4 j U S t O U t ’ december 3. 2004
Ontuiji
Richard Voss, g r i abr
Principal Broker / Owner
Peninsula Realty
6110 N Lombard
Portland. OR 97203
Business (503) 286-5826
Cell (503) 804-9424
•Full Service Real Estate Office
•On site Real Estate school
•Full service Property Management
•Notary Services
•Fax Machine Services
Se habla Español
•In-office closings
•Buyer and seller seminars
•On-site mortgage Broker
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SpongeBob SquarePants
is popular with gay men
homosexuality. SpongeBob makes a much bet
ter scapegoat.
To the E ditor :
T homas K raemer
A Nov. 19 Just Out movie review relegated
SpongeBob SquarePants to first-graders. How
ever, many adult gay men have been watching
SpongeBob in “Nielsen-popping numbers,”
according to the very academic journal The Gay
& lesbian Review. Adults who enjoy the classic
Warner Brothers carttxms will probably also
love SpongeBob.
SpongeBob is so gay, in fact, that the Christ
ian-Republican moral majority recently labeled
him a gay terrorist like the Teletubby Tinky-
Winky. The conservative Bill O ’Reilly even felt
it was necessary to brag that his Fox News tele
vision show had finally surpassed SpongeBob in
number of viewers at 8 p.m. Even reruns were
heating O ’Reillys numbers.
SpongeBob was first brought out of the clos
et by an Oct. 8, 2002, Wall Street Journal article.
The former Just Out humorist Marc Acito tried
to deny that SpongeBob was homosexual
because “he’s a sponge” hut conceded that “the
little guy makes Christopher Lowell lrx»k posi
tively hutch" (“A Sad Day in the Neighbor-
htxxJ," March 21, 2003].
SpongeBob skillfully carries on the “celluloid
closet” Hollyw(xxJ tradition of slipping in sub
versive gay references under the noses of clueless
straight people. For example, in the episode “No
Weenies Allowed,” SpongeBob comically deals
with homophobia-like concerns after being
rejected and banished to a “weenie bar." The ;
other weenies counsel him that “you can’t hide
what is inside.” But a weenie-phobic and closet
ed SpongeBob repeatedly pleads, “I’m not a
weenie! I»»
Likewise, the voice of Sponge Bob’s neighbor
Squidward mimics the style of gay comedian
Paul Lynde and is reminiscent of a stereotypical
gay male music teacher. SpongeBob’s close
buddy Patrick the starfish talks like Bert Lahr,
who played the sissy lion in The Wizard of ()?.
Another close friend with a gender-neutral
name is the very hutch female squirrel named
Sandy.
In the carttxm “SU D S,” SpongeBob humor
ously dealt with the serious medical and politi
cal issues of AIDS. As a person living with
SU D S, SpongeBob would make a perfect
celebrity spokesman for the next safe-sex cam
paign. How six»n can I get a yellow and
absorbent SpongeBob condom? After all, it
seems like SpongeBob is already appearing on
every other product.
1 do not blame Measure 36 or gay marriage
for President Bush’s election. I blame Sponge
Bob for making voters think he is recruiting
children into the gay lifestyle by flaunting his
Corvallis
Thanks for
community support
To the E ditor :
During the No on Constitutional Amend
ment 36 campaign, Portland Parents, Families and
Friends of Lesbians and Gays w;is invited to pro
vide ftxxJ for all the fabulous, dedicated canvassers
who knocked on thousands upon thousands of
dix>rs in Multnomah and Washington counties,
educating pet »pie about mamage equality.
It was my privilege to work on this project
with Hillary (“Leigh”) Howitt, a straight-hut-
not-narrow recent San Francisco transplant.
Plowing through the ads in Just Out and Port
land’s Gay and Lesbian Community Yellow
Pages, we found many restaurants and caterers
who threw their dtx»rs open to help us— some of
them time and time again. We want to publicly
thank those businesses— most of them small
businesses, working hard in this difficult econo
my—and individuals who ax»ked up a storm to
feed OUR tnx»ps!
Those with asterisks gave more than once,
and sometimes on very short notice, for which
we thank them all the more. In order of appear
ance on our calendar, they are: *Old Wives’
Tales, *Holiday Essence Quality Cake Shop,
Piece of Cake, Wild Oats, Joseph’s Dessert Com
pany, John’s Catering, Cup and Saucer, Iron
Horse, Hot Lips Pizza, Oasis Café, Flying Pie
Pizzeria, It’s a Beautiful Pizza, Laurelwtxxl Public
House ¿x Brewery, Divine Café, Rose éx Rain
drop, Russell Street Barbecue, Holocene, *Vista
Spring Café, Chameleon Restaurant, Pastini
Pastaría, A Place to Talk— Ruth Parvin, Augus-
tana Lutheran Church, Forest Grove United
Church of Christ, Southminstcr Presbyterian
Church, *Bau Nguyen, Frank Vanek, Sir Robin
R. Hixson and Ginny Laferricrc, her mother,
Dm na Harrison, and her son, Elliott Laferriere.
We hope that as you plan your meals out, you
will support the businesses who went out of their
way to help us bring the truth to doorsteps in the
greater Portland metropolitan area. There are
likely other wonderful donors among our readers
whose support of our trix»ps slipped under our
radar. Please stand up and let all of us know who
you are, so we can celebrate and thank you, ttx»!
Especially in light of our defeat Nov. 2, Port
land PFLAG heartily invites all members of our
G LBTQ community, and your parents, siblings
and friends, to join us the second Tuesday of
each month from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Fireside
Room at First United Methodist Church,
1838 S.W. Jefferson St. Our Dec. 14 meeting
will he our annual holiday potluck. We’d love to
have you join us for great holiday cheer and live
music. We will he meeting in Collins Hall that
night. Please RSVP by calling 503-232-7676 so
PFLAG hoard members will know how much
ham and turkey to provide.
S usie S hepherd
Ptrrtland
You can’t legislate love
To the E ditor :
As the dust settles, some last thixights on the pas
sage of Measure 36: As citizens, we shtxild he
alarmed with this outcome. One gnxip of Americans
finds itself disenfranchised from equality under the
laws that others take for granted— this being the
rights and privileges of mamage and all the benefits
derived therefrom.
What right Ls more inalienable than to love
whom you chtxise? What truth is more self-
evident than that all people, no matter what their
sexual orientation, are created EQUAL? What
commandment, no matter your religion, Ls more
important than “love one another” ? How does den
igrating one group of people support that most
important of commandments? How drxis promot
ing fidelity and commitment between two people
weaken the institution of marriage? Why should a
law legislate whom we love or whom we chtxtse to
marry?
Gays and lesbians are very real human beings.
They fall in love and want to celebrate their love
with family and friends in a religious ceremony, if
they ch(x»se. Why should their marriage not he rec-
ognized leg-ally the same as heterosexual marriage?
No law can legislate whom we love. As a stx:i-
ety, we need to promote and support committed,
loving relationships that build a stable, caring fam
ily and community. At die very le;tst, srxriety’s laws
should not interfere with anything this deeply per
sonal.
I sincerely hope that this period of time will he
Imked Kick on as we now lcx»k back on segrega
tion—as a period of deep IGNORANCE from
which we evolved. We need to stand shoulder to
shoulder to protect the rights of all citizens for
equality under the law, no matter the sexual orien
tation.
D esiree H uber
Portland
c o r r e c t io n
The Nov. 19 newshrief “PFLAG Cleans Up”
misidentified the Portland chapter president as
Ann Blair. Her name is actually Anne Bliss.
Just Out regrets the error.
V___________________________________ /
t r a n s it io n s
IN OTHI ER
■Pili H i W
O
R
WOMEN’S DOOKS D
AND RESOURCES C
J
3734 SE Hawthorne • (503) 232-6003
www.lnotherwords.org
W illie M . 'nicker,
1 9 3 7 - 2 0 0 4
Willie M. Tucker died Nov. 20. He was 66.
He was bom on Christmas Eve 1937 to Rachel
Tucker Glasper, who survives him in death.
He was a licensed cosmetologist, trained at
the Phagan Schtx»l of Hair Design. He worked
at and managed various salons in the Portland
area, spending the past 20 years of his career
with Gary Lucky Hair Salon on Broadway and
Fremont.
Tucker was active in many community or
ganizations including the Peoples Fund, Ebony
Kingdom and Imperial Sovereign Rose Court.
Tucker loved the theater and held season tickets
to many local companies.
In a 1999 Pride feature in Just Out, Tucker
described himself as “cantankerous, grouchy,
grumpy, irascible.” Tucker came out as a gay
man when he was 19, long before Stonewall.
He moved to Portland in 1968, where he
became a fixture in the early court system and
drag show circuit. He served as a hoard member
for PeactKk in the Park; every year, the day of
performance would find him working behind
the scenes as “troublesh(x»ter" and backstage
coordinator.
In addition to bis family, Tucker is survived
by many community members who loved and
admired him, especially his best and dearest
friend, Irving Lambert. Tucker was a true family
patrician who t<x»k pride and joy in his responsi
bilities for rearing his many nieces and nephews.
Well-attended services were held Nov. 24 at
Skyline Memorial Gardens Chapel. Tucker’s
ashes will he scattered at the Oregon coast.