9 *1 ou t
FITNESS
Just PTTTTTTH
When rabidly anti-gay figures like Fred Phelps
and Roy Moore come to town, should the queer
community stage counterprotests, or is their presence not even worth
acknowledging? W hich is better—confronting them or ignoring them?
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5 0 3 •
uring World War II many citizens in G er
many ignored Hitler, and as the trains head
ed to the death camps and passed through the lit
tle towns, no one said anything. Silence isn’t
always a solution, nor is an angry crowd. Staging
a counterprotest in a “nonviolent way” is a way to
say N O T IN MY T O W N . W hen the German
people were asked later what was happening in
their country, most were afraid to admit they
knew. Hate must be confronted as well as under-
sttxxl and dealt with in a positive way.
i
[tri
e have so many better things to do with
our tim e than waste it on these guys.
Fred Phelps is a caricature o f hate, far too
overblow n and ridiculous to be worth our
protests. L et’s spend our tim e fighting the
more subtle discrim ination present in unfair
laws and simple ignorance; leave the ugly,
religious hate off the airwaves and front
pages.
17 1 6
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Eugene
C arolyn P ower
Portland
• • •
erhaps it’s because I lived through the Viet
nam War, Stonewall and A C T UP— or per
haps it’s just a hippie mentality that survives— but
in cases such as these, I feel counterprotests are the
only way. For vicious and dangerous people such as
Fred Phelps, Roy Moore and Marion Hite to be
honored as “Profiles in Courage" (JFK would be
appalled!) and as “the finest expression of Ameri
can citizenship" is simply and utterly wrong.
Phone calls and e-mails are easily disregarded
and dismissed; a show of opposition composed of
both gay and straight seems to be the answer in
this day of media events. It’s difficult for local
media to ignore sizable gatherings of people.
The religious and political right wing has had
power for so long because it is a well-oiled
machine; in this respect, it is an example to follow.
We must put by the constant in-fighting and pre
sent our views in an organized manner; then, and
only then, will others begin to rally to our causes.
P
D onald F inch
Portland
• • •
I
believe the old political motto of “Suppose they
gave a war— and nobody came?” would be the
best answer. If we ignore such hatemongers as Fred
and Roy, maybe no one will know they are here!
And if there is no opposition to their presence, per
haps the media would not be so likely to give their
visit an iota of coverage. Just think of how many
times these events go unnoticed because they don’t
make the 11 o’clock news. Besides, aren’t Oregoni
ans tcxi busy with our own unemployment rate, the
upcoming presidential race, crime and gang vio
lence, homelessness and gay marriage issues— just
to name a few— to worry about a couple of out-of-
state tourists with bad haircuts?
onfront them. They have freedom of
speech but must accept the consequences
o f their words. We have nothing to be afraid of
as long as we remain civil and to the point and
offer people a stark contrast to just who are cruel
and hateful and who are the mature adults
standing up for their rights.
Ignore these people, and they will not go
away. Confront them peacefully and resolutely,
and they are merely bullies who at some point
must face the fact that they have chosen their
battles unwisely.
C
M ichael M c C arthy
Eugene
y far, confronting them peacefully and
intelligently is the best way to go. By tak
ing the “high road” and saying th at the likes
o f Fred Phelps and Roy M oore aren’t worth
acknowledging, we are silently condoning
their words and actions. W ith the impending
decisions on the definition of marriage in this
country, it is more im portant than ever that
our voices are heard— both in praise and
protest.
B
C
say confront them because it’s my nature for me
to make the people who don’t feel like were are
normal uncomfortable.
I
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V IS IO N
onfronting outrageous displays of bigotry
and anti-gay protests only feeds the fire.
By countcrprotesting them, we validate them,
we give credence to their views. By doing
nothing, essentially ignoring their existence,
we show them , and the rest o f the world, that
we don’t fear them. Our community should
refuse to give them the validation they crave
and ignore them.
• • •
N ew herg
1523 SE Ankeny, Portland, OR 9 7 2 1 4 • 5 0 3-2 31 -S EL L ( 7 3 5 5 )
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S tephanie S eaman
S usan L ane
believe we should definitely stage counter-
protests. If you ignore a problem, does it ever
go away? No. I think confronting them is a much
more productive way to fight homophobia.
T E R R I P O PE JO Y
(503) 345-9253
• • •
M ark S ustello
Portland
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