Eugene weekly., January 19, 2012, Page 8, Image 8

NEWS BRIEFS
ECOSEXUALS
AND ETHICAL SLUTS
People worry about the chemicals in the foods they eat,
but they don’t think about, or are sometimes uncomfortable
talking about, the chemicals that go into their sex toys and
lubricants, according to Kim Marks, the owner of the newly
opened As You Like It — The Pleasure Shop. That’s why
Marks wants to bring attention to the idea of being an
ecosexual and being “green between the sheets” as well as
provide access to products that are free of phthalates,
petrochemicals, synthetic fragrances and other chemicals
that could harm the body or the environment.
As You Like It just started its online sales page and will
be coming to Eugene Jan. 26 to host a workshop on “ethical
sluthood” by author Janet W. Hardy. There are plans in the
works for a Portland-based store, and future events in
Eugene that will offer products for sale face-to-face.
Marks, a longtime environmental activist and former
Eugenean, says that — in addition to helping people with
healthy, sex-positive products — one of the reasons she
started As You Like It was the dearth of gender-inclusive,
body-positive stores for sex products. “People don’t have to
wonder if they belong in my store; I have the products that
everybody needs,” Marks says. The store offers, in addition
to the more traditional sex toys, products for the
transgendered, including breast forms and underwear to
reduce or increase the appearance of male genitalia.
Not everyone has the time to research the chemicals that
go into their lubricants, dildos or vibrators, Marks says, or
knows that sandalwood, a commonly used essential oil, is
an endangered species. And some products are marketed as
“novelties,” she says, which essentially means, “it’s not
going to be used for something,” and so doesn’t undergo the
sort of testing something that is going on or in your body
should. So Marks and As You Like It will do the research
and shoppers reap the benefits.
Hardy’s workshop, “Ethical Sluthood: Foundations of
Nontraditional Lifestyles,” will address polyamory (non-
monogamous relationships) and questions such as: “How do
you feel secure when your partner has a date (with someone
cuter than you)? What is jealousy, and can it be overcome?”
Ariel Howland, who is the event organizer for As You
Like It, says she would like it emphasized that “Janet Hardy
has great advice for monogamous couples as well. I think of
her as a ‘relationship expert’ not a ‘polyamourous
relationship expert.’”
A second workshop, “Making Intense Sensation Sexy,”
on Jan. 28, requires advance registration; you can check it
out on Facebook at http://wkly.ws/163
For questions about the Hardy talk, which will be at 7 to
9 pm Jan. 26 on the UO campus (Lawrence 177), email
Howland at phowland@uoregon.edu or go to asyoulikeitpdx.
com where you can also check out the products.
— Camilla Mortensen
JUSTICE FOR
FARMWORKERS
A scholar-priest and a union president will share this
year’s St. Thomas More Lecture at the St. Thomas More
Catholic Church and Newman Center, 1850 Emerald St. in
Eugene. The theme of the lectures is “Social Justice for
Farmworkers.”
John Morris, a Dominican priest and professor at St.
Mary’s College in California (Moraga), will offer an
overview of Catholic teaching on social justice, highlighting
the church’s teaching about labor unions and immigration
at 7 pm Thursday, Jan. 26. At 7 pm the next night, Jan. 27,
Ramon Ramirez, co-founder and president of Pineros y
Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (PCUN), will describe
the lives of Northwest farmworkers, the issues involved,
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and the role of the union. He will also assess the future of
the union and leadership development among the members.
After Ramirez’ talk, Ramirez and Morris will make
summarizing comments and then open the discussion to
the audience. Finally, Xavier Lara, the volunteer
coordinator of the union, will invite the audience to help
the farmworkers finish construction of their leadership
training center in Woodburn.
The two-night event is free, but donations are welcome.
ACTIVIST ALERT
• Lane County Commissioner Rob Handy filed for re-election
this week and has kicked off his campaign for the May 8 primary.
He will be running against Pat Farr and Mike Clark so far. Handy’s
campaign website is www.robhandy.com and he can be reached at
rob@robhandy.com
• “Empowering the 99%” is a gathering of local residents
concerned about foreclosures, Wall Street abuses, health care and
jobs, to be held from 6 to 8:30 pm Thursday, Jan. 19, at First United
Methodist Church, 13th and Olive in Eugene. Organizers include
Mel Bankoff, Brad Averill, Bill Klupenger, Mark Hurwitt, Mike
Barnes, Joshua Frankel and Mary Wagner.
• Jan. 20 marks the second anniversary of the Citizens
United Supreme Court decision equating corporate donations with
free speech. Move to Amend, We the People-Eugene, Occupy
Eugene and others will hold a march from the 8th and Oak at 11 am
to a rally at Eugene’s U.S. Courthouse from noon to 5 pm Friday “to
celebrate our freedom and our democracy, and to urge the Eugene
City Council to pass a resolution calling for an amendment to the
United States Constitution which will end the dominance of
corporations over our political process,” says Fergus Mclean, of We
the People. Speakers will include Gordon Lafer, Roy Keens, Stan
Taylor, John Davidson, Paul Cienfuegos and members of Friends of
Parvin Butte, the Pitchfork Rebellion, GMO-Free Eugene and
Occupy Eugene. If the weather is really bad, the event will move to
the First Christian Church at 11th and Oak. See www.
WeThePeopleEugene.org
• A new Eugene-based political group Get Money Out of
Campaigns (GMOC) is now meeting about once a month and
planning its next meeting in mid-February. On the agenda are a
review of excessive money collected for GOP primary caucuses, as
well as by Obama; identifying major Oregon corporate donors to
both parties; and the benefits of public financing of campaigns. To
get on the group’s email list, contact George Beres at geosilberes@q.
com or call 344-0282.
DARING TO LOOK
The Photographs of Dorothea Lange in Oregon
Featuring ANNE WHISTON SPIRN, author and photographer
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
110 Knight Law Center
4:00 p.m.
In conjunction with the Dorothea Lange in Oregon, 1939 photo exhibit at
the Knight Law Center, January 23-February 26.
Sponsored by the Wayne Morse Center for Law and Politics. Cosponsored by the
UO Department of Landscape Architecture, the School of Law, the Jordan Schnitzer
Museum of Art, the History Department and Oregon Humanities Center.
2233 W ILLAMETTE S T , B LDG B • 541-485-6644
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8 JANUARY 19, 2012
EUGENE WEEKLY
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