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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 9, 2011)
I*. 42 DECEMBER T H E Y E A R IN 2011 A HOLIDAY RLVUE "A su p p er-clu b p le a su re in a sm ash in g sellin g." - The O re g o n ia n MAKE IT A HOLIDATE & SAVE 5 0 % ON ANY THURSDAY PERFORMANCE* 5 0 3 .2 2 2 .5 5 3 8 WWW.OBT.ORG K i c k o ff t h e s e a s o n w it h a s p l a s h FEATURING SUSANNAH MARS DECEMBER 10-22, 2011 / KELLER AUDITORIUM ‘ Expires 12/22/11. Limit 4 tickets. Not valid on previous purchases. May not be combined w ith any other offer. MI h i A S P O N S O R S (kiwjt) £|iC (Oregonian OREGONBALLETTHEATRE CHRISTOPHER STOWELL / ARTISTIC DIRECTOR -------- sports WWW.JUSTOUT.COM BY RYAN J. PRADO The sports world as a whole felt bureau- cratic and boorish all year long. The N F L lockout that almost was; the NBAs trun- cated season due to labor disputes; the NBAs playoffs marred by audible, and tele- vised, anti-gay slurs; the Atlanta Braves’ Roger McDowell motioning as if he were going to use a bat to assault a pair o f San Francisco Giants fans whom he questioned about being gay. On and on it went... It was enough to make you loony. But as with all valleys, a peak shouldn’t be far away. Whether the biggest LGBTQ_ sports story o f the year was a peak or valley is up for debate, though. A settlement was finally reached in a high-profile lawsuit filed against the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance (NAGAAA) by three softball players whose sexual orientation was questioned in the wake o f the 2008 Gay Softball World Series in Seattle. The debacle followed the players’ team’s second-place finish. NAG AAA’s rules stipulate that any team competing in a NA- GAAA-sanctioned tournament is allowed player limit applying strictly to self-identi- fied straight players. The players insisted they were bisexual, and the settlement reportedly awarded them reinstatement to the league, and their sec- ond-place finish fully recognized. NA- G A A A commissioner Roy Melani argued that the players never answered questions about their orientation during the hearing, Nevertheless, the commish was pleased with the settlement. , “This settlement and [the] judge’s rulings have shown that N A G AAA has the right to define their membership requirements,” said Melani. “It’s the Gay Softball World Series. It’s important we defend our right to main- tain that identity.” Others weren’t as convinced o f NA- GAAA’s infallibility. “N A G A A A has a serious image problem,” said Jake Packer, former open commissioner for the Rose City Softball Association from 2008-11. “Any message o f the good that N A GAAA may achieve, its primary pur- pose, plays second fiddle to [this] contro versy. The only way to change “Any message of the good that NAGAAA may that is to truly embrace every one that wants to support the achieve, its primary purpose, plays second LG BTQ _ community and gay fiddle to [this] controversy. The only way to softball, regardless o f their change that is to truly embrace everyone that sexual identity.” Anti-gay bullying once wants to support the LGBTQ community and again emerged as a cornerstone gay softball, regardless of their sexual identity.’ movement to rally against in -JAKE PACKER, FORMER OPEN COMMISSIONER, 2011, most notably in sports ROSE CITY SOFTBALL ASSOCIATION and schools. Scattered head- only two heterosexuals per team. Following lines declaring more and more professional a protest, a hearing was held wherein the athletes coming out ran parallel to news o f three players were reportedly questioned an increased number o f schools adopting whether or not they desired predominately new bullying policies designed to protect women or men. Following the closed-door students. Leading the charge, the Gay, Les- hearing, the plaintiffs’ team, D2 from San bian and Straight Education Network Francisco, was disqualified, and the team’s (G L SE N ) announced a new program in second-place finish was stripped. * March aimed at providing a safer and more The lawsuit brought into the limelight inclusive environment for K-12 sports and rules about the straight-player limits in gay physical education departments in America’s sports. Earlier this year N A G AAA changed schools. Dubbed “Changing the Gam e: its policy to include an unlimited number o f The G L S E N .S p o rts Project,” the initiative L G B T players on any team, with the two- was designed to bring together a diverse BREAKFAST A L L D A Y + N IG H T L U N C H & D IN N E R S E R V E D FULL BAR! 8338 N. LomBaRÒ 503 . 247.1066 ESPRESSO! Between North Gay & Gay. 2201 N. Killingsworth, Portland, OR 97217 503.735.4652 P a lin D in in g , P riv a te h illin g . F i i i i D in in g , Kim* h illin g 4) M i N G 0 in Beaverton 503 646 6464 WWW.MiNGOWEST.COM