Stop Prop 8

The Prop 8 threat affects all of us.

California is bringing back separate but equal.
We can't let this happen. Not in America, not in 2008.
We all deserve the freedom to live the lives of our choosing.

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
-- Martin Luther King, Jr.

What are we doing about it?

Several cities, counties, and citizens have filed lawsuits, asking the state Supreme Court to strike down Prop 8. The court will hear arguments in early 2009.

The Courage Campaign is preparing for a 2010 initiative that would undo Prop 8.

California is investigating the Mormon Church's undeclared contributions to the campaign.

Various protests and outreach campaigns are ongoing around the country; check the "How can I help" section for more info.

News Updates:

11/30/08: Mormon Involvement Was Early and Deep
Excerpt: "I decided to start a project to try to put together a timeline with details about Mormon church involvement in Prop 8. " [Stop the Mormons]

11/30/08: Urge Vermont Governor to Support Marriage Equality
Excerpt: "...lawmakers have been challenging the civil unions law, which does not provide full equal benefits to gay and lesbian couples." [Queers United]

11/30/08: Shopping With My Pink Dollars...How Much Research Do I Need To Do?
Excerpt: "Basically in my opinion, the HRC has set the bar way too low regarding progressive policies for trans employees for companies to get the 100% rating, and be listed as Best Places To Work. In other words, the CEI's percentage based rating system doesn't help me at all as a trans consumer who wants to spend my pink dollars at businesses that have progressive policies for their trans employees. " [Pam's House Blend]

11/30/08: N.H. gay marriage bill on the way
Excerpt: "According to Splaine, the major problem with the civil union law is that there is "no way" a civil union will give same-gendered couples the same rights as married heterosexual couples in all circumstances because of a gray area in the law that's up for interpretation. For instance, individual businesses don't need to provide the same benefits and contracts for civil union couples that they do with married couples." [Foster's Daily Democrat]

11/30/08: Prop. 8 financial supporters named on Web site
Excerpt: ""People at the grass-roots level are being more aggressive and confrontational, using tactics like demonstrations in the streets and publishing the names of people who contributed to the Yes on 8 campaign, rather than being passive like the No on 8 campaign," Gross said. "But many social movements, the ones for civil rights and the one against the Vietnam war, have worked by, at some point, not being polite." " [Long Beach Press-Telegram]

11/30/08: The Honor Roll
Excerpt: "These are famous individuals and organizations who deserve recognition for their contributions and efforts to preserve marriage for all." [Queers United]

11/30/08: Another Cause, Another Ribbon
Excerpt: "We needed a symbol, something to keep the conversation going." [NY Times]

11/30/08: The Effort Effect
Excerpt: "People who attributed their failures to lack of ability ... would become discouraged even in areas where they were capable. Those who thought they simply hadn't tried hard enough, on the other hand, would be fueled by setbacks." [Stanford Magazine]

11/29/08: NH civil union sponsor will push for gay marriage
Excerpt: "Portsmouth Democrat Jim Splaine will face a fight, as those opposed to civil unions vow to try to pare the law down." [Boston Globe]

11/29/08: Meet our Families Day
Excerpt: "How do people meet same-sex couples? We came up with Meet our Families Day. Anyone have any input on this idea?" [Pam's House Blend]

11/29/08: Gay Marriage and a Moral Minority
Excerpt: "...make it part of a broader discussion about the perils of rigidly applying yesterday's sexual morality to today's sexual mores. Show black women that it backfires. The stigma doesn't erase the behavior, it pushes it into the shadows where, devoid of information and acceptance, it become more risky." [NY Times]

11/29/08: The Prop 8 Campaign Money
Excerpt: "Churches, which risk their tax-exempt status if they endorse candidates, have more leeway in referendum campaigns. Still, when they enter the political fray, they have the same obligation to follow the rules that nonreligious groups do." [NY Times]

11/29/08: Moving Forward, Part 5: One Final Critique of No on 8
Excerpt: "There was one standout model of effective grassroots community organizing in the LGBT community this year; it was part of the No on 8 campaign, but it began autonomously and was a three-year effort: "API Equality."" [Liberty Hill]

11/29/08: Moving Forward, Part 4: Why We Should Have Won - We Know How To Beat The Right
Excerpt: "We came from a 25-point deficit to beat Briggs because we did exactly in 1978 what Barack Obama did this year to win the presidency: Build BOTH a professionally run, disciplined, topnotch top-down campaign AND an inclusive huge grassroots movement that engaged every single person possible in activist support. " [Liberty Hill]

11/29/08: Moving Forward, Part 3: Hallelujah! We Are Not Alone - At Last!
Excerpt: "Today, we have an army of straight allies who are just as outraged as we are and who have vowed to help us reverse this decision." [Liberty Hill]

11/29/08: Moving Forward, Part 2: Why We Will Win Next Time
Excerpt: "Equality and justice is on the ascendancy and we will win." [Liberty Hill]

11/29/08: Moving Forward, Part 1: An Indictment
Excerpt: "Nobody has accepted responsibility for failure and stepped up to lead a coherent, community- wide discussion of where to from here. As a result there is too much finger pointing, and a startling loss of credibility for established LGBT organizations and leaders." [Liberty Hill]

11/29/08: Brush up on your Harvey: A prequel
Excerpt: "a roundup of some of the news-making events that led up to Harvey's time in office" [Good As You]

11/29/08: El Pollo Loco's Statement on Proposition 8
Excerpt: "I voted against Prop 8. On a personal level, I not only understand your anger, I share it. " [Press Release]

11/29/08: Day Without Gay: The Wrong Direction
Excerpt: "I know UNC lgbt groups have done things like public kissing (with straight & gay couples alike participating) which certainly got plenty of local coverage. A statewide hand-holding day might be an interesting variation on this. Arranging groups to meet at various malls across the state to walk around holding hands, which is certainly something our allies could get involved with, seeing gay & straight couples holding hands and showing the similarity in that small public display of affection would project a good image." [Pam's House Blend]

11/29/08: Harvey Milk Lives
Excerpt: "Harvey defied the cautious gay leadership of the day who wanted to fight Prop 6 without mentioning the word "gay" or putting the faces and stories of gay or lesbian teachers into the public eye. They wanted to do it by letting our straight liberal allies speak for us instead. And they wanted a top-down, politics-as-usual campaign." [365Gay]

11/28/08: Coming Soon: Day Without a Gay
Excerpt: "...rather than just staging a polarizing protest, the gay community could boost society as well as their own image by volunteering, especially in those communities that supported Prop. 8." [SF Weekly]

11/28/08: New York Democrats May Skip Gay Marriage Vote
Excerpt: ""We want to get there, but we want to get there the right way or else we risk setting ourselves back another decade," said Senator Liz Krueger, a Democrat who represents the Upper East Side." [NY Times]

11/28/08: Two women walk from L.A. to San Francisco in an effort to revoke Prop 8
Excerpt: "The couple started walking since November 18, and so far the journey has allowed them to collect hundreds of signatures for a "Revoke Prop 8" petition. " [KSBY]

11/28/08: FACTBOX - U.S. laws on gay marriage and civil unions
Excerpt: "The patchwork of laws has caused some unusual complications." [Reuters]

11/28/08: Hey, Mormons! Your Yes on 8 Pals Don't Like You!
Excerpt: "A number of religious groups don't consider Mormons to be Christians ... But many denominations are more than willing to overlook these divergences of faith and use the "non-Christian" LDS for money and manpower to suppress gays." [Huffington Post]

11/28/08: NY Dems: Thanks for the Money but Forget the Promises
Excerpt: "Democrats in New York have taken the State Senate for the first time in 40 years, to a significant extent due to a flood of contributions from gays and lesbians wanting marriage equality. Now it looks as though this was not money well spent." [Box Turtle Bulletin]

11/28/08: HRC - Buying for Equality 2009
Excerpt: "According to a Witeck-Combs/Market Research.com study, the buying power of the LGBT community is estimated to be $759 billion in 2009." [Queers United]

11/28/08: Dissecting Prop 8, Part One: Alphabet Soup
Excerpt: "Our movement has become so fractured, with so many people speaking with so many disparate voices, that our message has become muddled." [Rainbow Mittens]

News Archive:

How can I help?

Effective action falls into four phases:
Activate, Demonstrate, Affiliate, Legislate

1. First, activate your network of allies, information, and strategies.

Subscribe to our RSS feed or email updates.
Visit our Friends and Allies (in the sidebar) and subscribe to their updates, too.
Get an account with JoinTheImpact on Wetpaint.
Check Twitter for keywords "Prop 8" and "noonprop8"
Follow NoOnProp8 and EqualityNowSF on Twitter.
On Facebook, join WiGayPedia, No on 8, Californians Ready to Repeal Prop 8, 1,000,000 Strong to Repeal Prop 8, Repeal the CA Ban on Marriage Equality, and No Milk for Cinemark.
Subscribe on YouTube to NoOnProp8CA, NoOnProp8dotcom, API Equality, and LoveHonorCherish. Provide comments and ratings on videos to keep the conversation in the spotlight.
Friend EqualityNowSF and VowToVoteNo and WiGayPedia on MySpace.
Join Vote No On Prop 8 on LinkedIn
Friend OverTurnProp8 on Flickr.
Join the Flickr groups Join the Impact and Californians Against 8 and No On 8 and JoinTheImpact - Pam's House Blend.
Skim through this "it wasn't our fault" essay that the LA Gay & Lesbian Center posted.
Consult the Marriage Equality Resources wiki.
Join Keep Fighting Prop 8 and Marriage Forward and 8 Accountability Project.
Join Equality California, NCLR, Lambda Legal, Marriage Equality USA, Invalidate Prop 8, API Equality, and the ACLU. And donate if you can.
Read Why We Lost in California: An Analysis of "No on 8" Field Strategies and Harvey Milk's Ten Ways to Win an Election.
Embed the national protest widget on your social networking profiles.
Check out the Prop 8 Supreme Court filings on the court's website.

2. Next, demonstrate what you're fighting for, and why.

Check JoinTheImpact for info, and learn more about their plans for the next few months.
Send Obama a postcard reminding him to repeal DOMA.
Here are some more sites with information about events:
1. Join the Impact National Events
2. Join the Impact Local Events
3. Equality California
4. NoOnProp8
5. Equality Action Now
6. Queers United
7. Protest 8 in SF
8. Californians for Fairness
9. OverTurnProp8
10. Million Gay March
11. Protest Prop 8
12. LA Prop 8 Protes
13. California Outreach
14. Keep Fighting Prop 8
15. Jordan Rustin Coalition
16. Overturn Prop 8 calendar
17. The Smoking Cocktail
18. No On Prop 8 Events
19. GayChurch events
20. Marriage Equality Wiki
21. Redondo Beach protest
Volunteer to flyer neighborhoods in whatever town you live in.
Write a letter to your local newspaper, or submit comments to blogs. The NCLR has tips for letter-writing and blog posts here.
Send a press release about your local protests to the media.
Participate in the protest in Sacramento on November 22.
Participate in Day Without a Gay - RSVP on Myspace or Facebook.
Volunteer to help with Day Without a Gay.
Participate in the anti-DOMA protests on January 10.
Put a blue light in your front porch, window, or storefront.
Posters and fliers can be downloaded from MagikJar, Join the Impact, Against8, Stop8, Itch Publishing, You Can't Hide Your Hate, and Protest8SF. Get inspiration from WiGayPedia.
Volunteer with Marriage Equality USA.
Make a No On 8 Button.
Wear a white knot.
Search for local businesses who supported Prop 8, and boycott them. Consult the HRC's list, or this one at the Mercury News, or this list of Mormon businesses or Mormons for Prop 8. There are list of San Francisco businesses to avoid and Santa Rosa. And join GayWallet to support gay-friendly businesses. Also check out the fliers by You Can't Hide Your Hate -- they have ones customized for numerous geographical regions; perfect for hanging up around town.
Take a photo and send it to Shame On LDS.
Buy merch from Against 8 or Stop the H8 or NoMoreH8 or Honk Against Hate or Stop the Mormons and the No On Prop 8 Store and wear it to a rally. Or to church.
Sign the Anger into Action declaration.
Read Becoming Visible: A Reader in Gay and Lesbian History for High School and College Students.
Mormons are required to tithe money that they earn to the church, so if you find yourself in Utah, don't spend any money.

3. Then affiliate with new allies to swell your numbers, win new supporters, and make inroads into new communities.

The California Council of Churches has a bunch of fantastic resources for promoting marriage equality in communities of faith.
Soulforce, GayChurch.org, and Reconciling Ministries Network promote equality in religious communities. Check out GayChurch's events.
API Equality and API Equality LA reach out to Asian and Pacific Islander communities -- check their site for ways you can help in SFand in LA.
The Jordan Rustin Foundation reaches out to the black community in LA; in San Francisco, there's And Marriage for All.
United Lesbians of African Heritage is exactly that.
MissionGathering is an inclusive church in San Diego.
Atticus Circle reaches out to straight allies.
Read Harvey Milk's Ten Ways to Win an Election.
Check out the "Start a Conversation" clips from Unlearning Homophobia. Straight From the Heart appeals to religious communities; All God's Children addresses African-Americans; and De Colores focusses on Latino families.
This list is way too short. Please let us know about more outreach efforts -- contact at stop8 dot org.

3. Finally, legislate protection for freedom and equality.

Sign Equality California's Equality California's petition and the Courage Campaign's and Equality Washington's. Then tell everyone you know to sign them, too.
Participate in Join the Impact's legislative goals.
Stop the Mormon Church from hurting us further by signing the petition to revoke their tax exemption.
File a complaint with the IRS against the Mormon Church.
Sign this repeal-prop-8 petition.
CA: Write a letter of thanks to San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera, who filed a lawsuit challenging Prop 8.
CA: Write to the Governor to demand that he protect our freedom to marry.
NY: Urge Senator Diaz to support marriage equality for his constituents.
UT: Support Equality Utah by urge Utah lawmakers to support civil union legislation.
VT: Urge the governor of Vermont to support marriage equality.
Check this list of states that may equalize marriage in 2009.

Also, please be nice when you protest. Go ahead and lead boycotts, challenge tax exemptions, and protest outside of businesses and churches. But never cause physical harm, and never lose sight of what we're about: live and let live, not destroying our enemies.

Are we missing anything? Let us know: contact - at - stop8.org