THANKS TO ALL OF YOU!!! Mwah :*
In The GA Voice 3/28/2014:
Rep. Dr. Karla Drenner "Look for same-sex marriage bill next year. The difference between 2004 and this time around? The bill will be proposed by progressives in favor of same-sex marriage instead of being proposed by conservatives that are against it." page 15.
Kyle Williams, State Senate Candidate for District 42, "If elected to succeed Jason Carter as State Senator of Georgia’s 42nd District, I would unequivocally and with no hesitation introduce legislation to repeal Georgia’s Marriage Ban, Section IV of Georgia Constitution and Title Code 19-3-3.1 that excludes same-sex couples, like my family, from marriage and prohibits same-sex couples from any legal recognition." page 8.
View E-Print Copy Here:
http://issuu.com/gavoice/docs/03-28-14-pdf-book?e=3167111%2F7265837#search
As you can now see, by one way or another, come hell or high water, the fight for marriage equality will reach the Gold Dome in January of 2015. The writing is now on the wall for all to see. There has been a significant amount of effort, time, energy and passion invested just to get this far: arguments, debates, town halls, petitions, rallies, youtube videos, radio shows, articles written and the 2,575 individuals all across Georgia who participated in the "Repeal GA's Marriage Ban" petition, we thank you! We thank Kyle Williams for his brave and direct stance on marriage equality as a State Senate candidate and we thank Rep. Dr. Karla Drenner for leading our state's LGBT Caucus in the House of Representatives from the crushing defeat in 2004 to this moment. It has taken all of this to get to where we are now, and it's going to take some more of it to carry us across the finish line where we can finally say, "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!"
Though to celebrate the victories along the way, those who have participated in the "Repeal GA's Marriage Ban" petition, go ahead and shout "WE WON! WE WON! NEVER WILL WE BE OUTDONE!!! WE WON! WE WON! AND WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN!!!" and do your victory dance. You deserve it. But what exactly did we win? We've won a battle to have a battle, an even bigger one, which will require us to double our efforts and throw our bones and everything we've got into it, or suffer an even greater setback than in 2004 which can reverberate nationally if we hold back. That demand is now upon us, and I would not have gambled on us for this moment if I did not know beyond a shadow of doubt that we are indeed capable. We are ready. We can do this, if we choose.
So when do we start? RIGHT NOW!!! If we intend to win, we can not afford to wait to see what the legislators or going to do in January of 2015 before we react and get to work. It will have already been too late, a lesson from 2004. The fight begins now, right after you're done cheering and dancing and have caught your breath. We must prepare the way, and to this end, we have our work cut out for us in the need for further grassroots activity that will shift the attitudes and support among the populous in Georgia more strongly in our favor and we've got the rest of the year to do it. The Love Under Fire Campaign will soon begin hosting planning workshops to this effect. But there are other important tasks which will need to be handled as well for the remainder of this year. We need to do whatever we have to do to help elect the most favorable marriage equality candidates who are running for office in Georgia. They are as follows: Michelle Nunn for US Senate ( http://www.michellenunn.com/ ), Jason Carter for Georgia Governor ( http://carterforgovernor.com/ ) and Kyle Williams for State Senate District 42 ( http://kylewilliams2014.com/ ). If you are unsure of where the candidates who are running for office in your local districts stand on this issue, ask them. Get their positions in writing. If you can not find a candidate who has made up their mind in favor of direct action on marriage equality, volunteer to devote your time, energy and money to the campaigns for the candidates I have singled out above, instead. Before giving your support, make your conditions clear with the candidates when speaking with them. If they are wrong on the issue of marriage equality, they are very likely to be wrong or weak on any other issue involving the principles of equality and justice. If they get equality and they get justice, then marriage equality should be a no-brainer. An important date coming up is the Primary Election Day of May 20th. Get registered to vote (http://mvp.sos.state.ga.us/ ), if not already and be prepared with everything you will need on election day. Know your polling place and get involved with helping to register other voters, navigate the process and offer them a ride or carpool on Election Day.
Here is a list of 10 other things you can do to help win marriage equality next year (http://loveunderfirega.blogspot.com/2013/01/what-can-i-do-in-name-of-love.html )
Lastly, on the legal front, we are waiting for details regarding the cases that the ACLU and Lambda Legal are considering on launching against the state of Georgia in the near future. If by July of this year we are just as clueless on the developments on this as we are today, we will begin fielding for other skilled and effective attorneys willing to take an independent approach from the leading LGBT civil rights law firms as David Boies and Ted Olson have in their fight against California's Prop 8 by filing a lawsuit against the state of Georgia, matching them up with suitable cases.
This way, for the remainder of this year we will fight on two battlegrounds, the battleground of the court of public opinion, the battleground of the court of law, before we reach the third battleground of the state legislature.
Stay tuned for further details.
