Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 19, 2004)
4 J U S t O U t • november 19. 2004 v ió f? extraordinary flora 1019 nw 11th ave p 503.228.1558 ^ Educational Toys & Gomfs • Sfx’Cidl Nmi.s Roofr; 8. toys ^ (portiantfs finest specialty toy store in the heart oj the (Westmoreianti/^3cii\vooti shopping district. Free gift Wrapping^; « Mention this ad and ® Birthday Club receive 20% off any single regular priced item s hours: Tues-Sat 10-6, Sun 12-5, Closed Mondays. Call about our extended holiday hours. ( 503 ) 239-6925 7325 SE MilwauKie Ave., Portland, Oregon 97202 O v m r n /' Cycle (V Works Professional Service Comfortable Bikes Recumbents a Specialty! (COME SEE WHY!) Open Tuesdav-Sund.lv 2 50-772 f 2025 S t Hawthorne BfSHN o u t Blatant bigotry hardly co n stitutes m oral valu es brave people who stand up against inequality Be ashamed of what you have done. Be despite facing huge personal and political risks. , ashamed of the level to which you have sunk. To the E ditor : S parky L indsay hat an outrage that blame would he laid for President Bush’s re-election on those who helped promote equality for gay and les bian people. W ere the abolitionists who openly defied slave laws the cause of the secession of the slaveholding South and the Civil War that followed.' Were the courageous German citizens who spoke against the ever-increasing restric tions and scapegoating of the German Jews responsible for Hitler’s rise to the chancellor ship.' Were the clergymen who supported and married interracial couples in the South respon sible for the persecution that followed with the reinforcement of more racist Jim Crow laws.' If there is a connection between the re- election of Bush and the issue of gay marriage, the responsibility lies squarely in the hands of the “architect," Karl Rove, and the others in the Republican Party leadership who immoral ly used the issue to inflame existing age-old bigotry, fear and ignorance about gay and les bian people. Also, the responsibility lies in the hands of the leaders of those evangelical churches that chose to further heat the drum of gay-baiting, claiming that sexual minorities (who, despite false assertions, do not ch<x>se their orientation) are nothing more than sin ful, hedonistic child corrupters who are less than full, real, normal people and therefore do not deserve equality. This blatant bigotry is being called “moral values” even though it is hardly moral to defile, debase and discriminate against a minority group just because they are Kirn differently and are lesser in size and weaker stKially and politi cally than the majority. It is wrong to practice bigotry, and it is equally wrong to blame the D in a h S m ith i Salem Portland An open letter to the people off Oregon To the E ditor : N ice co ver art, but... To the E ditor : our Nov. 5 cover is one I believe I shall keep to show people the day (yes, it WILL get here someday!) same-sex marriages are given the same due respect and dignity that opposite- sex ones receive. The image of the drinking fountains is powerful and thought-provoking. It made my heart lurch from myriad emotions. However, I would just like to say that it appears a bisexual person like me gets no water in the dichotomous equation presented in the cover image. T hat makes my heart lurch even more from another example of the invisibility (if some queer people. ow dare you.' How dare you tell me I’m less than you.' How dare you have me face every person I know, meet or interact with each day and wonder if they are part of the 56 percent of you who believe you are better than I am and that you deserve rights I do not have. How dare you hide behind schxxilchildren and make this issue aK>ut their “protection.” W hat aKuit the children in schcxil who ques tion their own self-worth, their own sanity, because they don’t fir the mold.' Do you feel safer now.' Help me understand how preventing others from marrying protects your marriage. Are your marriages so fragile they can he shaken by the events of people you don’t even know? In a state where “live and let live” has always been the forefront of evefy argument, how can you justify this? Oregon has joined the ranks of Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Georgia and South C ar olina (to name a few) in furthering the cause of discrimination. Don’t ever dare joke aKuit those states being “backward" and “ignorant” again. Don't ever dare think of yourself on higher ground than states that put politics in pulpits and hedrcxxns, and plaster religious documents in their courthouses and courtrmms. Don’t dare look with disdain and distaste at states that allow a Confederate flag to fly ak w e their capitols. You are no better. 1 am appalled by your hyptxrrisy. hoever decided to use the photo of straight and gay drinking fountains on the last issue’s cover has the political consciousness of a rix;k. O ur struggle for equality and liberation is very real; however, we should use caution when deciding what images should reflect that strug gle. It’s not a k x jt the drinking fountains, or rid ing in the hack of the bus, or fire hoses and G er man shepherds. O ur work for true equality for us is sound and right and dixzs not need to he linked with any other groups’ oppression. you feel about the 2004 election results! Should we be grateful for local victories, or should we be more alarmed about national setbacks! end. To Sam Adams and Tom Potter, congratu lations and hold on tight! fine, I’m willing to he that villain, and they are going to regret it. S c o t t S eibert Portland B en S m it h Portland ay people must take a gixxl look at what is going on within the Democratic Party as it relates to this issue. I saw numerous signs posted in people’s yards for John Kerry as well as for Yes on 36. Combine that with Bill Clinton attempting to push Kerry to support local anti-gay initia tives and you really have to wonder aKxjt those who say they stand with us. I, for one, never trusted Clinton; now I have the proof. T he gay marriage issue is never going to work for us. Like it or not, we will he living with a Republican majority for several years. It is time to work with them on a domestic partner contract law, which President Bush said he would support. here is no way to predict what impact Mea sure 36 will have. Safe to say, it won’t he pretty. All across this nation, gays have found themselves on the front lines of the cultural civil war. Measure 36 has relegated us to second-class citizenship. If you’re not alarmed, you should be. These measures send a very dangerous message, and you can he sure we will he feeling the repercus sions for years to come. As the battle heats up, I wonder what’s next. Maybe we’ll see something like the Japanese Family Leave A ct of 1942, where thousands o f Americans o f Japanese descent were rounded up and put into camps (for their own protection). I, for one, will not go quietly. Stay vigilant, and don’t let the bastards grind you down. ju st hn n rrn i How do G S t e v e S m it h Portland • • • T Portland Political co n scio u sn e ss off a ro ck To the E ditor : • • • T D a vid F lynn Portland • • • hank you to Basic Rights Oregon for fight ing Ballot Measure 36. We won TWICE the vole of any other state— due in part to strong leadership, hundreds of volunteers and the personal stories shared by thousands of gay Oregonians with their families, co-workers and friends. We have come a long way, and I hope the community doesn’t decide to “eat our own" as we have in the past just because we lost in the L isa D essen -O c a o a I say we riot like hell. Let’s bum, pillage, bust windows, flip cars, bring the streets to com plete and utter chaos. I’m sick of this shit; it’s time to stop being nice. If they are going to paint us as people who are out to ruin the world, I say fine, let them do it, and then let’s give it to them, give these idiots what they want. If what they want is a villain, • • • W e should be grateful for local victories, primarily because there were so few. Each one is more valuable for its rarity. We should not, however, he satisfied with those victories. If the national election tells us anything, it is that our civil rights and human rights in gener al are in peril. President Bush’s policies, includ ing Supreme Court appointments, will only erode what rights the gay community has and will almost certainly turn back the chxzk on constitutional rights for all citizens. I am particularly discouraged by the passage of Measure 36. I’ve always felt that Oregonians were tolerant and open-minded, and I’m hugely dis appointed to know that the majority of my neigh- k>rs endorse discrimination for the sake of some (Xitdated image of marriage and family. Bush’s fear tactics worked on the majority of Oregon voters. It is sad that they are unable or unwilling to think through the issues for themselves. Bush doesn’t care what “equal protection of laws” means. He does, however, fully understand that creating fear and division among the people gets him the power he wants. Freethinking, rea sonable people must take the country hack, or it’s g(xxlbye progress, tolerance and civil rights and hello 1^50s repression and enforced conformity. P a t r ic ia H a n s e n Portland
