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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 1, 2012)
Community The Oregonian editorial board thinks Oregon shouldn't wait until 2014 for a vote on gay marriage. On November 10 the board suggested that 2014 is too long of a wait, writing the legislature should take the cause up pronto, undoing the Oregon constitutional amendment that defines marriage as "one man, one woman." Since that amendment passed Oregon has changed, The O. claims, and is ready for, gay marriage. But newly named Speaker of the House, Tina Kotek, told The O. that she thinks this is an issue for the community and not the legislature. The O. team believes the misdirected amendment shouldn't be on the books a day longer than it has to be and calls for the legislature to get the issue on the ballot in 2013. (POLITICS) Go Washington! NOT ONLY DID OUR NEIGHBORS TO THE NORTH, WASHINGTON STATE, PASS A HISTORIC MEASURE ALLOWING SAME SEX MAR- RIAGE, THEY WERE AMONG THE FIRST STATES TO DO SO BY VOTE RATHER THAN THE COURT SYSTEM OR LEGISLATURE. MAINE AND MARYLAND ALSO PASSED LAWS FOR CIVIL MARRIAGE RIGHTS AT THE BALLOT BOX. THIS ELECTION BRINGS THE TOTAL NUMBER OF STATES THAT ALLOW GAY MARRIAGE TO NINE, IN ADDITION TO THE THREE STATES THAT RECOGNIZE MARRIAGES BETWEEN TWO MEN OR TWO WOMEN PERFORMED OUTSIDE STATE LINES. AT THE SAME TIME, MINNESOTA VOTERS REJECTED A BALLOT MEA- SURE THAT WOULD HAVE ENSHRINED AN ANTI-GAY MARRIAGE LAW IN THEIR CONSTITUTION, AND NEIGHBORING WISCONSIN ELECTED TAMMY BALDWIN AS THE COUNTRY'S FIRST OPENLY GAY U.S. SENATOR. (FILM) Da' Bears The independent film Bearcity2: The Proposal is having its Port- land premiere December 7 - 9 at the Clinton St. Theatre. Director Doug Langway is flying in (all the way from a previous premier in Germany) and will be at all screenings. Portland is home to one of the biggest bear communities in the world — the Oregon Bears. bearcity2.com (NORTHWEST) World AIDS Day On December 1, around the world and throughout the United States, communities will come together to mark the 24th annual World AIDS Day. To commemorate the day and raise awareness throughout Oregon and SW Washington, local and global HIV/AIDS service organizations have collaborated to launch the World AIDS Day Northwest campaign with a message of “Getting to Zero – One Person at a Time.” With 33 million people infected world-wide with HIV and 1.1 million in the U.S., the goal of the campaign is to mobilize schools, faith-based organizations, businesses and community-based organizations to become involved in raising awareness, bolstering HIV prevention efforts and ensuring hope for those already infected. Local area AIDS organizations have come together to create a web- site to serve as a hub of information for World AIDS Day in Oregon and SW Washington. worldaidsdaynw.org 20 JustOut.com Rep. TIna Kotek (POLITICS) Speaker Kotek Oregon State Representative Tina Kotek will be the first open- ly lesbian politician to lead a state legislative chamber in the United States. Kotek, featured in Just Out last September, was selected by her Democratic peers November 15 to be the Oregon Legislature's Speaker of the House during the 2013 session. The decision will become final in January. Gay leaders also will control the House or Senate in four other states: Wash- ington, California, Colorado and Rhode Island, according to The Huffington Post. Senator Ed Murray was elected majority leader in Washington. Kotek represents District 44 in Portland. Cascade AIDS Project Executive Director Michael Kaplan left November 15 to accept the position of President and CEO of AIDS United, a national nonprofit headquartered in Washington DC committed to ending the AIDS epidemic in the U.S. Jackie Yerby, CAP's Board Chair said, "…the Board feels well-positioned to guide CAP through the next transition as we begin an Execu- tive Search. CAP is a very strong organization. We have a top- notch team of Directors as well as a group of staff and volunteers who are deeply committed to CAP's mission." cascadeaids.com (VIDEO) BRO Videos Basic Rights Oregon has just put out two video campaigns celebrating two-spirit families and trans justice. The trans justice video was a first- of-its-kind, discussing trans experiences of health care discrimination; eight incredible community members are joined by two allies to share struggles, joys, and triumphs regarding trans-inclusive care. Our Families is a community-based education project that raises the visibility of LGBT families of color in our communities. As part of BRO’s ongoing education campaign, this video highlights the unique trials and triumphs of Native American Two-Spirit LGBT families. A special screening was held on November 12th at the Native American Rehabil- itation Association of the Northwest (NARA ). It included a panel with the courageous families who shared their stories and a fun social hour. basicrights.org December 2012
