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 The skidmore bluffs are a popular meeting place in Northeast Portland The skidmore bluffs. The place for NE queers, cyclists, hipsters and plain old fun loving folk to hang out on breezy summer nights. Ah, the killer view of the train yard, port, industrial district and the mountains and rivers beyond (I’m not joking). The wind in your hair, the noise of trains (and dogs) in your ears. Surrounded by friends and a smattering of bicycles, lovers holding hands, kids in the skatepark, badminton, frisbee, sunsets, and, a nice cold pabst in your hand. Or even, if you like things a little classy, a glass of wine. And maybe, even, a spliff.
Not for much longer. Police are cracking down on activity in the small park at the very western end of NE Skidmore. Is this the end of the bluffs as we know it?
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  qPDX.com for Pride Portland! Happy Pride NW 2011 everbody! Phew, what a weekend. A ton of dance nights. A slew of costume changes. Lots and lots of teal. 25+ miles on the bike on Saturday. Fliptography at Queerlandia. Waterfront. Beer, banners, bruises. Leslie and the Lys. Trying to find Alley Hector on Sunday morning. Trying to find a place to pee at Blow Pony (thanks Leila!). Trying to find the car! Trying, well, just trying! I barely have time to take a breath before its Alley’s and my birthdays (Al: Wed. Me: Thurs). It’s been EPIC. And now on to the processing reviewing that is, as it should be, part of our Pride coverage. We need your input!
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  M. Drew Levasseur - Transgender rights attorney working on the suit This morning Lambda Legal filed suit against the state of Oregon on behalf of transgender employee Alec Esquivel, who was denied a hysterectomy that was deemed medically necessary by his doctor.
“Alec Esquivel was denied coverage for a medically necessary procedure specifically because he is transgender. This type of discrimination is unlawful and risks the health of hardworking, productive citizens of Oregon,” said Dru Levasseur, Transgender Rights Attorney at Lambda Legal. “By not covering this procedure, the state is refusing to provide him with the same health care coverage as his co-workers.”
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The marriage equality campaign currently underway here in Oregon has a limited amount of time to reach and persuade voters who are still on the fence in order to gain the support needed to move forward to the ballot.
This video shows real Oregonians talking about why marriage matters — watch it and spread the word by sharing it through your social networks!
The most important way to […]
  The 2008 qPDX Pride Guide ad This Wednesday the Willamette Week, the alternative newsweekly that was given the rights to publish the Pride Guide this year, released the 2011 official Portland Pride Guide. Unfortunately, you won’t see us in it.
qPDX has had an ad in the Pride Guide for the last 4 years so it feels a little sad to be left out this year, but it just had to be. Ultimately, it was about cost, but there are a few things that gave us pause, including the implication that Willamette Week wouldn’t necessarily run articles concerning the LGBT community without striking a business deal.
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  Northbank gay bar in Vancouver Despite Vancouver, Washington‘s many recent triumphs as a gay and lesbian friendly city, their one gay bar, The NorthBank, will be closed as of this Sunday. Owners Brent and Darrell have sent this letter to the community:
To All of our Friends, Staff, and Community:
It brings us (Brent & Darrell) great sadness to have to inform the community of the likely closure of The Northbank. As many of you know the country is currently in an economic struggle and we have felt this at the bar. With the cost of inventory and overhead rising and low sales we have spent a lot of time reflecting and coming to this decision.
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  Portland Black Pride - June 15th to June 19th Portland Black Pride is back! After a hiatus of sorts Portland Black Pride is back – and collaborating with the PFLAG Portland Black Chapter.
“We are planning a series of events to take place during the dates of 6/15-6/19. We have combined a variety of youth, adult, and events for all ages during the black pride celebration week to ensure we are including and recognizing all of our community” writes Khalil Edwards, one of the organizers of the events.
More info and a full listing of events underneath the cut.
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  Good news today from the Mayor’s office:
Today, Mayor Sam Adams, with the co-sponsorship of every member of Portland City Council, brought forward and unanimously passed transgender-inclusive healthcare for City of Portland employees.
The City of Portland values diversity, and strives to be an equitable and diverse employer. Adding transgender inclusive benefits truly recognizes the importance of all employees covered under the City’s health plan. The Mayor believes this action is about keeping and attracting the best and the brightest, in addition to being about basic fairness.
“To the trans community of Portland, who each and every day makes this city a better place, it is my honor and privilege to serve on a city council that can bring an ounce of fairness in return,” Mayor Adams said. All Commissioners offered passionate commentary. Commissioner Amanda Fritz said: “I appreciate living in a city and serving on a City Council where we look at what is the right thing to do…even though it may not be politically popular.”
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 Twitter was all abuzz yesterday with with the news that Mayor Sam Adams has issued a press release proposing trans-inclusive health care coverage for city employees (well, that and the the Stumptown Coffee sellout). Some called him an “idiot” while others backed him up  saying that if supporting fairness made you an idiot they’d gladly be one.
You can read the entire statement below:
This week, Mayor Sam Adams is filing an ordinance for City Council on June 8 that would add trans-inclusive health care benefits, including sexual reassignment surgery, to one of the plans offered to City of Portland employees. The American Medical Association (AMA) has identified transgender health care as being medically necessary. In 2008, the AMA passed a resolution supporting public and private health insurance coverage for treatment of gender identity disorder and opposing the “exclusions of coverage for treatment of gender identity disorder when prescribed by a physician.”
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  Meldoy Awesomazing stands above the crowd According to Ernesto Dominguez of Cascade AIDS Project, over 4,000 people braved the the grey and misty Sunday night May 29th, 2011, to hold hands on the Hawthorne Bridge. Active community member Melody Awesomazing caught photos of the swarm of love and support that was held in order to show solidarity for 2 men beaten for holding hands in a hate crime more than a week ago.
A few spoke before the crowd walked across the bridge on both sides, holding hands. Brad Forkner, one of teh 2 vistims in the attack was one, saying, “This is not the first time I have feared for my safety or my life and, sadly, I don’t expect it to be the last. What I want to talk about is a much larger cultural issue we have with making different people feel like they’re worth less than normal people, as if there is such a thing as ‘normal.’ In this instance, it was because we are gay.”
After Forkner’s speech, Basic Rights Oregon Executive Director Jeana Frazzini took to the stage, thanking Forkner and Rosevear (the other victim) for their courage and inviting the crowd to take part in a display of love and affection.
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