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Willamette Week cover story on Portland Fellowship?
‘
' Was it worthwhile information, or did it lend unearned credence to the (i ex-gay” movement?
extraordinary flora
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ell-meaning people have been trying to
“cure" homosexuality since the dawn of
time, and now these Portland Fellowship
ple think they have the answer? For shame to
anyone who believes this. You can’t fix/cure
something just because you don’t like it. There
is much more information and documentation
on the fact that people are bom homosexuals,
not made. Perhaps with genetic engineering
someday you can have a child who is just what
you want, but I think nature will always emerge
the victor.
I would be greatly upset to have any of my
gay friends suddenly become heterosexual. Are
we just going to FIX anyone who isn’t the
norm? Myself, I have always been a different
person; 1 get asked if I am straight and I just say
no, I am just a little bent.
I have never been crazy about labels for peo
ple; I was a geek long before anyone knew what
that was. We all as a race of human beings con
tribute the glory of the whole. Sort of like the
Borgs being a part of the collective, only not so
Gene Rodenberry. I don’t think the article had
worthwhile information, but it was good for a
chuckle, and I hope those people are happy.
W
This man who claims to be cured is truly
fooling himself. He will spend a lifetime pray
peo
ing or whatever to suppress his natural urges.
Then one day he will wake up a very old man
and realize that he’s wasted an entire lifetime
trying to be someone he’s not.
He’s done nothing to validate the “ex-gay”
movement; once a homosexual, always a
homosexual. If anything he should be pitied.
municated this truth, it was valuable. But this
value was blunted by WW's signature attempt
at “aren’t-we-cool-cause-we-know-the-truth”
irony. Starting with the headline and continu
ing through the closing paragraph, this
obscured the truth, rather than clarified it.
S tephen S impson
Portland
1019 nw 11th ave
p 503.228.2558
• • •
D avid W. H artsook
Portland
enjoyed WWs article and think it did more
good than anything. It showed both sides,
rather than hammering down the obvious truth
y perspective is that tolerance is a double-
about the “ex-gay" movement’s illegitimacy.
edged sword. Although it seems obvious While the article’s voice remained neutral, the
to most comfortably out folks that Portland
facts in the article still showed that science and
Fellowship’s mission is absurd, I feel:
logic are on our side while only bad theology
1. Any quest for sexual identity must be and pretense are on theirs. Such objectivity can
honored.
be important in convincing those more-
2. The group has a huge failure rate and so moderate-than-thou folks who we all know.
is its own worst enemy.
I’m speaking of the ones who are willing to
3. If a person doesn’t want to “be gay,” good
believe any of the typically one-sided, pro-Bush
riddance. Better they be confused somewhere crap the mainstream media put out just because
else. I have no doubt the gay community will
it is coming from an “objective" source but
always be here to welcome them home if it would never believe any of the actual facts in
A lice L ynn
doesn’t work out.
Fahrenheit 9/11 (or any other well-researched,
Portland
fact-oriented progressive work) just because it
M icheál M c D uffey
hails from one side of the political spectrum. For
• • •
Portland
whatever reason, many people do not look at or
are not able to tell what the actual facts are, so
• • •
found the July 28 Willamette Week on “ex
the information they actually believe tends to
gays” amusing, to say the least. I can tell you
be information coming from sources with at
from my own personal experience that no
agreed to be interviewed for the article
least a supposed premise of objectivity. This arti
amount of deprogramming/praying/therapy can
because I believe that the truth about the cle fit that bill and can perhaps woo undecideds
make anyone change his or her sexual prefer
“ex-gay” movement needs to be told. It hurts better than ohe that is more obviously slanted
ence. There are many well-published articles as
people. It reaffirms homophobia in all its forms.
toward what we know to be the truth.
well as documented medical proof that people
It also robs good people of time better spent
are bom homosexual. No matter what the far growing into well-rounded human beings.
T om S oppe
right says, it’s not a choice; we are bom this way.
To the limited extent that the article com-
Portland
I
• • •
I
M
www.Dharma-Rain.Org
I
Hpyf |
New Jersey Qov. James E. McQreevey comes out as the highest-ranking openly gay official in
■■****■• I bbl, I’d
history amid a sex and ethics scandal: Do you feel this will have positive or negative
repercussions for the queer community? (Please see related item on Page 16,) Respond at www.justout.com. (Don’t
forget to include your name, city and daytime telephone number.)
The other disturbing point of Mr. Bealer’s
letter comes with his saying, “Can you believe
that anyone other than straights and gays who
have just come out would ever go near that con
notation?” The subtle bi-bashing inherent in
this remark is unfortunate. I am not a straight
man, and I am not a gay man who just came out.
I’ve been an out and proud bisexual for more
than a decade, and there are millions of others
just like me. We are not inexperienced with gay
or straight life, since we are involved in both
worlds. And we aren’t going away. Whether one
agrees with an article or not, what’s true shame
is for someone to deny others else their place at
the table on the basis of their identity.
largely convinced myself that there was no real
prospect that 1 would. I resigned myself to work
ing on a local level to build a hopeful future for
my community here, knowing that this at least
would make a real difference to a limited num
ber of trans Americans. But the pain remained.
Thank you for taking this step, for writing
these words and for reviving the dream within
our hearts of a day when we do not have to won
der if our lives and our futures were expendable
to some pragmatic compromise. This question
really hurt trans people more than 1 can ever
say—but I suspect you know this already.
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
has done the right thing for years about trans
inclusion, and in particular the work that Lisa
Mottet has done for our community can’t be
G lenn S cofield W illiams
overestimated. But this statement has a magnif
Portland
icent power to it that supersedes even these
efforts in effect. It is a risky thing to return to our
An open letter
true values and eschew the easier sanctuary that
to Matt Foreman
we desperately seek for ourselves, but those of us
who are defiantly and joyously out for the world
To the E ditor :
have so many feelings going through me about
know we are better for it.
You are obviously a man of great compassion,
the issues that you’ve addressed in your recent
statement about Employment Nondiscrimina vision and courage. Someday I hope we will get
tion Act inclusion. One is foremost: admiration
a chance to share more. Till then, my warmest
and most grateful regards and best wishes—and
for your courage to speak so openly and honestly
about this difficult and painful topic.
many, many thanks.
I have waited for years to read these words in
L ori B uckwalter
unequivocal clarity from a national LGBT
Portland
leader of your stature, and for these years have
I
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