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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (April 16, 2004)
aprii 16.2004 rrm io u t ju st hHN I ill I As reflected in the 2 0 0 3 reader survey, are Just Out readers an adequate and indicative reflection of the greater sexual m inorities community? I n general, your results are likely to represent the portion of the sexual minorities community that is least closeted, better educated, more afflu ent and more politically active. This phenomenon is similar to the results of a survey conducted by Senior Housing and Retirement Enterprises: A GLBT Coalition that will be published soon. It is also similar to a survey distributed at Black Pride events in nine cities that was published by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (Say It Loud: I'm Black and I’m Proud, 2000). The report discusses whether the survey results are represen tative of all black GLBTs and concludes that events like Black Pride tend to attract a distinct segment that is not representative, is more “out,” is better educated and is more affluent. The SH A RE written questionnaire was dis tributed to more than 900 people during the past two years at Pride and other community events; there were 713 responses. Our survey was aimed at older members of the G L B T com munity, so the median age was 53 years, with more older respondents and fewer younger respondents than your Just Out survey. The racial/ethnic distribution in the SH A RE survey was similar to your survey: 90 percent white, 3 percent Hispanic, 3 percent Native American and 1 percent for black, Asian and mixed-race respondents. Also similar to your survey, SH A RE found more than half (53 percent) were partnered, and half of these had been together 10 years or longer, some as long as 50 years! In the SH A RE survey, 60 percent had a four-year degree or advance degree. Household income was higher in the SH A RE survey; 74 percent had household incomes above $45,000. W endy W oods Monmouth # • • N o. I only say this because I know that WAY more than 1 percent of queers are black! I am white and so are a lot of my queer friends, but there are a lot who are black, Hispanic, Asian, etc. WAY, WAY more than 1 percent! To the E ditor : • • • I believe that readers of Just Out are indeed an indicative reflection of the greater communi ty because the people who read it are so diverse in their own views and lives. D evon R osa Newberg the incum bent. Who do you support and why? (P lease see related items on Pages 5 and 1 9 .) Respond at ww w.justout.com . (D on’t forget to include your nam e, city and daytime telephone num ber.) D aniel R esnic Beverly Hills, Calif. Think before you print To the E ditor : hanks for the reviews of places to eat vegan [“Don’t Have a C ow !” ^4arch 19J. Since we read it, we are looking forward to try ing Calendula. However, we expected much more accuracy from Just Out. Your publication prides itself on recognizing diversity, speaking out against stereotyping (to some degree) and exposing details about current events that may be missed in the mainstream. Because we believed that about your paper, we were disheartened to read Meg Daly’s review of our favorite Portland restaurant. While Nicholas’ has gone through many cycles of discovery by different sections of soci ety in its 18 years of operation, one thing has remained a constant for the restaurant: It is owned by a wonderful Portland family who moved here from Lebanon in the ’70s. Period. While running their business they’ve never let their religious beliefs enter into preparing and serving great fcxxi. Are they Muslim? That’s not the point of the article, so why mention it? Daly did not reveal the religious leanings of the other restaurant owners in her review. Why did she single out Nicholas’ ? The restaurant’s choice to not offer alcohol has nothing to do with religion and everything T to do with keeping ct>sts down and overhead low. A better-researched review from your Fea tures Editor would have revealed that fact and probably several others that are far more inter esting. For example, over the years the folks at Nicholas’ have catered weddings, bar mitzvahs, confirmations and some spectacular grand open ings. Many people come to the restaurant to cel ebrate birthdays, quinceaneras and anniver saries. Some may have wanted to consume alco hol with a meal— but their love of good fcxxi ovemxle the need to drink. Clearly, Daly made assumptions and chose to include misinforma tion that was in no way germane to a restaurant review. Please, in your many roles— as a platform, as a forum, as a voice for not assuming things about people— we ask Just Out to think before you print. Get a real story. Talk to individuals. In commenting on our community we all expect JO to "get it straight.” A .G . F lynn Portland Identity clarity To the E ditor : I T ara M. T aylor Portland Nothing has changed S taci P atterson Vancouver, Wash. I I P Y # I f >-T >4 I f -1 Two openly gay men are opposing Portland City I b h l , L r i Com missioner Randy Leonard; Just Out is endorsing ica a balanced budget or health care or an America without assault weapons. Work with America, not against us. Be a uniter, not a divider. See what you can do with a short list until December. There’s not much time left. defines as “extremely feminine gay men,” or “autogynephilic transsexuals,” whpm he says have an “erotic obsession with the image of themselves as women.” Bailey made his conclu sions after interviewing nine transsexual women he met in gay bars. His book created a firestorm within the trans community when the Lambda Literary Founda tion nominated it for a 2003 award. This sparked an outcry from the trans community and an online petition that garnered more than 1,000 signatures in 12 days. The foundation subsequently removed The Man Who Would Be Queen from its nominee list. “The specific issue was whether the book was transphobic,” executive director Jim Marks said. “The judges looked at the book more closely and decided it was.” n the recent survey of your readers, in the sec tion on sexual orientation, “trans” was included [“ The State of the Community,” April 2J. Just to clarify a common misconception: Being transsexual is gender identity, not sexual orientation. These two are often mixed togeth er but are separate and distinct. A trans woman isn’t necessarily attracted to men and visa versa. This confusion was illustrated in Michael Bailey’s book The Man Who Would Be Queen, wherein he lumped all trans women into two categories: “homosexual transsexuals,” whom he 1 attended April 4’s inspiring rally organized by the Coalition of Black Men and am outraged over the unjustifiable killing of James 'Jahar Perez. Ten months ago it was Kendra James; before that it was Jose Santos Mejia Poot, a Mexican immigrant. Obviously nothing has changed. If you are brown, immigran^or African American, things have gotten worse with respect to police use of deadly force. But I believe things can improve, which compels me to speak out and get involved. We need to defend ourselves from a police institution that maims or even kills us because we are a threat to Portland’s wealthy. We are a threat because we demand economic and politi cal justice. Demands such as a well-funded and quality education, a living wage, health care and that big business pays up so we aren’t taxed to starvation. We demand not to be racially pro filed every time we drive our cars. We demand jobs, the right to organize, the right to reproduc tive choice and the right to marry if we are les bian or gay. As a socialist feminist, I think the only kind of system that can support anything different is a socialist economy, where human needs and equality, not profits, are what matter. The Freedom Socialist Party has long advo cated an independent elected civilian police review board with the authority to discipline police. This board should be publicly funded but not connected to corrupt city government and big business interests. In the meantime, Mult nomah County officials should open the grand jury process to the public so justice can be brought to the murderers of James Jahar Perez. 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T justflUH WELCOMES LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Celebrate with Flowers Weddings GLBT Ceremonies & Parties o A '/o ra/ Letters must be accompanied by 9 phone number for verification purposes. Anonymous letters and letters without sufficient contact information will not be published. 'i t e a m á 503 . 777.0800 www.floral-dreams.com
