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Queer Heroes NW 2020:
Special Righteousness Committee


In 1992, the Oregon Citizens Alliance (OCA) launched the first of a barrage of anti-gay ballot measures aimed at amending the state constitution to outlaw homosexuality. The campaign(s) lasted until 2000. Their battle cry was "No special rights for homosexuals!"

Lon Mabon posterThe LGBTQ community fought the OCA with rallies, fundraisers, phone banks, debates, and media advertising, among others.

One Portland group fought the OCA with satire.

The late Marvin Moore, a church organist, and Vaughn Frick, an artist whose background included Act Up, created the Special Righteousness Committee (SRC), a political action committee with its own page in the Voter's Pamphlet. Their "argument" was that the OCA's measure didn't go nearly far enough, and it should include the entire book of Leviticus.

Among the "Arguments In Favor," readers of the Voter's Pamphlet found these words: "… Anyone else also should be able to amend the state Bill of Rights to eliminate basic rights for people who they don't like. Let's put ALL of Leviticus into the constitution! A 'yes' vote is the first step in facilitating our militant moral agenda."

SRC did street theater outside of clothing stores "protesting" their sale of mixed-fiber clothing, and took similar action near seafood restaurants, raising funds by selling dispensations for the sin of oyster eating. Vaughn gives credit to Marvin as "the brains behind most of it, " but Vaughn said he helped and drew up artwork.

Lon Mabon, leader of the OCA, took them to court, claiming that only serious arguments should be allowed in the Voters Pamphlet and accusing the SRC of cherrypicking the Bible to make their points.

The Lon Mabon Cut-Out Doll (pictured) was one of the SRC's fundraising projects for the second OCA Measure 9, in 2000.

All of the OCA's statewide anti-gay ballot measures were defeated by voters, and their similar local measures were eventually invalidated by the courts.

(Here's a larger version of the Lon Mabon Doll poster.)

Big Lon Mabon Poster

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