Byron Beck: You Go Girl.
In the wake of the Oregonian's "The last thing the gay rights movement needs in Oregon is another ugly battle over banning marriage" editorial last week, Byron Beck of the WW fires back with fierce, yet very personal retort. The O's editorial was nothing less than ridiculous and it needed a voice like Byron's to fire back at it.
Byron and his parter Juan are the lead plaintiffs in the Martinez v. Kulongoski (State of Oregon) case that challenges Measure 36. I encourage you all to read the O's editorial first, found here; then see Byron's response. Below is an excerpt of Byron's column.
The Oregonian pisses me off.
My partner, Juan, and I are the lead plaintiffs among other same-sex couples in Martinez v. Kulongoski. That's the legal challenge against the constitutional amendment Oregon voters passed last year stating, "Only marriage between one man and one woman is valid or legally recognized as marriage" in the state.
The O's editorial board said we have no business in Salem fighting for the right to get married because we're using "technicalities'' to overturn the will of the voters.
Thanks for the advice, Big O, but as somebody who was inside the courtroom last week, and who is living this battle every day, you'll forgive me if I call bullshit on your argument.
Read Byron's entire column here.
Byron shouldn't be the only one the Oregonian hears from. Folks should write a letter to the editor and tell them they got it wrong: the case is not about technicalities, but fundamental questions about equality and they went astray when they argued that gay Oregonians should accept defeat and go to the ballot instead of fighting for full equality.
Byron, you rock. Thank you for this.
Post by Bryan Harding
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, October 05, 2005 at 12:16 PM.
Want to discuss? Leave a comment below.
ByByron writes, "I know the editorial board is pushing for civil unions, but Juan and I want to get married. No one should deny us our constitutional right."
But it's not just the editorial board pushing for civil unions, BRO has done quite a lot (and has future plans) to go the civil unions route. So Byron, have a chat with BRO on your concerns, because I couldn't agree with you more: Marriage, Not Civil Unions.
By
Hey B*kurth.
Are you the bkurth I consider my friend? If you are I'm surprised by your post. Perhaps I could help clarify your posting and why I am so pissed at the O.
The big difference between BRO and the Oregonian is that for the Oregonian it appears that civil unions are the end of the line whereas for BRO they're using civil unions as one more stepping stone to help us realize full marriage equality, not something the organization would ever settle on as “good enough.” Come on, you get that don't you?
By
This should be interesting...
By
Byron,
I don't believe we have ever met and I am not a BRO insider. I don't think BRO would see civil unions as "good enough", but I think they are creating a lot of confusion and ill will in their process towards equality. The Oregonian makes a good point and I don't think they are much different than BRO in what they see as the "ultimate goal". They have been sold the civil unions route by a civil rights organization which has also sold that route to Oregonians and lawmakers (and without a grassroots movement within Oregon's LGBTQ community).
But your response was that the board was pushing for civil unions with the inference that this path was not the one you would choose ("...pushing for civil unions, but Juan and I want to get married") I was simply pointing out that this the path BRO is pushing for as well.
b*kurth
By
so who are you dude..if you aren't bryan kurth..than why do you have to hide behind the name of someone else...
what do you have to hide...as you can see I have no problem using my real name for something I truly belive in....christ....and what the hell do you mean by the following comment:
but I think they are creating a lot of confusion and ill will in their process towards equality.
Huh? What the fuck do you mean by that bullshit? And by the way, what are you doing for the cause Mr. I can't reveal my identity?
best
byron-yes-that's-my-real-name-beck
By
So b*kurth you said: "I don't think BRO would see civil unions as "good enough", but I think they are creating a lot of confusion and ill will in their process towards equality."
You piss me off. a) You are rightly saying that BRO does not see civil unions as good enough yet you continue to bash them for taking this route--one of the MANY avenues that they are taking right now. They have some of the best, if not the best attorneys in the state fighting for marriage equality in the courts. We're going to have wins and losses, you will simply have to accept that. We are ALL fighting for the same thing, full marriage equality--equal rights in other areas as well.
You seem to think that you have the 'ultimate' or the 'best' strategy, though you never go into what you think that is. Enlighten us all. What is this dream strategy that you dream of? Why do you have no outlet? You have been/should have been given an opp. to voice it. BRO has given the public MANY opps to lend a voice. They are there to work for ALL OF US, therefore they listen.
On the b. kurth note... Byron happens to know Brian Kurth, as do I. It's just a bit strange that there is no voter record that I could find that was for who you say you are. Doesn't mean it's not true... though this Bradley Kurth has NEVER voted, is 22 years old and is a registered Independent, not a dem like you said you were a 'registered dem' and it's obvious you aren't 22 years old. Oh, and you said you live in Portland and this Brad Kurth doesn't live in Portland, nor any place close to Portland. It could just be that your voter file hasn't been updated. It's just a bit suspicious, I'm sure you understand.
So PLEASE fill me in. What are you doing for the cause other than always saying that Basic Rights Oregon's strategy is incorrect. Help me out here. Let me give you some credit. What are actions that you have personally taken to advance equality in our state?
By
Myron - I am using my name, and Bryan I think it's a bit icky that you are doing all this investigating on me and pawing into voter records and such. Last time I made comments you were tracking me through my IP address trying to get information on me. Why all this slimey behavior? You are honestly starting to scare me.
But this kind of treatment is what LGBT Oregonians have come to expect with BRO and its insiders when they raise concerns or question the organization in any way, sadly.
It didn't matter - and apparently still does not - that I have not posted anonymously here, and that I always post with a working email so that anyone who has a mind to can contact me directly. But these kinds of responses are really meant to take the focus off the real issues.
I think Serena Cruz got it right when she said in a speech to Lewis & Clark College: "Some people promote civil unions as the socially acceptable compromise: Civil unions, they say, provide the same legal protections as marriage. But civil unions are not equivalent to marriage. Civil unions contain only those legal rights and responsibilities provided by state law. Civil unions do not have to be recognized by any other state or country. Civil unions do not grant any of the intangible components (symbolic and social) associated with marriage. Because civil unions fall short in these ways, these arrangements end up preserving the preferred status of marriage."
I'm not interested in fighting to preserve the preferred status of marriage and if BRO thinks that is the route to go I would have thought they would first have exhausted all avenues for equality first, rather than what seems to be a see-what-sticks approach.
BRO has not had meetings with the community to lay out their strategy and ask for feedback, they have upset quite a few groups and individuals over the goings on during measure 36, and now they have Kate Brown Senator (D) publicly calling their actions deplorable with instructions that much fence mending needs to be done.
The issue of civil rights in Oregon should not be owned by BRO, but rather in a coalition of organizations and individuals in order to ensure that they represent the community and have the support of the community. That was tried with a group of students at Portland Community College and they got slimed for it by BRO insiders (even though they included BRO in all their meetings).
I'm not interested in this politics of division. Bryan, every time you post a response (besides talking about my voting records and IP addresses, or deleting posts, etc.) you ask me what my brilliant strategy is, well here it is: Whether we fight for marriage equality now or civil unions now -- and I do have my opinion -- NO LGBT Oregonian should be excluded from this process. No LGBT Oregonian should have their person attacked or investigated because they do not agree. No LGBT Oregonian should have their commitment to their, and their fellow Oregonian's, civil rights questioned simply as a result of asking a question or suggesting another perspective.
My name is Brad Kurth. You can reach me at b_kurth@_REMOVE!TH!S_hush.com
b*kurth
By
b*kurth's right, & we're seriously embarassed by roey, and her lack of professionalism, and community leadership. and bryan your set up, "this should be interesting", just shows the state of things, a prep for a fight rather than a discussion....
sign me anonymous ... so even if you can see my ip, you won't be able to go thru my voting records >:(
By
"b*kurth" you said:
"...and Bryan I think it's a bit icky that you are doing all this investigating on me and pawing into voter records and such. Last time I made comments you were tracking me through my IP address trying to get information on me. Why all this slimey behavior?...
Most blogs have stats that the blog owners track traffic with. When I see an IP address that says 'Not your Business' coming from a different country every single time, though going to the same exact page many times a day... more importantly to the comments part of a post - it's obvious it's the person who is leaving comments. There was no 'tracking you' by simply being observant. As far as your voter file, it's accessible to anyone. The fact that you don't have one means that you either don't vote because you are not registered or Bill Bradbury needs to get make sure the state's records are updated like they should be. You could look me up as easily as I you.
As far as Anonymous' comment. What did Roey do that embarrassed you? How in the hell has she shown a lack of professionalism and community leadership? She is quite an amazing leader actually. I'm sure you two are big fans of WWP. You say these things about Roey, though you provide nothing to back that up. Please inform me.
And a question to both "b*kurth" and anonymous. Did either of the two of you get married to your partner here in Oregon? And - how do you feel about that whole time in the movement? What were your feelings about seeing over 3000 couples having the chance to get married?
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