind of dis
crimination is already illegal,” said Roey Thorpe,
executive director of Basic Rights Oregon, which
introduced the bill. “So they think we’re asking for
something special or above and beyond everyone
else. In fact, discrimination is not only rampant,
but it’s legal in most of the cities in our state.”
T
L t O M z S TJO
Not all of the testimony
was positive, however. Lon
and Bonnie Mahon of the
Oregon Citizens Alliance
and New Covenant Min
istries International—a
religious nonprofit corpora
tion formed last year—sent
a letter urging senators “to
promote gtxxl over evil” by
voting against the bill.
“It is a known fact that
the homosexuals, bisexu
als, transgendered and
transsexual individuals do
not fit the criteria for a
protected class status pro
vided by the courts and
civil rights authorities,”
they wrote. "They have
not suffered a history of
discrimination evidenced
by lack of ability to obtain
economic income, ade
quate education or cultur Miss Gay Latina Oregon Mizz Monique Moore was nowhere to be
al opportunity.... They found on Poder Latino de Oregon’s float at Portland Pride 2003
have not exhibited obvi
tion from Portland’s queer Latino community
ous, immutable or distinguishing characteristics
because she doesn’t speak Spanish.
such as race, color, gender or national origin that
A week after the pageant, Moore performed
define them as a discrete group.... They have not
during Latino Dance Night at C.C. Slaughters.
clearly demonstrated political powerlessness.’’
She claims that the disc jockey intentionally
played the wrong music and that the master of
ceremonies
derided her, mocking how she could
L a t i n a C laims B ias
say only “hola” and “adios" in Spanish.
A m o n g P o r t l a n d P oder
She says she again was scorned at the Pride
parade
June 15, when a seat on the Latino float
ince winning the title of Miss Gay Latina
Oregon in late May, Mizz Monique Moore
C ontinued on Page 10
says she has experienced recurring discrimina
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