Keeping The Conversation Going - The DOMA Protest

About 300 people turned out in Miami Beach for the Join The Impact protest to remind President-Elect Obama of his commitment to the GLBT community, and in particular his promise to push for a repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act. We began the evening by having supporters and passers-by sign the Join The Impact petition that will be sent to our new President.

Then, local celebrity Pussila, and Miami Beach mayor Matti Herrera-Bower, gave a great introduction to the event, and together led the crowd on a march down Ocean Drive, and across 11th Street to the "Old" City Hall building, which was lit up blue and lavender by the City of Miami Beach, as a symbol of equality and solidarity with the GLBT community.

There are an awful lot of tourists going back home in a few days with discussions of marriage equality as a souvenir. Mission accomplished.

Join The Impact Miami!

JOIN THE IMPACT NATIONAL PROTEST FOR THE REPEAL OF THE DEFENSE OF MARRIAGE ACT!

WHEN? January 10th, 2009. From 5:00pm until 7:00pm

WHERE? Miami Beach's "Old" City Hall at 1130 Washington Avenue in South Beach.

WHAT IS IT? This protest, which will be coordinated with other protests around the country, will focus on the Defense of Marriage Act. DOMA is the 1996 law which bans the federal government from recognizing same-sex relationships as marriages, and which also means that same-sex marriages that are legal in one state do not have to be recognized by any other. Republicans wrote it, Clinton signed it into law, and Obama has said he will repeal it. LET'S HOLD HIM TO THAT PROMISE!

WHAT WILL WE BE DOING? Cities all over California will be lighting up their city hall buildings blue - the color blue as a symbol of equality. The City of Miami Beach will be joining California, and will light our "Old" City Hall blue! We will gather in Lummus Park (at 12th Street and Ocean Drive) and then march to the Old City Hall. Bring your signs, banners and slogans!

FOR MORE INFO: JOIN THE IMPACT MIAMI!

Out Of The Darkness

Last night was extraordinary.

Here, in a city much more known for its after-hours clubs and celebrity spottings than for progressive activism, a couple of hundred people came out to stand up for fairness and equality at our Light Up the Night for Equality demonstration. We stood, united, in the heart of South Beach, and we all did our part to keep the conversation going.

And, as a bonus, I had the pleasure of meeting superstar activist / blogger Eric Levan, who encouraged Miami to RAGE ON!

Light Up The Night For Equality

The Join the Impact protests brought hundreds of thousands of people into the streets, last month, in nearly every city across the nation, and marked the beginning of the next era of activism in our community. The next big action is a national candlelight vigil - in remembrance of the civil marriage rights that were lost, and in honor of the future of equality that is to come. Tony and I have stepped up to help organize the Miami event...so, I probably won't have much time to spend around here until after the 20th.

In the meantime, please watch this video, check out the event in your city, and help get the word out.

See you soon!

The Power Of Love

Miami Beach was all sunshine and love today, as we joined in the nationwide call to Join the Impact. It felt so good to get out, and let the country know that we will not go down quietly. I am so excited by the number of young people and straight people that showed up and the passion that is in their hearts. We really are going to win this thing in the long run. Oh, and one person showed up to protest the protest, and as you can see in the photo, he is totally insane.

Now, we have to keep the momentum going. If you live in the Miami area, SAVE DADE will host a "town hall" to discuss where we, as a community, go from here. For details, click here.

If you have photos, or a post about the event in your city, please leave a comment with a link. I'd love to see and hear about it!