My Mom has a Wife! Congratulate me!

All human, not always humane

I have long intended to commend you for your even-handed coverage of Multnomah County's gay marriage controversy. The Oregonian has never failed to put a human face to the issue.

Friday's articles, highlighting the contrast between the happiness of Melanie and Wilf Scheuermann and the despair of Rivka and Lauren Gevurtz [about the Oregon Supreme Court's decision to nullify the marriages of same-sex couples performed in Multnomah County in 2004], were an encapsulation of the disparate perspectives that engender the debate.

And for me, the accompanying photos were a graphic illustration of the most disturbing aspect of this issue -- that one group can take such pleasure in a decision that causes others pain. Just another reminder that, although we are all human, we are not always humane.

D.M. SUYDAM Southeast Portland

Which is a pleasant and subtle slap against the Scheuermanns, but approves of (or even, kisses up to) the O being wishy-washy in the face of bigotry.

ONTARIO, Calif.

A 14-year-old student was expelled from a Christian school because her parents are lesbians, the school's superintendent said in a letter.

Shay Clark was expelled from Ontario Christian School on Thursday.

"Your family does not meet the policies of admission," Superintendent Leonard Stob wrote to Tina Clark, the girl's biological mother.

Stob wrote that school policy requires that at least one parent may not engage in practices "immoral or inconsistent with a positive Christian life style, such as cohabitating without marriage or in a homosexual relationship," The Los Angeles Times reported in Friday's edition.

Stob could not be reached for comment by the newspaper. Shay and her parents said they won't fight the ruling.

School administrators learned of the parents' relationship this week after Shay was reprimanded for talking to the crowd during a football game, Tina Clark said.
Clark and her partner have been together 22 years and have two other daughters, ages 9 and 19.

"immoral or inconsistent with a positive Christian life style, such as cohabitating without marriage or in a homosexual relationship,"

Or, say, casting judgment.