Join the Impact

Yesterday families across the country came together to give thanks for their many blessings. Unfortunately at a table in Syracuse, NY a seat went unfilled. A family is in pain and mourning this holiday season due to an unspeakable act, which unless you read lots of blogs, are from the Syracuse area or have a Google alert set up you probably haven’t heard about because it hasn’t been reported in the national media. Read the rest of this entry »

We have a lot of quick updates and resource information that we hope you’ll peruse over your 4 day weekend (for those of you working on Black Friday and the weekend, thank you for braving the storm!) Read the rest of this entry »

• NEXT EVENT: February 12th Marriage Counter Actions
• Obama Signature Drive EXTENDED to FEB 16th
• ACTION ALERT: What should we do next?  Share your ideas HERE
• JoinTheImpact Will be at the NGLTF’s Creating Change Conference
• Did you organize an event for JTI? Interested in organizing in the future? Sign up here

On November 15th, we took to the streets and shouted for our rights and against the acts revoking rights on November 4th. We mobilized in ways this country has never seen and did so on the steps of City Halls and US Embassies throughout the world! On December 20th, we ask that you join us again for a demonstration that will make an impact on the private sector. Thanks to the great suggestion of one of our readers mixed with the brilliant ideas of the Civil Rights Front, we ask that you join us to Light Up the Night for Equal Rights. Please take to your local commercial district, be it a shopping mall, outdoor financial center, you name it and join your community and allies for one POWERFUL candlelight vigil for the rights of 18,000 same-sex couples who married and look forward to the day when those rights will be available again – for EVERYONE. This will be a peaceful demonstration in the spirit of the holidays. We will stay silent unless asked a question, we will not yell, instigate, or bare signs. Instead, we will let our shirts do the talking and our candles pay our respects. We ask that everyone joining wear a shirt that says “2nd Class Citizen” and our allies wear one saying “My Friend is a 2nd Class Citizen” , “My Mother…” , “My Son…” etc. JoinTheImpact will be working with LGBTQ and allied retailers and designers to bring you these shirts, and you are also welcome to make your own. Work with your local organizer to determine which shopping center(s) and work with us to ensure this statement remains peaceful and sincere. Visibility will keep this conversation going and during this important season of family and giving, we will continue to give you the opportunity to sit down and share your stories with those you love. Let’s all drive this important point home and work together so that one day, we can share the holidays with our legal spouse!

In the spirit of this holiday season, JoinTheImpact invites you to join us for the season of giving and come together under the banner of that which unites us all: Love. Let us go above and beyond. Let us set aside our own struggles, our own needs, to demonstrate to the nation and the world the collective power of the LGBTQ community to be a force of betterment for all society. We will rise above the divisions to recognize that we are all human, we are all working to carve out a space for ourselves in the world, and we all want the same simple opportunities. Beginning on November 28th, 2008 and going until we Light Up the Night for Equal Rights on December 20th, JoinTheImpact is launching the first national LGBTQ Food Drive for Equality! Through this event, we will work to reach out not only to those who have worked alongside us, but to organizations and individuals that fear us and oppose our cause. Our efforts to alleviate the hunger America is facing in this difficult time will be indiscriminate with regards to creed or political philosophy. These are gaps we can and must bridge if we are going to achieve equality in this country. So on Saturday, Dec. 20th, leading up to our LUTN vigil, each city will be organizing a massive charitable effort to demonstrate the positive impact the LGBT community can make. The effort has already begun in Cleveland, OH, so look to JoinTheImpact.com for a step by step model to maximize the impact in your city or region. Join us for this important event, and on Saturday, we will demonstrate the powerful impact the LGBT movement can have in the lives of ordinary Americans.

In the spirit of today’s upcoming protest we’ll be redesigning the site. Hopefully the transition will be quick and painless. We apologize for any accessibility problems in the meantime.

Hello Organizers,

When we migrated to a new server, we lost some comments so I wanted to bring attention to one. Marriage Equality USA has created a Press Release that everyone can use on a local level to get out the word to local media. Please Please utilize this fantastic resource:

Comment:
We have a press release that can be sent to your local media – For a copy of it, please email marchforequalrights@gmail.com

This NEEDS to be sent out!!! It will help increase the impact!

I’m sure all would agree that with the election of Barack Obama, this week
has been one of amazing wins in the world of equality! Still,
Tuesday night was one of bitter-sweet celebration, as we came together
to witness the first black man who will become our president, and
watched in sadness as Florida, Arizona, Arkansas, and California all
voted down equal rights for all citizens. Pendants and bloggers
alike have put their focus on Proposition 8, trying hard to find an
explanation for the anti-gay wins in the face of a huge pro-equality
event. Some have blamed the voters, others blame religious
groups, and even others blame the LGBTQ community for not being able to
mobilize on a larger enough scale. And you know what, there is
truth in every argument.

As a community, we have to admit to the fact that we are polarized
in various ways. Honestly, I’m not sure what community isn’t and
I believe that our polarization is proof to our humanity – we are no
different than anyone else, regardless of color, creed, or sexual
orientation. Still, our polarization has hindered us from
mobalizing as one strong voice. We all come together in the month
of June to celebrate Gay Pride, but few of us are even aware of why Gay
Pride exists. Gay Pride is a celebration to commemorate the Stonewall Riots of 1969.
Many say that the Gay Rights Movement began in 1969, which means that
we are still a young movement and have accomplished a great deal in
such a short amount of time. The generation that fought for us in
1969 deserves our gratitude and respect. This is a generation of
amazing people who fought for our ability to hold hands in the street,
to speak out against hate, to dance to our own “thumpa thump”, witness
television shows with a queer cast, and come together in the streets
celebrating for an entire month! This is the generation that
opened the doors for us to even have a conversation about gay marriage,
and this is the generation that deserves our help and our voices
now. On June 27th, 1969, this generation came together in
protest, jumping from closets, taking to the streets, and mobilizing in
ways this country had never seen before! And what happened?
Read the rest of this entry »