The
November ACE meeting included a discussion of
the recent Oregon Supreme Court hearing of two
cases affecting the adult industry. That hearing
took place November 3rd at Linfield College. Several
ACE representatives were
able
to attend the hearing, including ACE President
Claude DaCorsi.
Also
present at the November ACE meeting were members
of the Portland
Leather
Alliance (PLA) and the National Coalition for
Sexual Freedom
(NCSF),
who join ACE in defending the rights of adults
to free speech and
free
expression, including responsible sexual expression.
And also present
was
an officer of the Portland Area Business Association,
which describes
itself
as "your GBLT Chamber of Commerce". (GBLT, or
Gay Bi Lesbian and
Transgendered,
is intended to include "Gays, Lesbians, and their
friends
and
associates in business," according to the PABA
web site, www.paba.com.)
ACE
is very happy to be on good terms with these groups.
ACE is now
developing
a formal Affiliates Program in order to establish
formal
relations
with these and other groups who share our interests
and goals.
Special
Meeting with new OLCC Director
------------------------------------------------------
ACE
President Claude DaCorsi was one of several ACE
members who had
one-on-one
meeting with the new OLCC Director, Teresa Kaiser,
in recent
weeks.
She has impressed everyone so far with her willingness
to listen
and
her apparent dedication to fair treatment for
all licensees.
ACE
looks forward to working in partnership with Ms.
Kaiser to improve the
strained
relations between the OLCC and the adult industry.
We expect to
be
part of the announced OLCC Public Forum scheduled
for December 2003, and encourage all club owners
to attend or send their representatives.
ACE
members were invited to a special late-November
private briefing on our
meetings
with Ms. Kaiser.
Fundraising
------------------------------------------------------
The
discussion of the Oregon Supreme Court cases made
it clear that the
adult
industry is always going to be under attack and
must always be
vigilant
in protecting the rights of adults to free expression.
ACE's
amicus
brief to the Oregon Supreme Court may make the
difference between
victory
and defeat - between continuing business, or a
ten-foot rule
requiring
all entertainers to remain at least ten feet from
all patrons at
all
times. Such a rule would immediately shut down
over half the adult
clubs
in Oregon - those with less than ten feet to spare
around their
stages
- and would probably destroy the rest in short
order.
That
amicus brief wasn't cheap - we had some of the
best attorneys in the
country
help us, and ACE owes them over $24,000. We won't
know the outcome
of
these court cases for another six months. But
we need to pay this bill
now
so that we're ready to fight the next attack
on our industry.
That
means we want to resume our monthly ACE fundraisers.
If you'd like to
host
one of these events at your club, please contact
us at or.ace@verizon.net.
We've
also got our newly designed ACE "Bill of Rights"
T-Shirts available -
a
custom design with the US Constitution's Bill
of Rights on the front in
black,
with "Void Where Prohibited by Law" stamped
over it in red, and the
ACE
logo on the back, beautifully silk-screened
onto a heavy white cotton
Hanes
T-shirt. At $20 this makes a great gift, and
shows that you support
the
organization that supports you. Available in
size XL only - supplies
are
limited.
Worried
about Joining?
------------------------------------------------------
Some
club owners and staff have expressed worries
that the OLCC will crack
down
harder on clubs that join ACE - that they will
be singled out for
harsher
treatment. Quite the contrary.
If
the OLCC even gives the appearance of doing
that, then they would appear
to
be violating your rights of free speech, free
association, and right of
equal
protection under the law. That's a sure recipe
for a public
relations
disaster - this industry may be unpopular in
some quarters, but
in
America you're supposed to be allowed to be
unpopular - you can't be
singled
out for ill treatment, and the bureaucrat who
tries it deserves the
same
fate as Senator McCarthy.
Indeed,
you should join ACE for exactly that reason
- the OLCC cannot
afford
to be seen abusing people for simply joining
a trade association
like
ACE. Joining may be your best guarantee of honest
and fair treatment
in
the future. And remember, ACE can't defend you
if you don't join.
Report
OLCC Abuse!
------------------------------------------------------
Do
you have a story of unfair OLCC ticketing, abusive
treatment, or
selective
enforcement? We want your stories! ACE is committed
to
supporting
the OLCC's proper mission, of protecting the
public from the
problems
of irresponsible alcohol servers and establishments,
while
defending
responsible servers and establishments from
unreasonable treatment.
Next
Meeting
------------------------------------------------------
The
Next ACE meeting is on Tuesday, December 9th.
The following meeting
will
be on January 13th. All business owners and
workers in the adult
industry
are welcome at these open meetings, whether
you've joined ACE yet
or
not.
ACE
OREGON MEETING FOR DECEMBER
TUESDAY
DECEMBER 9, 4PM @ DANTE'S * 1 SW 3RD AVE. *
DOWNTOWN * 503-226-6630
(
THE ACE OREGON MEETING IS ALWAYS THE 2ND TUESDAY
OF EACH MONTH )
Come
meet our attorneys and get your questions answered
on legal situations BEFORE problems occur.
All
members should send a representative to each
meeting.
ACE
OREGON COCKTAIL SOCIAL TO FOLLOW AT 5PM
