JULY6.2OO7 justput; 5 letters Appreciation for Pride To the E ditor : I just wanted to congratulate Pride Northwest on a great parade and a fun festival. 1 enjoyed the parade from the Embers Avenue on Broadway and Couch. The Embers does an amazing job of providing bleachers, a sound system and fabulous MCs, Rose Empress XXIII Patti O’Dora and Rose Empress XXXVI Maria. Patti and Maria enter­ tained the huge crowd long before the parade started and kept us informed about who was coming down the street as the parade passed by. Special thanks to Steve Suss, Bobby Brue, Jon Thibodeau and the Embers staff for providing us with such a great vantage point. I really enjoyed the parade and the short amount of time I was able to spend at the Waterfront Festival. 1 know the Pride committee is very small, but it does great work, and 1 wanted it to know it is appreciated. Special thanks to Stef- Anie Wells, who works very hard trying to appeal to all the colors of the rainbow. In my opinion, she is doing a fantastic job filling a largely thankless position! K imberlee V an P atten Portland Pride Is Free L owell G reenberg Portland Equal Employment for Veterans To the E ditor : 1 wanted to remind everyone in our communi­ ty and our friends that veterans have hiring prefer­ ence in all federal jobs. An extremely effective way to have a positive impact today and in the future is to work to ensure equality from both sides of the fence. Although the military might not protect equality, civilian federal employment indudes sexual orientation in its Equal Employment Opportunity policy. Gandhi said, “You must be the change you wish to see.” T revor H ulse Estacada To the E ditor : This week’s Just Out editorial had an article about how some in the LGBT community have a jaded or negative view toward Pride [“1 Hope You’re Proud of Yourself,” June 15|. 1 have a mes­ sage for them and anyone who has a preconception of what Pride should or shouldn’t be: You may find yourself comfortably ensconced in middle-class values, but do not forget: The struggle is not over. Most in society do not accept who you are. If you are a teenager whose parents believe gays should be put to death, you are not free. If you are thinking of committing suicide because you can’t admit to yourself who you are, you are not free. If you are afraid of losing your job if you come out in the workplace, you are not free. If you or a family member are a victim of a hate crime, you are not free. If you or your partner have fewer benefits and rights than the straight population, you are not free. 3338 SW FAIRMOUNT LANE Pride is a way of saying to society that we have freed ourselves and we will free our brothers and sisters. Pride says 1 am proud to be who I am—some­ thing few in society can say. Pride is about empowering and power. So if you are a cynic, then 1 say that you are blind—blind to your slavery. We are not free until we are all free. Profiting from Pride the queer community, or whatever. Just because you’re queer doesn’t mean you’re a cool person, just because people are queer doesn’t mean we have to have a party about it.” The individual quoted was Sarah Dougher. Some of Dr. Dougher’s highlights are: former news editor of Just Gut, one of Out magazine’s “Out 100 Gay and Lesbian Americans Who Made a Difference,” long-standing gay rights activist, Ph.D. in comparative literature, volunteer for p:ear, a musical education and assistance program for homeless teens, etc. etc. The unattributed publication was the media sponsor of this year’s Pride Festival, The Portland Mercury. There are reasons for not liking Pride. Some people, myself included, feel it has gotten quite commercial. Pride is organized by the reputable and respectable nonprofit organization Pride Northwest. Demographic statistics offered to prospective spon­ sors on the Pride Northwest Web site state, in the five W’s format, that the “who” of Pride is: 65,000- plus visitors throughout the weekend; 55 percent from Portland metropolitan area; other attendees from Washington, Idaho, California and Canada. The who is: The GLBT market is the largest, non-ethnic, affluent market in the United States with a population of 19 million people and an esti­ mated spending power of $800 billion. Average household income is $65,000; nearly 60 percent higher than the average household; 78 To the E ditor : I was greatly troubled by the editorial in the June 15 issue titled “I Hope You’re Proud of Yourself’ by Marty Davis. Ms. Davis viciously and intolerantly attacked members of our own commu­ nity by insinuating that we suffer from “internalized homophobia” due to our diverse opinions regarding Pride. Ms. Oavis also stated that we are hate mon­ gers and that she finds us more irritating than “Bible-toting, sign-carrying, in-your-face fanatics who walk along the Pride parade route, flaunting their disapproval while preaching of.Christ’s love and salvation." To illustrate this point, she used a quote that she neither attributed to the source publication nor the individual. The quote was: “I find any excuse to leave town during Pride. I hate it. I find the self-congratulatory nature of it unbelievable, and 1 don’t feel like it’s my world at all. Even though it’s supposed to show this wide breadth of 1420 NW LOVEJOY #301 KEVIN DEAN Principal Broker Direct: 503-497-5037 Cell: 503-481-4400 kevindean@windermere.com 812 sq. ft., parking, storage & taxes frozen ‘til 2016. $158,000 .<> Send your letters, wedding announcements, transitions, or submit your events online at www.justout.com Darin Moore, 1963-2007 Darin Moore died May 29. He was 44. Moore was bom March 24, 1963, in Vancouver, Wash. He graduated from Evergreen High School in 1981 and attended Eastern Washington University, majoring in music. He was a warehouseman for Fred Meyer and had lived in Portland for 25 years. Moore was an avid softball player with Rose City Softball Association. He played third base and outfield for the Redwings team from 1999 to 2002 and on the Joq’s team as the 2003 pitch­ er. He is survived by his mother, Linda Brown; father, T. Moore; sister, Wendy Moore-Martin; brother, Grant Moore; great-grand­ ma, Shirley Wonner; nephews; aunts; uncles; and cousins. A celebration of Moore’s life is being planned. Remembrances should be made to Cascade AIDS Project. For more information contact brucef@anewtradition.com. 2915 NE 15TH AVE. family room with multimedia distribution to all flexirs. '2 laundry rexans St double garage. $879,900. 2734 NE 39TH AVE. 7042 N DWIGHT AVE. Grant Park. Period restoration with hi-end finishes 6» designer colors. Great details, cook's kitchen with Pottery Bam Perfect Mocks ('rest 2 bed/2 bath formal living & dining nxan w/ ffplc, beautiful hardwood floors, kitchen to die for, gorgeous baths, slab granite, breakfast n