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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 18, 2011)
OREGON'S LGBTO NEWSMAGAZINE history Corralling a Community FEBRUARY 18. 2011 19 n The Gay and Lesbian Archives of the Pacific Northwest bridge the LGBTQ history gap BY RYAN J. PRADO » When it comes to preserving history, time is of the essence. Every second that passes means more and more conjecture, more haze, less accuracy—and that’s not even taking into consideration that venomous Achilles’ heel of perspective. In the race to document the now, the process of ensuring an acute scope on the then takes on an immediacy—and in the race to share the history of the LGBTQ_commu- nity in the Pacific Northwest, it’s even more urgent. Enter the Gay and Lesbian Archives of the Pacific Northwest. GLAPN was established in 1994, one of the first archive projects of its kind in the United States. At the time, there were pre cious lew efforts to document any aspect of LGBTQ_ history, and there were concerns that history could be rewritten and corrupted by those trying to denounce it. “Stop to think for a moment that there re ally are virtually no academic or public bodies vested with significant funding to actually preserve queer history, and this problem still exists today,” explains GLAPN president Robert Douglass. “University programs with gender-based study programs are good candi dates now, but these are relatively recent, and even they are struggling to gather fundamen tal research material on this contemporary subject.” Fortunately, those who cared in Oregon stepped up to form the all-volunteer organi zation. The group—which on average num bers around 12 volunteer researchers, archi vists and community leaders—branches out to track down oral histories, documents of historical interest, memorabilia and more. The Oregon Historical Society holds the GLAPN archives and do the work of making the infor mation available to scholars and others hop ing for a closer look at the Pacific Northwest’s rich queer history. Need information about the Portland Vice Clique Scandal of 1912? GLAPN volunteer researcher George Painter is in the process of finishing a book about it. Want to know more about Portland’s Two Spirit Society? GLAPN secretary Robin Will took the lead on last April’s public dialogue session at the Native American Center. Few things get by the all volunteer crew. In addition, GLAPN has been an immea surably important contributor to Q_ Center’s ongoing Our Stories series, which aims to revisit the popular subject of Oregon’s queer history pioneers. GLAPN is currently in the brainstorming phase of upcoming Our Stories installations, including the role of gay bars in queer history and another on the role of queer GLAPN members typically field questions, make referrals, evaluate donated materials or actually provide short-term homes for do nated materials. Douglass says GLAPN picks the projects it pursues based upon the willingness of indi vidual members to help execute them. “We cannot take on more than our mem bers are willing to put into the effort in their spare time,” explains Douglass, “but the satis faction of a story well told is what compels most of us.” One key bridge for GLAPN lies in being able to engage a younger generation of stu dents with a history they are unlikely to hear about in any other way. The LGBTQ_History Capstone class at Portland State University— taught by GLAPN treasurer Pat Young—is perhaps the most helpful and visible vehicle for GLAPN’s continued success. “Since GLAPN is an all-volunteer organi zation, it really helps to have the students gather oral histories for us and to sort through collections,” says Young. “The people we have interviewed usually have a wonderful time talking to the students, and it has been a real eye-opener for some of the students to hear stories from the old days.” “Working with schools and universities [is] a top priority in our mission,” continues Douglass. “In this way, we can turn on and engage a new generation, who in turn will become the teachers of tomorrow.” As an apolitical organization, GLAPN is also able to observe where imbalances may lie in the accurate representation of queer heritage. Douglass reports that there’s been a large turn around in the last five years for greater dialogue on the transgender community. GLAPN helped document the 30th anniversary of the Northwest Gender Alliance in 2010. “We are at the mercy of those members of our community to share what information they have to offer,” says Douglass. “It is not elitism that determines what stories are being told and preserved, but rather who are the ones who are stepping forward and being ac counted for.” GLAPN has come a long way since its in ception, and Douglass says he hopes to con tinue to break historical archiving barriers. “I would like to encourage more dialogue with those communities that wish to be rep resented more uniquely and with a greater honesty than ever before." JW i A September 1988 clipping of David Reinhards Oregonian column decry ing the Cascade AIDS Project posters on Tri-Met buses. “Stop to think for a moment that there really are virtually no academic or public bodies vested with significant funding to actually preserve queer history, and this problem still exists today.” —ROBERT DOUGLASS PRESIDENT, GLAPN sports within the local community. They also hope to sponsor lectures on faith and aging within the queer community as potential fu ture topics. In essence, the organization bridges the generational and cultural gaps in LGBTQ_ history for an ever-evolving community. While the nonprofit does not specifically con duct the archiving work for the various LG- BTQ_ organizations in the region, they do encourage any queer-inclusive organization to gather and preserve aspects of its operating history since the 1970s in order to document its queer heritage before “contributing mem bers disappear and the stories are lost to time,” explains Douglass. The uphill battle to get the information documented and archived is compounded by GLAPN’s lack of active members. “Our annual budget would just about buy you a latte at work every day for a year,” says Will. “We can’t do all of the work, so we’re most effective as a clearinghouse for informa tion, and a catalyst to help people and organi zations preserve their own histories.” This doesn’t mean that those who are con sistently dedicating their time have little with which to work. As Will reports, GLAPN’s next public meeting is Monday, March 28 at 7 p.m. at Q Center (4115 N. Mississippi Ave.). 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