The Asheville-based Rainbow Wedding Network is launching an initiative to hit the road and promote gay marriage. Or, as they express it, “create mass change in America concerning marriage equality.”
Cindy Sproul and her partner, Marianne Puechl, will be speaking at upcoming events in Atlanta, Seattle and Tampa, and the two plan to take their Same Love, Same Rights Mobile Marriage Summit to New York and Chicago.
February marks the season of love; however for 19 million Americans the rights and responsibilities of a lifelong commitment through marriage do not apply. The Same Love, Same Rights® Mobile Marriage Summit directly addresses this vital issue, serving as a central rallying point for the GLBTQ community, its advocates and allies. With interactive resources available 24/7 online, and events held in various states throughout the year, the organization provides targeted access to current events and basic action steps participants can take immediately to enact real change. The mission of Same Love, Same Rights® is to re-energize the GLBTQ community about the very real consequences of inequality in America.
“Valentine’s is the perfect launchpoint this year for Same Love, Same Rights,” states founder Cindy Sproul. “The holiday is about Love and the onset of the wedding season… But it also marks the vast differences in rights for two factions in our country: the heterosexual majority and the gay and lesbian minority. Our first Mobile Marriage Summit event in 2008 will be just after Valentine’s Day, in Atlanta on February 24th.”
The upcoming event is the organization’s fourth annual expo in Atlanta, and will be held from 12:00 – 5:00 pm at Bold American Catering’s venue space in the King Plow Center. Attendees will have the opportunity to share their ideas on the issues, sign petitions, join the ‘Commitment Photo Album’ and learn new ways to network and get involved, both at the state and national levels. Sproul & her partner Marianne Puechl will be speaking during the event, along with Marriage Equality Georgia’s Kathy Kelly. Over fifty local, gay-friendly wedding vendors will display their wares and services; Music, Ceremony Tips, Samples, Fashion and live Dance performances will enhance the day’s theme. Admission is free, and all supporters of marriage equality are encouraged to attend.
Links:
The Rainbow Wedding Network myspace page.
Rainbow Wedding Network Magazine.
Mountain Xpress story about gay marriage, quoting Cindy Sproul.