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Indianapolis, January 19, 2005-- Indiana legislators are poised to write discrimination into the state constitution. But first, they'll have to cross swords with Indiana Equality.
"We'll use every means at our disposal," vows IE president Kathy Sarris, "to make sure our generation and future generations of GLBT Hoosiers are not relegated to second-class citizenship. We will try to persuade party leaders and powerful legislators face to face through our lobbyists and influential IE members such as Rainbow Chamber of Commerce founding member Chris Douglas. And we'll continue organizing the grassroots to express their views vigorously to their representatives. But if the proponents of bigotry and economic foolishness force us to, we won't hesitate to organize demonstrations. And we won't lift a finger to hold back a national economic boycott of Indiana."
IE is a statewide coalition of groups advocating for GLBT civil rights. Organized in January 2003, its founding mission was to persuade Indiana's legislature to amend the state civil-rights code to include sexual orientation and gender identity. IE expects a bill to be filed this session that would do exactly that. But the frenzy of anti-gay marriage legislation around the nation and within Indiana has dropped a more divisive issue on IE's plate.
"We need to be realistic about what we will consider 'victory' this year," Sarris advises. "Odds are, the legislature will pass a resolution, no matter what we do. If we can slow down our opponents' momentum or whittle away the most harmful language from the resolution that passes, we should feel really good about that. Other tactics will come into play after this year."
IE's campaign of persuasion highlights the negative consequences of a constitutional amendment on Indiana's economy, its employers, its institutions of higher education, its public policy and its families. Talking points on these issues are posted on the Indiana Equality Web site.
"We need GLBT Hoosiers and their allies to learn our talking points by heart," says IE chair John Clower. "Then we ask you to choose those points most relevant to your life and elaborate on them in talking to your legislators and in writing letters to the editor of your local newspaper. Putting a human face on the issues-by talking about how you and/or your family will be affected-is enormously important. We also need supporters to join our action-alert list. And we need supporters to organize fundraisers to help us pay our lobbyists' salaries. By some accounts, our opponents have raised $1 million dollars to write discrimination into the constitution this session. It's David versus Goliath yet again; and David--with your help--can win."
To learn more about Indiana Equality's talking points, to volunteer or to donate money to support its lobbyists and publicity costs, visit www.incoalition.org.
