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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 2013)
ual & Gender Minority Youth Resource Cen- ter (SMYRC), PFLAG Black Chapter, Oregon Safe Schools and Communities Coalition, and TransActive are always looking for help in their quest to make the world a safer, better place for the youngest members of our acronym. If you are drawn to working with the other end of the age spectrum, Friendly House’s Gay and Grey, Q Center’s *eRa*: encouraging Respect for aging, and the Elders in Action programs are great outlets to serve the people who paved the way for our movement today. If you’re interest- ed in community health and wellness, Cascade AIDS Project, Bradley Angle House, Outside In, and Quest Center for Integrative Health are always looking for dedicated volunteers to further their missions. As the old saying goes, many hands make for light work! Adventures in Advocacy The art of influencing the political, econom- ic, and social landscape for our cause is ever evolving and 2012 was no exception. Q Pa- trol’s community-driven safety efforts, Basic Rights Oregon’s Trans Justice work, Q Center’s Inter-Community Dialogues, HRC Oregon & Southwest Washington’s election efforts, the Community of Welcoming Congregations working to create allies in faith communi- ties, and PFLAG changing hearts and minds of families and friends all kept the queer fires burning all year long. Large-scale celebrations like Pride NW, Portland Latino Gay Pride, the Portland Gay Men’s Chorus Gay Fair On The Square event, and GLAPN’s Measure 9 Victory Anniversary Celebration helped to keep our lo- cal visibility front and center in the media as well as over dinner tables and by water coolers across the region. Just Do You While supporting and getting involved in or- ganized activism efforts is key to the process of our becoming truly equal citizens, some of the most important work we can do as LGBTQ people is just to be ourselves wherever we go. Being out about who we are and our experience in the world as regular people is an essential piece of the freedom pie, and just being open with everyone you know about what it really means to be queer can create a wave of aware- ness no financial gift could ever purchase. Ul- timately, you are the most powerful vessel of change. There is strength in numbers, so: come out, come out, wherever you are. § Logan Lynn writes In The Trenches for Just Out. He is a Portland based musician, activist, writer, and is a regular contributor to The Huffington Post. Reach him at Logan@JustOut.com January 2013 JustOut.com 9
