Equality Matters launches Online March for LGBT Equality
http://www.gaypolitics.com/2009/01/12/equality-matters-launches-online-march-for-lgbt-equality/facebookpicjpgLGBT rights group Equality Matters has organized the first-ever Online March for Equality, to be held the week of the upcoming presidential inauguration, Jan. 18-24.
Organizers are asking users of social networking sites, including Facebook, to change their profile pictures to one of several badges created by the group. The badges highlight the rights denied to LGBT Americans, including the ability to file joint taxes, make medical decisions for a spouse or receive government benefits such as Social Security.
"If the gay community is going to achieve equality, we need to find new ways to educate the American public and reach them where they spend their time. We felt the best way to achieve that was to take advantage of the web and sites like Facebook," said Bruce Namerow, founder of Equality Matters.
Since its launch just over one week ago, the Facebook event has attracted more than 135,000 invited guests with more than 40,000 registering their intent to "attend" this virtual event. The numbers continue to grow rapidly and organizers are hopeful that numbers will exceed 100,000 before the event begins on January 18.
