Frontlines: The Latest from OutServe-SLDN

Pride Kick-off

Pride season is upon us! What a concept, Pride. Every year we come together with as a community and along with our allies, celebrate the LBGT community. These festivals, parades, and parties are political, social, business-oriented, family-oriented -- there's something for everyone. I love Pride, and am excited to be flying to Long Beach this weekend to kick off SLDN's summer-long campaign, engaging folks in our work to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." That Pride is an opportunity for people from all walks of life come together makes these events fantastic opportunity for education and activism around repealing the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell” law. SLDN is hosting booths at events all over the country. We need your help to expand our reach to more communities! Through our Pride Captain's program you can take the lead in coordinating an SLDN booth at a Pride festival in your town. It's a terrific chance to participate in Pride and talk to people about lifting the ban, and it goes a long way towards building our movement. Some festival-goers are currently serving in the military. SLDN's lawyers tell me that service members can go to Pride -- it's called "associational" behavior and is not by itself a violation of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" -- but attendance at LGBT events may raise suspicions. We strongly encourage service members NOT to wear any part of their uniform, including dog tags, at any Pride event. Connecting with service members and expanding awareness of SLDN's free legal services are integral goals of our presence at Pride festivals. We want everyone to have a happy and safe Pride experience! Advocacy to end this awful law is also core to SLDN's outreach at Pride. Our booths get those who are already interested more involved in the movement. They also help educate and engage those folks who aren't yet aware of the travesty called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Please help us make Pride 2008 a landmark year for the movement to lift the ban! I encourage you to learn more and apply to be a Pride Captain. Check out the list so far of cities where SLDN is hosting booths, and sign up to volunteer at one in your area! Pride is terrific fun and an unparalleled opportunity to get more people engaged in our fight to end "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Join us this summer! -Jill Raney

Labels: Pride

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05-16-08