Frontlines: The Latest from OutServe-SLDN

SLDN Monthly Update

Throughout July, SLDN made unprecedented legislative strides in the fight to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," continued to raise the visibility of DADT in national and local media, and partnered with our allies to build grassroots support from coast to coast.

Legislative
• On the Congressional front, the Senate will hold DADT hearings in the fall (as will the House). This will be the first time in 16 years the Senate has taken up the issue.
• SLDN supporters, allies and friends reached a new milestone on Capitol Hill. In July, 18 additional representatives signed on as co-sponsors of HR 1283 (Military Readiness Enhancement Act) - a record number of new co-sponsors in one month since the bill was first introduced in 2005. The bill now has an historic total of 168 co-sponsors.
• To achieve full repeal, we need 218 cosponsors and recently launched the 218 Initiative, which will shortly be outlined on our site, to reach that goal. This week your member of Congress will return home for summer recess. That means you could have the opportunity to meet with your legislator or their staff to urge them to co-sponsor HR 1283. Your continued support and involvement will make the difference on the road to 218.

Schedule an in-district meeting with your member of Congress:
http://www.sldn.org/6060

If your legislator is already a co-sponsor of HR 1283, encourage your friends in other states to schedule meetings with their lawmakers:
http://www.sldn.org/MREAcosponsors

Communications
• Within the last month, the Communications Department has kept the visibility of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" in national and local conversations. SLDN was included in a Politico story, picked up on political blogs and e-mail groups, on the stop loss/executive order proposal.
• Communications Director Kevin Nix was quoted on MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show reacting to alleged White House pressure on Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL) to withdraw his DADT amendment.
• The Washington Post used Lt. Col. Victor Fehrenbach's discharge story to highlight recent legislative developments. "Last week, the Senate Armed Services Committee agreed to hold its first hearing on the issue this fall. [Aubrey] Sarvis called the development ‘very significant' but said strong White House leadership will be needed to get legislation through Congress."
• The team generated media attention in the politically important state of Missouri around the Truman Library/SLDN event, including eight significant stories in print and on radio, including an op-ed by Clifton Truman Daniel, President Truman's grandson, in the Kansas City Star. C-SPAN's coverage of the event is expected to air later this month.

Grassroots/Netroots
• SLDN recently partnered with the Courage Campaign - a California-based progressive organization with more than 700,000 members - to urge House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to advance DADT repeal legislation this year. We collected 130,000 signatures on our letter to Speaker Pelosi.
• We teamed up with Equality Florida and Progress Florida to urge the Florida congressional delegation to co-sponsor HR 1283. At the local level, SLDN had a strong presence at pride events from coast to coast, including San Diego, Charlotte and Chicago - where we added more than 5,000 signatures to our petition to Congress.

08-04-09 By Paul DeMiglio, Senior Communications Manager |