rrmiout
‘IT’S ALL IN YOUR HEAD’
P rid e N o rth w e s t
n e e d s yo u
To the E ditor :
s of Jan. 31, 2005,1 have resigned my posi
tion as vice president, entertainment
chairwoman and safety coordinator of Pride
Northwest, because 1 am moving to the East
Coast to join my life partner.
I have been involved with Pride Northwest
for 10 years, and it’s time to move on.
Pride Northwest is facing the challenge of
recruiting new board members and volunteers.
Six members are left with the task of putting on
the annual event without much help from our
community. This needs to change.
All year round, there is lots of hard work
involved in putting this event on; it takes com
mitment and dedication. So many in our com
munity just expect the event to he happening
and, yeah, they should volunteer, hut....
No more excuses, no more huts— get
involved now! Pride Northwest and our com
munity need YOU.
1 am thankful to have had this experience. 1
met many great people and gained lots of
insights, and it was fun getting the event off the
ground and seeing it grow. Well, this is my
farewell from Portland after living here for 14
years and doing Pride for 10 years.
Thanks, and gcxxl luck. One last thing to the
community at large: Stop complaining and get
involved instead.
P atricia M uhlbauer
Portland
One person a t a tim e
T o the E ditor :
found my voice yesterday after 28 years of
looking. I came out to my mother. This has
been one of the most frightening, enlightening
and relieving experiences of my life.
With all that has gone on the past few
months, 1 wanted to say to everyone that we
may not have a voice in society as of yet, hut if
we struggle, fight, work together and keep open
minds, we will someday find it. 1 plan to do my
best to seok out people who are uncomfortable
with homosexuality and talk to them— really
talk and find out why and show that we are
human, just like them.
Just maybe we can change the world one
person at a time. 1 am going to try!
A
n g ie
M
c M aster
Tmutdalc
Ig n o ran ce lost th e
electio n
T o the E ditor :
have heard some disturbing “aunblings” on
the streets and in the media regarding the
recent election— rumblings that the gay men
and lesbians of this country somehow “lost the
election for us."
Gay people didn’t lose the election.
Ignorance and prejudice lost the election. Let’s
not blame the victims here; no one worked
harder on this election than gay people, and no
one had more at stake. Ultimately, the entire
country will be the victim of four more years of
this administration.
The numbers here in Oregon certainly tell
the story; enough so-called liberals and/or
Democrats voted for John Kerry...but just
couldn’t get over their distaste of gay people or
their feelings of superiority to grant them the
rights they deserve simply by being Americans.
Let’s he clear: Measure 36 was N O T about
giving gay people rights. We already have rights
guaranteed by the Constitution and the Bill of
Rights. We do not have to go begging to
straight America, hat in hand, asking for this,
that or the other.
No, Measure 36 was about legitimizing and
legislating discrimination and prejudice; one
only had to read the hateful and hate-filled lit
erature to see that. To deny a group of people
something that the rest of the people are
allowed is the VERY DEFINITION of word
“discrimination”!
Requiring that candidates address the issue of
gay people in America is hardly meant to min
their campaign, but let’s be real: In this day and
age, should that even BE an issue? Especially
with so many other issues facing our nation,
should allowing a segment of Americans the
right to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”
be a discussion?
No, what SH O U LD be a discussion for the
next four years is how straight America can edu
cate themselves. How gay-friendly congresspeo-
ple can convince their constituents and their
fellows that gay people are not evil nor a threat
to anything. How to persuade women Republi
cans, minority Republicans and gay Republicans
that they are supporting an organization that
hates them as individuals, and that will contin
ue to work against them and their best interests
at every turn. What SH O U LD be a discussion is
how to stop the perception that there is a prob
lem with gay people at all.
More than 160 years ago, Charles Dickens
had the Ghost of Christmas Present give this
warning: “This boy is Ignorance. This girl is
Want. Beware them Kith...but most of all
beware this boy, tor on his brow 1 see that writ
ten which is Doom.” Certainly at the present
Christmas, this warning still sounds.
D onald F inch
Portland
The bubble bursts
T o the E ditor :
feel like I was kicked in the stomach. When
Bonnie Tinker expressed concern for
G LB T Q youth who’ve never seen a setback and
don’t have the years of experience to see this as
just one step backward in a long process of
change, 1 realized why I was so shocked. Like
many younger folks living in the big gay bubble
of Portland, I have never tasted hatred quite
like this.
Now that I am done crying, I spend a lot of
time convincing myself that it dcxisn’t help to
harbor resentment for the gleeful celebrators of
the Yes on 36 campaign or my pro-Bush neigh
bor down the street. I am concentrating on keep
ing my spirits up, my outkxik positive and my
stress level low; I don’t want to help them
oppress me by mining my health and happiness.
I am planning on reactivating as a pro-
choice activist. I have vowed to support our sup
porters in national and local politics. I tell my
neighbors, my conservative “ in-laws” and any
one else I can find how much this hurts, lest
anyone think politics really doesn’t affect our
lives.
And every once in a while, because I can’t
he good all the time, I refuse to let a
"Bush/Cheney” bumper sticker merge in traffic.
E r i n S e x t o n -S a y l e r
Portland
Access fo r all
coverage, a conservative religious group based in
Pennsylvania recently targeted Hollywood
Theatre because it vehemently opposed a film
that was shown here by an organization that
rented our facility. The film was shown twice
Dec. 1 as a fund-raiser for a Portland nonprofit
that supports gay and lesbian teens as they strug-
gle to cope with their sexual identity.
In just a matter of days, artistic director
Richard Beer and I each received more than
2,(XX) e-mails from around the world, the vast
majority of which were fonn letters. Many of the
e-mails also included personal (i.e., damning
and venomous) comments. We even received a
few threatening phone calls. A small group
protested on the night of the event. Despite the
protests and threats, we upheld our agreement
with our rental client. We added some security
measures, and the event went on as planned.
At the risk of developing carpel tunnel syn
drome, Richard took the time to respond to
each e-mail protest. He explained that the non
profit Oregon Film St Video Foundation owns
HollywixxJ Theatre and that we provide our
space to a broad range of organizations, includ
ing environmental groups, parochial schools,
public schools, church groups, animal rights
groups, political action groups, health organiza
tions and many others.
While we respect the right of everyone to
voice an opinion about our programming or the
events held here, being the recipient of such a
barrage of negative messages has been a new
(and exhausting!) experience for our staff. At
the same time, it has affirmed the importance of
our role. We are here to serve all members of the
community as best we can.
This is where we you can help.
Since the foundation tcxik possession of the
historic building in 1997, one of our biggest
concerns has been the accessibility of the build
ing to our physically impaired patrons. While
we are still seeking an architectural solution to
add an elevator in the theater, we have plans to
install a sturdy handrail that will make it easier
for many folks to climb the stairs and steep
ramp to our upstairs auditoriums. A decorative
safety guardrail will also be installed on the
landing. Because of the complex nature of the
building’s curving architecture and the sheer
distance the rail must extend, this project will
cost almost $5,000.
In this season of giving, we hope that
you will consider making a secure charitable
contribution to the theater by going to
www.hollywcxxltheatre.org/donate or mailing it
to 4122 N.E. Sandy Blvd., Portland, OR 97212.
All gifts are greatly appreciated and are tax-
deductible to the full extent of the law.
E l l e n B e r g s t o n e B eer
Oregon Film &. Video Foundation
ScKOi
f ip * * * * * *
* * <xU tefU e* * *
"¿ e tte **
TRAIN YOUR BRAIN.
CHANGE YOUR LIFE.
1 have to date lost
22 lbs and am off Zoloft.
All thanks to you.
You are a goddess . "
Don Clarkson. Mayor (Mosier. OR)
and Personal Coach
If you are struggling with
depression, anxiety, panic
attacks, attention issues,
stress, sleep problems, mental
clarity, or are seeking a peak
performance edge contact:
Nora G edgaudas
Neurotherapist
Nutntional Specialist
Northwest Neurofeedback
Johnson Street Professional Building
1920 NW Johnson Street., Suite 100
Portland, OR 97209
Office: 503-274-7733
Fax: 503-274-7770
call lor a tree consultation
ht1p://www northwest-neurofeedback com
V .
Atkinson
Memorial Church
Unitarian
UniversalLst
A Welcoming
Congregation
Come Celebrate
the Holidays
with us!
Sunday Service
& Religious
Education
10:30 am
710 Sixth Street • Oregon City, OR 97045
www.atkinsonchurch.com • (503) 656-7296
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To the E ditor :
* •
am writing to tell yixj of a recent controversy
and to ask you to support our ongoing work.
As you may be aware through the local news
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M a rc B aker
D o w n to w n P o rtla n d
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