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  Darcelle, aka Walter Cole, in and out of drag. Photos from KGW. Sorry for getting this news out to y’all a little late but I was out of commish all weekend. However, last Thursday night 80-year-old drag performer (and Portland institution) Darcelle, also known as Walter Cole, was arrested for allegedly assaulting two Oregon Liquor Control Commission officers. Although the charges have since been dropped an investigation into whether the club Darcelle XV, has been serving minors, is still under investigation.
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  E Room/Weird Bar owner Kim Davis. Photo by Jamie Francis / The Oregonian When lesbian bar the Egyptian Room threatened to close its doors and instead re-emerged as the “normal-friendly” Weird Bar the community roared. Some supported the efforts of owner Kim Davis, some decried the changes as a lie and a betrayal.
Less than a year later it may be a moot point. The weird, lesbian, normal, whatever bar that has existed in SE 37th and Division for 15 years is set to close August 20th with Kim Davis saying, “…we originally were looking to sell when we announced the closing of E-room, but we couldn’t get the value we needed, so we tried something new. We now have an offer we must take.”
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 Though the 2010 census did not provide a comprehensive ability to show the amounts of queer people living in this country there was some reporting about same sex couples. And the UCLA School of Law’s William’s Institute, which bills itself as a group that advances critical thought in the field of sexual orientation law and public policy, has just released some findings on same sex couples in Oregon.
A […]
  Slutwalk Portland 2011 For a minute let’s not think about the Canadian police officer who prompted this whole Slut walking protests by implying slutty women deserve to be raped. Let’s gloss over the back and forth bickering between self-proclaimed sluts and their blogging detractors. Instead, it’s time to see the photos from Portland’s first Slutwalk and revel in everyone’s gloriously skimpy and sexy attire. Because we do this as much for joy as for justice.
So I’ve, once again, recruited some snapshots from the fabulous Melody Awesomazing, who, whether or not she knows it, has been quasi-recruited as qPDX photographer. But, readers, I aim to recruit you as well, so hopefully these 11 pics are just the beginning of what you will see. We want you to contribute your Slutwalk photos and photos of any other PDX queers bein’ queer. So send ’em to alley@qpdx.com and we’ll get them up on the site post haste!
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  Since the closing of The Egyptian Room last year Portland has been without an official lesbian bar. We’ve muddled along pretty good attending numerous queer nights and sort of claiming some dyke-friendly spaces such as the Florida Room for our own but many among us can’t but hope that another permenant location will spring up eventually. Now performer, community member and, with any luck, entrepreneur Mel Heywood has created a survey to better assess the needs and wants in our community for a new bar. Will it happen? Who knows but taking this survey is the first step in helping make it so. So do it.
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 Sam Adams In a press release issued today by the Mayor’s office Sam Adams has said that he will not be running for re-election, turning the 2012 race into wide open contest. After a soul-searching staycation Adams has come to believe that this choice is better for both the city of Portland and for him personally. He acknowledges that it would be a tough race, though not un-winnable, saying that it would take away too much time from making the city a better place while he is still in office. He also takes some time out to point out what he has done for the city, and to thank those who have helped him along the way.
Adams has not endorsed any other candidate, although two have already thrown their hats in the ring, New Seasons co-founder Eileen Brady and former city commissioner Charlie Hales. Last week Multnomah County Chairman Jeff Cogen announced that he will not enter the Portland mayoral race, ending months of speculation.
Despite the many trials and tribulations of Sam’s time as chief Portlander I gotta say I will miss having a big gay bike rider in the big city seat.
You can read the entire press release after the break and listen to Adams talking with Willamette Week in the podcast player below.
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  Jack "Macho Slut" Donovan slings mud at SlutWalk, qPDX, women everywhere but he can still manage a sneer An editorial note:
Right wing homosexual blogger Jack Donovan (otherwise known as Jack Malebranche) has spent a lot of his summer trying to discredit women who believe that suggestive attire does not invite rape. His histrionic rants are so blatantly misogynistic I’m tempted not to even address them. But he calls out Portland, he calls out individuals that have contributed to qPDX, and he calls out qPDX itself, so how can I not?
What strikes me most is his need to consistently ridicule the efforts of self-identified sluts across the US and Canada, even creating a new blog dedicated entirely to cataloging the Slutwalks. He proclaims how useless these efforts are, claiming they wouldn’t benefit the “average woman,” (as if there were such a thing) while simultaneously spending his entire Saturday making “WhOregon” t-shirts. My instinct as a blogger tells me that spending a lot of time railing against the “useless” is particularly useful in increasing his page views.
He equates not being taken seriously with rape, but between assault and a bit of mockery, I’ll take the latter. Most of us have learned to deflect hate speech, though that doesn’t afford physical safety. Even I have, on occasion, laughed at the ass crack bearing plumber, but it would sound absurd to suggest that he should have some something hard and painful shoved up his nether regions for the crime of bearing skin. So, of course, I won’t do that.
What I will say is that not everyone’s standards of beauty match Donovan’s, and all kinds of people experience sexual violence.
I will say that Portland, and any other city, is entitled to have as many parades for “lesbians,” “sluts,” “women,” and any other group, as we want.
I will acknowledge that though our writing is not always perfect, our efforts are sincere. And our ability to call each other out and yet work together again in the future may be seen as a weakness, but it is also one of our greatest strengths.
And I will give space in this blog to hear from my colleague, Perry Eising, as well as you, the reader, and my whole, diverse queer community, of which even Donovan is, for better or worse, a part.
-Alley
Perry says please note: the following opinions are mine except where indicated.
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  Kayla Stone In breaking news from Just Out, it is being reported that 21-year-old Kayla Stone, a musician and activist, was assaulted in downtown Portland in an apparent gay bashing last Sunday July 3rd, according to police.
The previous night a group of men had harassed her outside of Embers on NW Broadway and Burnside, calling her “dyke” and following her for several blocks as she left. She fended them off with strong words but when she returned Saturday night the same group recognized her and began beating her without provocation. The only person she remembers very clearly is the one who threw the first punch, a Latino man with a teardrop tattoo by his eye.
Stone also says that witnesses did nothing to assist her. Even when she made her way to The Escape, the all ages gay nightclub and a stop on the Q Patrol route, Stone says she was mostly ignored. Stone said two police cars circled the block, but neither stopped to help. Eventually she,
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  Seattle's LA Kendall will make a PDX appearance Friday at Bent Thursday
Sweet Tea – Sounds like the perfect summer refresher for those St Johns gays.
Dirtbag! – Your stellar dance party with the Smiths happy ending (is that an oxymoron?) takes up residence at my favorite Alberta dive once again.
Friday
Bent with special guests – Lifepartner will be at the decks along with Seattle superstar LA Kendall who rocks not just the dance floor but the business end, booking successful parties and performers alike. She’s also a producer/performer in her own right as one half of electro-pop-raptresses Luxury A.K. Bent is always a good time but this one will be a night to remember (or, perhaps, forget…).
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  Despite events such as Hands across Hawthorne, gay bashings keep happening. Photo courtesy of Byron Beck. Sigh. After hearing the amazing news that so far, we have heard of no violence during Pride Northwest 2011, a gay man and another man who came to his aid were assaulted in Northwest Portland this past Saturday, the Portland Tribune reports in an article on their website.
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