Freedom to Marry event Councilman Eric Garcetti and Valerie Milano

By Valerie Milano

Hancock Park, CA (Hollywood Today) 10/11/12

With over 98,000 same sex couples living together in California, the Palm Springs event on October 6^th and Los Angeles event on October 7^th were well attended in an effort to raise awareness and funds for the states voting on gay marriage in November.

New York was the location of two National Engagement Parties, a series of house parties looking to garner even more support will be moving on to the Canoe Studios in Chelsea. Other scheduled events in Miami, San Francisco, Washington DC and grassroots house parties are scheduled to take place across the country at the same time.

The LA event was hosted by Dean Hansell and attracted special guest Jane Lynch, Mayor of Santa Monica, Richard Bloom, Council Member Eric Garcetti, Assemblywoman Betty Butler, City Librarian John F. Szabo, and West Hollywood Councilman John Duran.

The Palm Springs event was hosted by Warren “Woody” Wood and Doug Hairgrove, a couple of fifty years.

Freedom to Marry met their financial goals earlier this year, investing $3 million for television ads and other creative ways of reaching the voters.

GROUPS ACTIVELY WORKING ON MARRIAGE:

• Equality California is the largest LGBT advocacy organization in California.
• Vote for Equality/the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center is an organization working to advance the freedom to marry through grassroots action, voter education, and leadership development.
• Let California Ring is a public education campaign to open hearts and minds about the freedom to marry in California.
• Freedom to Marry is the campaign to win marriage for same-sex couples nationwide.
• Human Rights Campaign is the United States’ largest civil rights organization working to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) equality.
• Marriage Equality USA is a grassroots organization based in California working for federal and state marriage equality.
• Courage Campaign is an online organizing network that empowers grassroots and netroots activists to push for progressive change in California.

California Faith for Equality is a group bringing together clergy and lay leaders throughout California who support equality for LGBT people.