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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (May 21, 2004)
may 2 1 2004 • jU S t O Ut o just rrn ■ 0 The IN publication publicatioi for the OUT population lime will tell F ounded 1983 • J ay B rown V ol. 21 N o . 14 The community must elect progressive candidates in the November general election oral runoff race in the November general election. Mr. Potter, I acknowl f I were a hit more of a Dickensian sort, 1 might start this column edge and respect your tenure and experience, your leadership skills, your with “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” I can’t longtime support of gay rights and your dedication to all the citizens and quite go that route, however, as I’m still struggling to find what is the city of Portland. In the next few months I look forward to seeing more that would constitute “the best of times.” of your humor, your wit and the energetic vitality and vision that will be The May 17 issue of Time magazine manages to spin both the needed in the next mayor of Portland. We look forward to your presence best and worst of the week. A cover that resounds with a sordid image in the Pride parade next month. Dazzle us! ' from Abu Ghraib is accompanied by a story that tells the story of cul Good news and not-so-good news for our friends on the Multnomah tural differences and how our military uses institutionalized homophobia County Board of Commissioners. The good news is that Maria Rojo de as a tool of torture. This is a story that’s only beginning to be told. Steffey soared to victory and can now concentrate on solving the bud Images of prisoner abuse are being viewed worldwide, while at home our get problems at the county. Meanwhile, Lisa Naito was forced into a nation perches precariously on the edge of a morality-based civil war runoff and will need our combined dollars and votes to guarantee her with a fundamentalist Christian commander in chief standing poised the re-election that she deserves in November. with his finger above the red button of self-righteousness destruction. Favorite son Sam Adams probably won’t be taking any long vacations Turning to the good news section of this issue of Time, readers will this summer, either. His goals for the summer are to raise money, broaden find a lengthy article on how our Multnomah County commissioners his voter base and gamer the support needed to cat worked behind the scenes to bring same-sex mar apult him to victory over rival Nick Fish in Novem riage to Oregonians. This is one of only a few must register and unite as ber. 1 share Adams’ confidence that the anticipated national stories highlighting the Multnomah a single-minded voting bloc. higher number of voters in the general election will County and Basic Rights Oregon process, and its give him the winning boost that he needs. appearance is timely and deserved. To me, never You have two choices: You can previously a student of conspiracy theories, I’ve he real losers in any election are those who begun to think that Massachusetts was selected, be part o f the solution, or you d < on’t even bother to vote. By failing to partici groomed and preordained, so to speak, to be the can be part o f the problem. pate, you voluntarily give up one of your most cov first state to offer fully legal and sanctioned same- eted privileges— a privilege that people in other sex marriages and that efforts elsewhere were des countries often fight and die for. A privilege that more than 50 percent tined for less-than-high regard. But before Oregon and Multnomah of Oregon voters couldn’t bother to get off their fat couches and mail in County are totally overshadowed by Massachusetts and dispatched to their ballots for. the portapotties of obscurity, one magazine does tell our story. It’s worth For the November general election it is imperative that the “queer” your time and effort to track down a copy. community unite behind supportive and reliable candidates and that we maximize the potential of our combined voting power. Together we can ll same-sex marriages, all celebrations, all victories, all defeats had bring victory to deserving candidates. To lead the process Just Out will to take a step backward this month in saddened observation of the tragic torture death of American Nick Berg. And in Portland the hor be actively promoting voter registration at our Waterfront Park booth ror of this event was compounded further by the unimaginable stupid during Pride weekend. We’ll have registration cards, we’ll have pens, we’ll have clipboards, and we’ll have people grabbing you by the collar ity of the radio “personalities" who mocked and replayed the execution as you walk by. Step one to victory: We must register and unite as a sin on their pathetic radio shows. While I am keenly aware of the mighty gle-minded voting bloc. You have two choices: You can be part of the sanctity o f First Amendment rights, I nonetheless believe these cretins solution, or you can be part of the problem. should be rounded up and shipped off to Iraq to perform community Now I am neither naive nor stupid. The notion of our community service projects. being single-minded on any matter borders on the absurd. But, absurd or not, we’ve got to make this happen. We must elect progressive candi n a calmer note now, there was indeed some good news to be found dates. This is our moment, this is our time to make an impact. We’re far this month. To my surprise and that of many others— most notably, past the old Pride chant of “We’re here, we’re queer, get used to it.” I suspect, City Commissioner Jim Francesconi— former Portland Police From now on it’s “We’re here, we’re queer, we vote, WE W IN!” J H Chief Tom Potter pulled a coup in the primary election, forcing a may- We T A O and R enée L a C hance M ay 2 1 , 2 0 0 4 FEATURE THERMGTHMG: As Massachusetts legalizes same-sex marriage, Portland queer couples grapple with saying “I do” p 26 NEWS NORTHWEST • Pride of the Rose Scholarship celebrates 25th anniversary; the story behind a gay septuagenarian’s picture reveals a life filled with love, loss and legacy; County Chair Diane Linn apologizes, but not for same-sex marriage pp 6 - T 7 NATIONAL • Massachusetts finally issues marriage licenses to same-sex couples; Utah high school punishes students for wearing “Queers Kick Ash” T-shirts pp T 8 - 2 T WORLD • U.S. soldiers use same-sex acts to humiliate Iraqi prisoners pp 2 2 - 2 3 ARTS AND CULTURE BOOKS • Portland’s hippest queer parent turns 10 pp 3 4 - 3 5 F I L M . A trio of filmmakers will put Portland couples on the big screen; Showtime produces trans documentaries p 37 WHAT'S POPP IN 'T • But even fast food tastes better than Troy p 39 DIVERSIONS • A Weekend at Home away from home; gay men and their plants; keeping on the Down Low 4T ART * Gay Portland photographer brings his Moroccan journey home p 43 p COLUMNS M S. BEHAVIOR • Friends don’t disinvite friends from The L Word p 33 EPIQOEEREAN • Let’s do lunch, redux p 40 OUT WITH ITI • Not so extreme makeovers p • It’s been nearly two months since Sven Gomez was found dead in his Northwest Portland apartment, in what police have described a s« “ highly suspicious death." In June 1997, the Colombian shared his story in Just Out. He described himself as one of the many gay men and lesbians who come to the United States seeking asylum for fear of persecution in their homelands due to sexual orientation. QUEERS «> T r * Qrevp" T™“ . can ofjn- rich Sidwell have opened 3 Friends Coffeehouse. Located at 201 S.E. 12th Ave. in Portland, this newest addition to the caffeine scene is meant to function as a social hangout for men who are seeking an alternative to the bars. • An estimated 800 people, including a handful of Oregonians, recently gathered in Washington, D.C., for the Lesbian Rights Summit sponsored by the National Organization for Women. ,.• * ,0 uivWä»*** * Deke Law, the Lesbian Community Project’s politically passionate staff organizer, readily acknowledges that not all members are happy about the wider focus of the rebuilt group, as evidenced by spirited debate at its last annual meeting, when some expressed grave concern that the lesbian in Lesbian Community Project was being shunted to the side. • Ron Carter, Randy Rapaport and Dean I • Marty Davis • Jim Radosta ARTS AM M J I K B U M • Lisa Bradshaw 1 Meg Daly 1 Marc Acito, Kathy Beige, Meryl Cohn, Gina Daggett, Els Debbaut, Kobe Kemple, Timothy Krause, Andy Mangels, Christopher McQuain, Gary Morris, J.B. Rabin, Bob Roehr, Tom Stevenson, Glenn Scofield Williams, Rex Wockner, Pat Young I • Larry Lewis ! • Kari Tate, • Members of the Portland Bisexual Alliance, the Bisexual Community Forum and Portland Bisexual Women discuss how to make Pride ’99'bi positive May 28 with representatives from Pride Northwest. • Judy Brodkey leads a workshop for men and women titled “ Understanding the Importance of Men s Liberation" June 8. Learn about society’s narrow definitions o f masculinity and how to become an ally for the boys and men in your life. Ashley Austin GRAPHIC IMKTN • Kevin Moore PMBKT1M ASSISTANT • Zanne dejanvier RISTMVniN • Kristine Ashton, Allison Benn, Ashley Conley, Darren Linder, Kelly Moe 4T THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARC • Love and marriage p 45 Just out is published on the first and third Fri day of each month, Copyright © 2004 hy Just Out. No part of Just Out may he reproduced without written permission from the publisher. 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