7
L' ! i ] ; i i ; i vi 4-1 inewsbriefs
W àshington J udge R ules
for S ame -S ex M arriage
C andidates F ace O ff
at P olitical F orums
hurston C ounty Superior C ourt Judge
Richard Hicks ruled Sept. 7 that state laws
barring same-sex couples from marriage violate
the W ashington C onstitution’s guarantee of
equal protection for all citizens. T he government
cannot give the legal benefits of marriage to one
group of adult citizens hut not to another, he said.
T he ruling comes in a lawsuit filed five
months ago on behalf of 11 couples who wish to
marry in W ashington or to have their marriage
recognized under state law. Plaintiffs include a
police officer, a firefighter, a hanker, a nurse, a
retired judge, a college professor and a business
executive. They reside from Seattle to Spokane
and from Port Townsend to Hoquiam.
“This is an important victory for fairness and
equality,” said Kathleen Taylor, American Civil
Liberties Union of Washington executive director.
“The judge ruled that government must treat
same-sex couples <he same as other couples. Two
consenting adults who wish to enter into the com
mitment of marriage cannot he denied its benefits
simply because they are of the same gender.”
Current law deprives same-sex couples of
numerous rights available as a direct benefit of the
marriage contract. Among these are community
property rights; access to family court; joint assess
ment of income and needs for determination of
state assistance programs; access during health care
emergencies and the ability to participate in health
care decisions; survivor benefits; and authority to
make decisions regarding funeral arrangements.
The court rebuffed arguments that same-sex
marriage destabilizes the family, noting that gay and
lesbian couples have already been found to serve as
capable foster and adoptive parents. In his niling,
Hicks pointed out that marriage equality actually
strengthens the community: “Our fundamental
principle is that we share the freedom to live with
and respect each other and share the same privi
leges or immunities. We need each other.”
Hicks concluded: “Democracy means people
with different values living together as one peo
ple. W hat can reconcile our differences is the
feeling that with these differences we are still one
people. This is the democracy of conscience.”
In April, King C ounty Superior C ourt Judge
William Downing ruled that W ashingtons laws
limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples violate
the state constitution. In that case, eight same-
sex couples sued King C ounty for refusing to
give them marriage licenses. Both rulings are
expected to be heard by the W ashington
Supreme Court, most likely on the same day.
The ACLU of W ashington started working to
secure marriage equality more than 30 years ago.
In 1971, it represented John Singer and Paul Bar-
wick when they sought to obtain a marriage
I
I
license in W ashington. The
Washington Court of Appeals
sided with the state, ruling that
marriage is the “appropriate and
desirable fomm for procreation
and the rearing of children” and
therefore not applicable to gays
and lesbians. Hicks, however,
said that “the community, and its values, has sub
stantially changed” since then and that the Singer
case “cries out for re-examination.”
U p , U p
and
A way !
B
Floreid Walker
3529 NE Broadway?™
Portland, OR 97232
503.445 9390 ext. 101
floreid@wfgadvisors.com
Greg Look
3550 Liberty Rd. Sg'J
Salem, OR 97302
503.566.7266 ext. 114
greg@ vvfgadvisors.com
Portland Mayor Vera Katz will receive a Career
Achievement Award, and activists from C entral
Oregon will be recognized for the passage of a
civil rights ordinance that bans bias based on
sexual orientation and gender identity in Bend.
Daria O ’Neil of KRSK-FM and KPDX-TV
will be the host, and gay entertainer Wade
McCollum of Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Bat
Boy: The Musical will entertain along with
singer Julianne Johnson. Tickets are $125.
All of the money raised during the dinner will
help the No on Constitutional Amendment 36
campaign place advertisements on television to
convince voters to oppose the anti-gay ballot mea
sure, but Thorpe also is looking toward the future.
“We recognize that it’s important for all of us to
focus on November,” she said, “but win or lose,
Basic Rights Oregon will he there on the front
lines in the 2005 legislative session and beyond."
asic Rights Oregon will hold its annual din
ner O ct. 2 in the Portland Ballroom at the
Oregon C onvention Center, 777 N.E. M artin
Luther King Jr. Blvd. Cocktails will be served at
6:30 p.m., and the program will start at 7:30.
T he 2004 theme is “T he Amazing Year of
Superheroes,” and donors are welcome to come
dressed as their favorite superhero. “We’re h o n
oring our local treasures, the incredible talent
that people have shown in our state,” BRO
executive director Roey Thorpe told Just Out.
T he dinner will honor many of the people
behind O regon’s push for same-sex marriage:
com m issioners in M ultnom ah and Benton
counties, the American Civil Liberties Union
To reserve a seat, call 503-222-6I5I or visit
and BRO’s Legal Advisory Group. In addition, i wuKu.basicrights.org by Sept. 24.
illamette Financial Group, LLC
♦ R e tir e n ie n i
♦ Life In su ra n ce
♦ C ollege P la n n in g
♦ L o n g -T e r m C are
♦ S u sta in a b le In v estin g
n less than two m onths the Rose C ity will
elect its first new mayor since Vera Katz took
office 12 years ago.
T he front-runner, former Portland Police
C hief Tom Potter, is a member of Parents, Fami
lies and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. His oppo
nent is City Commissioner Jim Francesconi,
whose vacated seat will be filled by Nick Fish, a
labor attorney, or Sam Adams, Katz’s former
chief of staff, who would be the first openly gay
member of the Portland City Council if elected.
Queers have several upcoming opportunities to
hear the Portland politicos pitch their platforms:
• League of W omen Voters of Portland:
Meet all four candidates during a free, unbiased,
informational town hall forum 7 p.m. Sept. 22
in Bishop Morris Hall at St. David of Wales
Episcopal C hurch, 2800 S.E. Harrison St. Speak
with the candidates and register to vote during
an informal coffee hour afterward. For more
information call 503-285-9041.
• City Club of Portland: Adams and Fish will
debate during the Friday Forum from 12:15 to
1:15 p .m. Sept. 24 in the third-floor ballroom of
the Governor Hotel, 611 S.W. 10th Ave. G ener
al seating is free for members and $5 for non-
members. Coffee/tea tickets are $5. Lunch tickets
arc $ 16 for members and $ 18 for nonmembers and
can be reserved by calling 503-228-7231 or visit
ing www.pdxcityclub.org before 2 p.m. Sept. 22.
• KBM S-AM : T he mayoral candidates will
participate in a panel addressing issues facing
black voters from 6 to 9 p.m. Sept. 29 at Reflec
tions Coffeehouse, 446 N.E. Killingsworth St.
Time will also be allotted during the fomm for a
question-and-answer period.
• Community Association of Portsmouth:
The Rev. Jeanne Knepper will moderate a mayoral
candidate fomm from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Oct. 8 at Uni
versity Park United Methodist Church, 4775 N.
Lombard St. Refreshments will he served after
ward, when attendees will have an opportunity to
speak with the candidates. More than one-third of
the welcoming congregation’s members are queer.
Call one of us today
for more information!
L esbian R aises M oney to
F ight L eukemia , L ymphoma
I eannette Jansson lost her cousin to leukemia
I nearly two decades ago, but the Portland les
bian is carrying on the fight for a cure.
Jansson is training to complete the H onolu
lu M arathon on Dec. 12 to raise money for the
Oregon chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma
Society. T h e 35-year-old, who is a registered
Continued on Page 9
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