As you may have heard, read, spotted or otherwise learned, Beau Breedlove is back in town. After a move to the East Coast late last year “for personal reasons,” the former legislative intern has returned to Portland — where his family’s based — for the indefinite future.

Breedlove’s obviously had a lot of time to think. He had much to say Thursday afternoon over his bottled water at a Pearl District Starbucks -– particularly when it came to his forthcoming book. He’s adamant that the in-progress memoir isn’t so much a “sex tell-all” but “closure” –- and a call of sorts against the stereotypes he feels he’s endured over the last few years. Yep, he’s (still) pissed, and he’s met others who feel victimized by similar headlines.

To that effect, Breedlove considers himself something of an activist, and not just for the fellow scandalized. He’s establishing an organization, “The New Movement,” with the aim to change the way in which “gay people are represented in the community and how we fight for equal rights, not just the LGBTQ community but human rights in general.”

Pick up the March 5 issue of Just Out for more. In the meantime, a few (lengthy) sound bites…

How is this not a bid for another 15 minutes of fame?
I wasn’t given the fair opportunity to defend myself against rumors and the press during the [Attorney General’s] investigation. If “you” were to be slandered and drug through the mud by the press, would you just sit and accept the damage brought on your life? No, you would take time to think, consider the options, and then defend yourself and your family. That is what I am doing. I am speaking my piece, and making an effort to have my voice heard, without it being misconstrued by the media.

But why the book now, after your initial reaction?
It’s something that I’ve thought about actually since the day [June 22] that the Attorney General [John Kroger] released his report [acquitting Mayor Sam Adams of criminal misconduct], because I felt like nothing I said really got through. Ever since then it’s been on my mind as a way to reach out and get my story out without it being manipulated by people, and then I really started actually heavily writing in August.

I know a lot of people have this idea that it’s going to be this sex tell-all. … Some gay blog asked, “Is this the gay sex erotica that the public needs right now?” … What I’m writing is to combat those stereotypes right there. Those were all the stereotypes that were pushed on me throughout this entire investigation, this entire media blitz. What’s really disappointing, though, is when other people in the GLBTQ community are the ones that are saying it. It’s like, “C’mon, people. Of all people you should know not to listen to what they say on the 6 o’clock news and you should know to look a little bit closer, especially when it’s someone who’s from your gay community.

About that report…
With the Attorney General’s investigation, so many people knew that was the wrong decision. So many people knew that his decision read like a copy of the letter that Sam’s attorneys sent him the night before, two nights before, telling the Attorney General why they thought I was an unfit witness. I was an unfit witness, when his answers to all the questions were “I don’t know” and “I don’t recall”? I never changed my story when I was being interviewed by the investigators. The only time my story ever changed was when I was trying to cover his ass with the media beforehand, and that’s essentially what it came down to – “Well, my story has changed.” Well, mine? What about his? His stories changed every day. The Attorney General’s office even accused him of slowing down the investigation and not cooperating….

I really believe that John Kroger could’ve done such a better job; I really believe that a lot of this stuff that they did was just filler –- [especially considering] the amount of times that I was interviewed, like on a regular basis, not always weekly but sometimes weekly, compared to the amount of times that they interviewed Sam, and then the people that they interviewed. It was an overwhelming majority of the people that they interviewed were people that work for Sam or have worked for Sam.

A year after the scandal broke, on how he feels he was treated:
…My mom has always taught me that you accept people, and you get to know people through love and compassion. That’s something that I wasn’t really given during this whole process, because people didn’t know me … It was a lot easier to kick aside someone that you don’t know than it is to kick aside someone you’ve elected into public office for 15 years. … I wasn’t the one who stood up on Martin Luther King Day and said, “I admit I lied to get elected.” … I had nothing to do with that, but still it’s easier for people to say that somehow I was behind it all and that it was my fault. I write about in the book the things that my mom taught me and the way that she raised me literally helped me survive the past year, because there are times when I got lost in everything. When everyone’s telling you, “You’re this way, this is you, this stereotype is you,” it’s easy to say, “Well, you know what then? Fuck it, if everyone already feels that way about me, then I’m going to go do whatever the fuck I want.” And I didn’t do that often but there were a couple of really weak times right in the middle of everything… and that was my mistake.

On the second recall effort:
I fully support a recall effort. I’m not saying that he isn’t qualified for the job. I’m not saying that he should be booted out but I really think there should be a re-election, because he lied to get into office. That’s cut and dry. There’s no way around that. You lied to get into office; there should be a re-election. Because now everyone knows the facts, even if it just is 30,000 people that want a re-election, even if it is just 20,000 people that want a re-election. That’s 20,000 people, that’s 20,000 Portlanders that want a re-election. They should have the right to it. I fully support [recall chief petitioner] Avel Gordly.

I think she’s doing the right thing. I haven’t read up too much on the recall effort or on her actions, but what I have read is kind of what I just said. It isn’t necessarily that he’s not qualified, it isn’t that he should be jailed or anything… It’s a cut-and-dry fact that he admitted to lying to be elected and there should be a re-election. It doesn’t mean that he won’t win again. That’d be great if he won again, if he does the right things for the city…

On how a 10-day stint in the hospital in late 2009 factored in:
I really tapped into a lot of emotions that I had kept pent up over the past 2 ½-3 years, ever since this whole thing started, and it really opened my eyes and it changed even more of the perspective of the book. It’s not about me. It’s about my life but what happened to me, and it isn’t a story that only I tell. It’s a story that dozens of other people tell who have been in my position… It’s not just about me, it’s about all those other people who have been on the other side of that political hurdle and didn’t make the jump. And we’re just left there, injured and wounded and piled on top of each other and no one comes back to check on us, and no one asks us what’s wrong and no one tries to help us… and no one tries to help us recover, because the politicians made it over the hurdle and they’re on to the next race and no one cares. We’re just left as this bloody mass of victims who were turned around to be the predators. It’s like, I was 17 years old — do you really think I was a fucking predator?!

On the anticipated reaction:
I gave everyone their opportunity for the past year to tell me what a horrible person they think I am, a slut and all these things and I’ve [lived] with it and I’ve told people that I respect their opinion and I’m not trying to change it, but now it’s my opportunity to say something and I’d appreciate the same respect in return.

On the reaction from the GLBT community in particular:
I think some of [the wounds have healed,] I’d say a lot of them haven’t, though. If I go out to CC Slaughters, it’s still a toss up if I’m gonna have someone be totally nice to me or if someone’s gonna come up to me and … tell me I’m a worthless piece of trash. Like I said, I respect everyone’s opinion, but particularly in the GLBTQ community, I really hope that those people’s opinions are based off of the whole facts. I really hope that they aren’t just making assumptions based on the stereotype, because if they’re doing that — which I know a lot of people do — then we’re just fighting against ourselves.

If you’re gay and you’re willing to judge someone else and dismiss them as, “Oh, he’s just some gay kid,” or “Don’t listen to him, he’s a 21-year-old gay kid, what does he know? He’s never done anything in his life,” then you’re just saying that to yourself. Because you’re fighting against any opportunity for us to make an advance, not just in politics but in the world, in society. If we’re fighting against each other, we’re never going to get anywhere.

On the future:
I want nothing more than to just have a happy life and have a family one day, maybe someday have a husband, just a happy life. And it’s so hard when I have to spend everyday trying to justify myself and explain myself. Or when I have to spend everyday looking at myself in the mirror and telling myself that what those other people say about me is not true, because I know it’s not. Or having to defend myself just as a gay man to the community. I wish I didn’t have to do that. If people just keep basing their judgments based on stereotype and kicking and screaming until they get their way, nothing’s ever gonna change.