SFGate: Next same-sex battle will begin in Fresno (14.5-mile march in Selma, CA on Saturday)

[Kadie]

Next same-sex battle will begin in Fresno
Joe Garofoli, Chronicle Staff Writer

Wednesday, May 27, 2009


(05-26) 19:44 PDT -- The next same-sex marriage battle in California will be fought over a referendum aimed at the November 2010 ballot that is likely to include door-to-door campaigning in Bible-belt areas of the state that backed Proposition 8.

The battlegrounds will not be in San Francisco or West Hollywood but in places like Fresno, the geographic center of California where proponents of same-sex marriage will hold their first high-profile event Saturday.

Starting with a 14.5-mile march in Selma - the Fresno County town with the same name as the Alabama city iconic to the 1960s civil rights movement - and ending with a rally in Fresno, the event foreshadows efforts by same-sex marriage advocates to branch into middle America-like regions of interior California where opponents of Prop. 8 did little outreach last year.

Organizers hope to reach Latinos, faith communities and African Americans, constituencies into which they previously failed to make in-roads. Their approach aims to blend slain San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk's put-a-human-face-on-the-issue activism with Barack Obama's neighbor-to-neighbor organizing.

more...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/05/27/MNSK17RGTS.DTL&tsp=1

[county worker]

1. Fresno the home of Jim Rob and freeperville!

I wonder if Rim Job will roll down to the curb and curse at the marchers?

[Name removed]

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[DJ13]

2. Dress for the heat

Its expected to be near the mid 90's on Saturday in Fresno/Clovis.

[Kadie]

8. Yes!

It gets very hot in the valley!

:hi:

[slackmaster]

3. I didn't know we had a Selma

How absolutely fitting for a place to start.

[XemaSab]

4. The comments section is worse than FR

:banghead:

[Kadie]

6. Yep.

It can get really bad over there.

[stranger81]

7. so many freakin' trolls in sfgate's comments section . . . .

I'm convinced they're all from Utah. That or Contra Costa county.

[XemaSab]

11. The really depressing part is they're not even trolls

This is what a non-partisan website would look like. x(

[Starry Messenger]

9. k&r

That is AWESOME! :applause:

Here's a link to the organizer's website for people (like me) who don't want to see the Freep comments at the SFgate link.

http://www.meetinthemiddle4equality.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=59

[Kadie]

12. Thanks for the link Starry Messenger!

:hi:

[libnnc]

10. kick

:kick:

and a rec

[RoyGBiv]

13. FYI ... They have a Facebook Group ...

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=67768456248

[annm4peace]

14. "bout time you recognize the "no".. and get out of the choir.

by ignoring the Central valley all these years (decades) has lead to CA to become such a Republican, neo-con state.

I think it is very brave, and daring to start the march in the Central Valley.

The progressive community in the Central has need serious help for a very long time and if it is Gay rights cause that is ok by me.. anything to bring the human rights activist to the central valley will help.