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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 21, 2007)
DECEMBER 21. 2007 jUStpUt|25 A Year in America The gay agenda in Congress by Bob Roehr The Sissyboys sang their swan song Oct. 6. square-foot building Feb. 20 for a cool $2.25 million. Silverado stayed on long after Club Portland closed its doors June 17. In November, Silverado co-owner Donald Sexton said the 2 5-year-old gay bar would officially leave the 1217 S.W. Stark St. location at the end of December, but he continued to be coy about exactly where the new locale would be. As first reported Dec. 17 on the Just Out blog, Silverado will relocate to 318 S.W. Third Ave. The building, built in 1894, was formerly home to the Red Sea Restaurant and Nightclub. According to Silverado bartender Sonny Amos, the new space will house a lounge area as well as a dance bar. DOC: The Portland Queer Documentary Film Festival materialized in June because of Oregonians Russ Gage and Q Center arts and culture committee member David Weissman. “We’re committed to the idea of creating a greater sense of community cohesiveness for queers here in Portland,” Weissman told Just Out. Weissman, a filmmaker connected to the queer and indie film scene since the ’80s, is best known for his 2002 award winning feature documentary The Cockettes. Gage served as administrative direc tor of the San Francisco International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival for 10 years. QDOC is rhe only documentary film festival featuring queer content in the country. It brought lines that curled around Clinton Street Theater, titillating audiences with erotic offerings such as Hot and Bothered and the tearjerker Saving Marriage, among many others. © olitical expectations were high at the start of the year. With Democrats in control of both chambers of Congress, after more than a decade under Republican majorities, now was the time to move the gay legislative agenda forward. But the year ended with little to show and growing frus tration, even bitterness, within the community. The plan was to pass hate crimes legislation in early spring, expanding coverage to include sexual orientation and gender identity. And when the political sky didn’t fall, the freshman Democratic congressmen would be inoculated to vote for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) later in the year. There were some minor delays in introducing the hate crimes bill in the House, but it passed May 3 by a vote of 237-180. Most people were too busy cele brating to notice that not enough Democrats voted for it to pass the bill. The margin of victory came from 25 Republicans who voted yes. Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., added Matthew Shepard’s name to the bill when he introduced it in that chamber in the summer. As the legislative calendar filled, and rumblings of a presidential veto sounded, Kennedy decided the best tactic would be to attach it to the Department of Defense authoriza tion. The Senate broke a filibuster 60-39 and it moved forward Sept. 27. But things came apart when the defense measure came to a conference to resolve differences in lan guage between the chambers, and Democratic lead ership pulled the hate crimes amendment from the main bill Dec. 6. P NDA got rolling in the House with a hearing E From top, Jack Smith and the Destruction of Atlantis, Eye on the Guy: Alan B. Stone ft The Age of Beefcake and Red Without Blue were screened at QDOC. Sept. 5. All hell broke loose a few weeks later when openly gay Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass, floated a trial balloon to remove protection for gender iden tity. Strong opposition from the queer community to his proposal seemed to catch Democratic leaders by surprise, forcing them to reconsider. A scheduled vote on the measure was delayed several times. The trans- inclusive coalition known as United ENDA grew to more than 300 community organizations. In the end, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., decided that enough Democrats were fearful of voting for trans-inclusive legislation that a stripped-down bill was moved through committee and on to the fkxir of the House. It passed the limited measure Nov. 7 by a vote of 235-184. Again, the margin for victory was supplied by 35 Republicans. The bill has not yet been introduced in the Senate. It is not clear whether the sponsors wilt choose the limited or trans-inclusive language. he legislative ball was supposed to get rolling T on the repeal of the anti-gay military policy known as “don’t ask, don’t tell.” The plan was to reintroduce the measure in the House and begin the education process with hearings and to intnxluce it for the first time in the Senate. Neither happened. The surprise retirement of lead advocate Rep. Marty Meehan, D-Mass., stymied House action, and there still is no bill in the Senate. The nomination of James Holsinger for surgeon general of the United States raised hackles for the anti-gay tract he had written for a committee considering the role of homosexuals within the United Methodist Church. He faced tough questioning at a confirmation hearing July 12, and his nomination appeared to be in limbo. Just before Thanksgiving—when rumors circulated that President Bush might make recess appoint ments, including Holsinger, while the Senate was away for the holiday—Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada pulled a parliamentary trick to technically keep the Senate in session and prevent any recess appointments. AIDS advocates hoped that Democratic control might loosen the purse strings and bring adequate funding for their programs. Those hopes did not last as the Democrats adopted the governing principle that all new spending had to be matched by cuts elsewhere, or tax increases. Increases for AIDS programs were mtxlest. Even those ended up being threatened by the failure to pass a budget that Bush would sign or, barring that, to override his veto. © Six Intimate Theaters Need Wine for the Holiday? The Best in Foreign and Independent Film • Hip Chicks Do Wine has 14 different wines to choose from. Gift baskets, wine glasses and gift certificates available. We ship to most states. living room it • E Winery and Tasting Room Open Dally liam - 6pm • 4510 SE 23RD AVE. PORTLAND • 503-234-3790 • www.hipchicksdowine.com (see our website for directions & events) *
