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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 22, 2015)
NEWS • Volunteers are needed to help in the annual count of homeless people in Lane County and a training is planned for 5:30 to 7 pm Thursday, Jan. 22, at Health and Human Services, Charnelton Room, 151 W. 7th Ave. The count date is Wednesday, Jan. 28. Organized by CALC, call 485-1755 or email calcoffice@gmail.com. • Rep. Phil Barnhart will host a town hall at 11 am Saturday, Jan. 24, at Esslinger Hall, Room 112, on the UO campus. RSVP to rep. philbarnhart@state.or.us or call 968-1411. • A gathering and benefit for climate activist David Oaks, who has been in a wheelchair since his spinal injury, will be from 1 to 4 pm Saturday, Jan. 24, at Cozmic, 199 W. 8th Ave. The event is also a birthday party for David Zupan (turning 70) and other Aquarians. Music will be by The Vipers with Deb Cleveland, Elizabeth Cable, David Rogers, Takilma Slim, Michael Brown and Chico Schwall. Sliding-scale donation. See supportdavidoaks.org for more information. • We the People-Eugene is planning a meeting to support Oregon becoming the fourth state to call for a constitutional convention to roll back Citizens United. The meeting will be at 3:30 pm Saturday, Jan. 24, at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 13th and Chambers. Speakers include Pastor Dan Bryant, Charlie Swanson and John Flannery. Email willamettedams@q.com or call 937-3034. • Eugene Mayor Kitty Piercy will hold her monthly Mayor’s One-on-One outreach meeting from 5 to 6 pm Tuesday, Jan. 27, at Albertsons, 4740 Royal Ave. For more information, call Regan Watjus at 682-8340. • A program on “How Green is Your Home Town?” will be from 7 to 9 pm Thursday, Jan. 29, at the UO School of Law Room 184. Sponsored by the Many Rivers Group Sierra Club and Land, Air, Water. Speakers include Babe Sullivan of the city of Eugene and Sibyl Geiselman and Eli Volum of EWEB. Free. GSA HOSTS INAUGURAL SEX SYMPOSIUM AT LCC As a transgender man who identifies as queer, Emmett El- and Andrew Clark, the GSA advisor at the Looking Glass Riv- lingson-Ford says adolescence was difficult enough navigat- erfront School. ing his gender identity, and the fact that high schools focus “Oregon has some really fantastic sex-ed laws for high on heteronormative sex education didn’t help. Now, Ellingson- school and middle school students,” Clark says, but there’s Ford, as president of the student- “not a lot of info for queer youth.” run Gender & Sexuality Alliance He adds, “I hear consistently huge at Lane Community College, is amounts of disinformation repre- hosting LCC’s first-ever Sex Sym- sented.” posium Jan. 23. Clark says, in addition to an- “The wider purpose is to open swering questions, he will discuss up the discussion and provide consent, condoms and lubrications, information about LBGTQ sex how to engage in condom negotia- and intimacy since it tends to get tion, sex toys, sexually transmitted brushed over in traditional educa- infections and sero-positioning tion,” Ellingson-Ford tells EW. “It — or strategically choosing sex will be a really blunt and specific positions to reduce risk depending — EMMETT ELLINGSON-FORD conversation.” on a sexual partner’s or couple’s Ellingson-Ford says much of HIV status. For example, Clark the symposium discussion will fo- says for a gay man, “If you are the cus on answering questions that students submit anonymously HIV-positive partner, you have less risk of transmitting HIV if beforehand to the drop box at the GSA office (Building 1, you’re the bottom or receptive partner.” Room 206 at LCC) or online at wkly.ws/1wh. The Gender & Sexuality Alliance hosts the Sex Symposium There will also be three panelists: LCC human sexuality 5 to 7 pm Friday, Jan. 23, at Lane Community College’s Center instructor Samantha Gibeau, Oblio Stroyman, former marriage for Meeting and Learning, Building 19, Rooms 102-103. The and family therapist who now works at As You Like It — the event is free. For more information contact gsalanecc@gmail. new eco-conscious gender-inclusive sex shop on West 11th, com or visit wkly.ws/1wi. — Alex V. Cipolle ‘The wider purpose is to open up the discussion and provide information about LBGTQ sex and intimacy since it tends to get brushed over in traditional education. ’ 20 15 Legislative Coverage LINES DRAWN IN SALEM OVER EDUCATION ISSUES Those couple days of icy, freezing temperatures last February might stick out in your mind, but while a brief spell of cold days may affect your personal impression of the weather, don’t forget that the climate is heating up across the globe, thanks to rising levels of greenhouse gases. Overall, 2014 was Oregon’s second hottest year since record keeping started in 1895, according to researchers with the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute at Oregon State University. The average statewide temperature in Oregon in 2014 was 3 degrees above the average for the 20th century. Globally, 2014 was the hottest on Earth in 134 years of recordkeeping, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says. How can we slow the heat? The city of Eugene recently got shout-outs in Grist and Mother Jones for its energy inventory, reductions in emissions from transportation and for the City Council’s goals “to reduce community-wide greenhouse gas emissions 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 and to reduce community- wide fossil fuel use 50 percent by 2030.” 8 January 22, 2015 • eugeneweekly.com The state legislative session begins Feb. 2. Several bills proposal, which Kruse calls a “wishlist,” the co-chairs haven’t have already been introduced, and House Speaker Tina Kotek yet put hard numbers on anything. (D-Portland) confirmed at City Club of Eugene last Friday that Part of the governor’s plan is to keep funding early learning education will take top priority. The topic could prove divisive, hubs, which focus on early childhood education and pool com- even in Oregon’s Legislature with its Democratic majority. munity resources for children and their families. Sen. Jeff Kruse, a right-wing Republican from Roseburg, Kruse says he objects to the state stepping in on people’s says he likes the budget framework proposed by the Demo- lives from “womb to tomb,” and says he is worried that adding cratic budget co-chairs a lot more than the one proposed by new programs will “distract” people from the other programs in Gov. John Kitzhaber. Both plans education that are already in place. increase spending on education “The focus for these young kids Part of the governor’s plan is to keep should be growing strong family and prioritize expanding opportu- nity for young Oregonians. funding early learning hubs, which focus units, not having the government Kotek emphasized the need to on early childhood education and pool take over,” he says. The co-chairs’ focus more on career and techni- budget mentions increases in fund- community resources for children and ing to the early learning hubs, but cal education, skills training and their families. doesn’t indicate by how much. expanding access to higher ed for all Oregonians. She has introduced Statewide full-day kindergar- a bill that would change the way ten is another area in the gover- eligibility for a childcare subsidy nor’s budget that Kruse and other works. At a minimum, parents would qualify for a year’s eligi- Republicans have voiced opposition to. The school districts bility, even if their employment status changed. that don’t provide full-day kindergarten “are going to be los- The budget proposed by Sen. Richard Devlin (D-Tualatin) ers in the funding formula,” Kruse says. The co-chairs’ budget and Rep. Peter Buckley (D-Ashland), who co-chair the Joint does provide funding for implementing full-day kindergarten, Committee on Ways and Means Committee, allocates 51 per- but some rural schools don’t have enough space in their build- cent of the general fund and lottery fund to education. Their ings to host all kindergarteners all day. The co-chairs’ budget framework proposes spending $200 million more on education suggests that the Legislature consider a temporary capital as- than the governor’s budget does. But, unlike the governor’s sistance program to help implement it. — Lucy Ohlsen
