Via Joe My God, I find this press release issued today by the Courage Campaign:
LOS ANGELES, CA – The Courage Campaign today called for more research and time to change hearts and minds before returning to the ballot to restore marriage for gay and lesbian couples in California. At least one initiative to restore same-sex marriage is currently circulating that, if it qualifies, would appear on the November, 2010 ballot…
“For months, we have laid out the criteria for moving forward. Like the Obama Campaign, we understand that we need a combination of powerful and clear research that informs an expertly run campaign, an unstoppable movement that harnesses the new energy we have seen since the passage of Prop. 8 and the connections through personal stories and outreach in order to win at the ballot box,” said Rick Jacobs, the Courage Campaign founder and Chair. “We are taking the lessons learned from last year’s Prop. 8 campaign, the campaigns in Maine and other states to understand the fundamental work that must be done before moving forward in California. We also must come together as a community to create a broad coalition and governance structure, put in place a strong manager and secure the resources to win. Right now, the pieces are not all in place to do so confidently.”
I am understanding this to mean that the Courage Campaign is no longer on board with a 2010 campaign and will be shifting their resources to a 2012 effort (although the language is oddly vague– if any Courage Campaign people are reading this, any clarification would be appreciated greatly). At a minimum the clear message of this release is that Courage Campaign does not at this time support the specific 2010 ballot filing by Love Honor Cherish, which they reference in the first paragraph.
Courage Campaign is currently soliciting volunteers for their Prop. 8 repeal and “Equality Team” efforts here. EQCA is also soliciting volunteers to canvass for their 2012 repeal campaign here.
Other than to highlight these two sentences:
The Courage Campaign has spent over $200,000 on research and have learned a lot, but one of the biggest lessons was that there is a heck of a lot more to learn before we go back to the ballot box.
We have and will continue to move forward with our 44 Equality Teams working across the state, our new Deputy Field Organizing program and our Camps Courage.
We are not going to be putting an initiative on the ballot in 2010. As the statement said, the key pieces to win in 2010 aren’t yet in place. When we do go back to the ballot, we have to have research that informs a plan for a clear path to victory, a strong and well-respected governance structure, a strong and experienced campaign manager, and the funding necessary to win. Right now we don’t have those things, and so our decision is to not expend organizational resources on putting a repeal initiative on the ballot in 2010.
If Love Honor Cherish gets their initiative on the ballot in 2010, we will definitely help ensure it passes.
What we are doing is continuing to build the movement to win in California. We’re going to hold another Camp Courage in Santa Barbara in early 2010. We’re organizing people to change minds to support marriage equality through Courageous Conversations with family over the holidays. We’re building equality teams across the state – over 40 teams in over 20 counties – that will be the backbone of a marriage equality victory. And we’re going to continue fighting for equality at the federal level.
Note: I am the Public Policy Director at the Courage Campaign
I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t putting words in Courage Campaign’s mouth.