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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 6, 2004)
fehmary 6.2004 ? j u s t ju s t rm am 3 d N The IN publication for the OUT population Making amends F ounder 1983 • J ay B rown and R enée L a C hance V ol. 21 N o . 7 What does it take to alter the U.S. Constitution? news and had news come our way. In the had news category, it’s time to consider the harsh fact that even in "T r the world of seeming acceptance for Queer Eye for the Straight Guy and the tediously had The L Word, the gay ' - v and lesbian community is not yet poised for our Sally field moment. Guess what? They don’t all like us. They really don’t. First, let’s acknowledge and celebrate, albeit briefly, the recent and potentially powerful victory. On Feb. 4 the Massachusetts Supreme Judi cial Court clarified its ruling late last year that denying marriage licenses to same-sex couples violates the Massachusetts Constitution’s guarantee that all citizens he treated equally under the law. “The history of our nation has demonstrated that separate is seldom, if ever, equal,” wrote the four justices who ruled in the advisory opinion. The niling also said that a hill allowing civil unions instead of civil marriage would create an “unconstitutional, inferior and discriminatory status for same-sex couples.” Evan Wolfson, executive director of Freedom to Marry, states that the timetable is such that on May 17— the 50th anniversary of Brown vs. Board of Education—civil marriage licenses should he issued (without discrimina tion) to same-sex couples willing to take on the commitment and follow the rules and responsibilities of marriage. Freedom to Many is the gay and non gay partnership working to win marriage equality nationwide. The text of the court ruling is on the Internet site www.freedomtomarry.org, which also includes resources pertaining to the national marriage equality debate. ( x k ! elehration must he tempered with the knowledge that the above- ^ mentioned “victory" serves also as a rallying cry for those opposed to gay marriage. Even as Freedom to Marry makes its plans, President Bush issued a statement calling the Massachusetts ruling “deeply troubling” and reiterated his stance that the constitutional amendment process might he necessary to defend the sanctify of marriage. News of the Massachusetts victory might have gay Floridians pack ing their bags and heading north, especially in the wake of a stunningly harsh ruling set down last month. On Jan. 28 the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed the state’s ban on gay and lesbian adoption in the Lofton vs. Kearney case. Florida has the most restrictive law in the country, one that provides a blanket prohibition on gay and lesbian individuals from adopting. As summed up by Roey Thorpe, executive director of Basic Rights Oregon: “This decision is an outrage. It is an insult to two of the finest parents I have ever met and to gay and les bian parents across this country. It ignores the needs of thousands of children who desperately need and deserve loving families.” Further details of this ruling and the impact on Portlanders Steve Lofton and Roger Croteau can be found on Page 15 of this issue. Florida Gov. Jeb Bush indicated that he was “pleased” by the ruling. It validates Florida’s contention “that it is in the best interest of adoptive children, many of whom come from troubled and unstable backgrounds, Febru ary 6 , 2 0 0 4 FEATURE to be placed in a home anchored both by a father and a mother.” As if the Florida decision weren’t enough, we now also have a ruling in the case of Limon vs. Kansas. The Kansas Court of Appeals decision upholding differential penalties for gay and lesbian citizens is another blow to the attainment of civil rights for all citizens. The American Civil Liberties Union sought a finding of unconstitutional because cur rent law gives gay teen-agers much higher prison sentences than hetero sexual teen-agers who engage in identical consensual sexual activities. This appeal was overruled. Matthew Limon was appealing a 17-year prison sentence he received for performing consensual oral sex with a nearly 15-year-old male. Limon, who had turned 18 only a week before the incident, would have been sentenced to a maximum of 15 months if he and his partner had been members of the opposite sex, because the state’s “Romeo and Juli et” law applies only to heterosexuals. And this brings us to Republican Senate Leader Bill Frist of Ten nessee, who, in reference to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, remarked, “The issue before us today is that activist judges in Mas sachusetts are intent on destroying the traditional definition of family.” He went on to state that he is in support of amending the U.S. Consti tution to prevent gay families from being labeled as actual families. O o, what does it take to amend the U.S. Constitution? O There are essentially two ways spelled out in the Constitution for how it can be amended. Only the first procedure, as described below, has ever been used. This method is for a bill to pass both halves of the legislature, by a two-thirds majority in each. Once the bill has passed both houses, it goes on to the states. And then comes the hard part. The costly part. The painful part. The amendment must be approved by three-fourths of the 50 states, 38 to be specific. Congress has the power to set a time limit for the process, normally seven years. Seven years in which to tie up the energies, the emotions, the moneys of a nation. Seven years of battling. Seven years of unfettered hatred. One of the last amendments brought to the nation was the Equal Right Amendment. This was a simple and basic wording that stated, “Equality of Rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of sex.” First written in 1921 by suffragist Alice Paul, the ERA was intro duced in Congress every session from 1923 to 1972. It passed Congress in the above form in 1972 but was not ratified by the necessary 38 states by the July 1982 deadline. Oregon was one of the 35 states that ratified the ERA. Nearly 25 years later, how do you think the majority of Oregon citizens would vote on a federal amendment designed to recognize marriage as a union between man and woman only? JH REFLECTIONS TO OUR READERS, FROM JUST Otft Valentine’s Day words of wisdom from Sandra Bernhard and Dan Savage p 24 NEWS NORTHWEST. The Rev. Fred Phelps cancels picket, but here comes former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore; queer community center launches second phase o f feasibility study; Portland gay couple lose challenge to Florida adoption ban; trans woman files $1 million lawsuit against Gresham athletic club pp 7-17 NATIO NAL • Ohio Legislature votes to ban marriage and marriage-related protections for same-sex couples pp 10-21 WORLD • Gay orgy” raided in Taiwan pp 22-23 ARTS AND C U LTU R E THEATER • Tim Miller wants to know what the hell is wrong with us; Sapphic delights of the Asian art world in 36 Views pp 34-35 ROOKS • Settle down for a long winter’s lesbian mystery P 37 DIVERSIONS • Portland International Film Festival; Salt Lake City censors queer Mormon movie; gay in Oklahoma! p 30 FILM • Travel the world at University of Oregon Queer Film Festival 41 WHAT'S PIPPIN'T • Touch that void at C2I p 43 p COLUMNS MS. BEOAVIOI • Chafed chubby chasers p 33 EPIQKEREAN • Gastronomica Africana p 38 N T WHO IT! • Top Ten Valentine List p39 TIE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARC • Smart people spotted in L.A. • For the first time in eight years, the Imperial Sovereign Rose Court gave the group's award for community service to an organization not in the court system, the Right to Privacy PAC. Emperor X Gary Benoit presented the award to Keeston Lowery, trea surer of the organization. • Darcelle XV and Sandy are inviting all past Foxy Lady Pageant contestants to a 10th anniversary reunion Feb 5. • It happened at 8 a.m. Jan. 6: Dan White, con victed assassin of San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and gay Supervisor Harvey Milk, became a free man. W hite was released from prison after serving just over five years of his vol untary manslaughter sentence. All political and judicial efforts to prevent his release had failed. • A foundation has been formed to cure the dangerous disease of homophobia It was named after comedian Eddie Murphy, who has justified jokes about contracting AIDS from girl I ANO M ANAGING EDITOR • Marty Davis I • Jim Radosta ARTS ANO C0LTURE EDITOR • Lisa Bradshaw ! EDITOR • Meg Daly I • Marc Acito, Michael E Barrett, friends who ‘ hang out with gay people.' The six-minute ver bal attack was part of a Columbia record album and an HBO television program. • Tee Corinne will present Lesbian Sexual Imagery in the Fine Arts Slide Show on Jan. 21 at Metropolitan Community Church of Portland. Included in the program is ‘ A Sappho centric Love Story," a warm and gentle animation of lesbian lovemaking. This is a woman-only event. • A Woman’s Place Bookstore celebrates its 11th anniver sary with a benefit Sock Hop featuring the infamous 50s rock 'n' roll band The Dyketones on Feb. 4 at Echo Theatre. • Portland Community Bowling Association started its sixth year Jan. 8, not only as a nonprofit organization but with the prestige of being the largest bowling league in the state. Portland City Commissioner Margaret Strachan was on hand to throw out the first ball of the season. • $76,500 Eastmoreland Heights: Terrific neighborhood, great two-level home perfect for roommates or kids. Private yard, two fireplaces, family room, huge master. Bridgetown Realty. 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