PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Primary Contact: Tom Lang, Co-Director
Cell: (978) 335-0477
Secondary Contact: Aaron Toleos, Co-Director
Cell: (978) 821-4620
KnowThyNeighbor.org Expands to Florida; Posts Names of 450,000 Anti-Gay Petition Signers Online
Manchester-by-the-Sea, MA, June 12, 2006 -- KnowThyNeighbor.org, the Massachusetts group that drew national attention for posting the names of anti-gay marriage petition signers online in December 2005, announced today that it has expanded its activities to Florida. KnowThyNeighbor.org has partnered there with the Christ Church of Peace in Jacksonville to post online the names of over 450,000 signers of The Florida Marriage Protection Amendment.
The names can be accessed at KnowThyNeighbor.org and ChristChurchofPeace.org.
The two groups have been working together since February 2006 when members of the Christ Church of Peace congregation contacted KnowThyNeighbor.org for help. Tom Lang, co-director of KnowThyNeighbor.org, says, "We are excited to be partnering with people of faith to protect the rights of gay citizens. It’s great to have a pro-gay, Christian group making such a strong statement on this issue and we are honored to have them with us."
The proposed Florida amendment would not only deny civil marriage rights to gays and lesbians, but also put civil unions and domestic partnerships in jeopardy. Lang explains, "The other side will accuse us of trying to intimidate voters but they are the ones who are threatening to take people’s rights away. When someone is sponsoring legislation to hurt your family, it is your right if not your obligation to find out who is behind it?"
KnowThyNeighbor.org expects that, as in Massachusetts, gay citizens in Florida who find the names of friends, neighbors, family, and co-workers on the website will be triggered into a state of activism and seek out conversations with those who would take their rights away. Lang explains, "These conversations can be uncomfortable for both parties but are desperately needed if people are to understand how important marriage and family are to the gay community."
The expansion to Florida represents a conscious effort by KnowThyNeighbor.org to move onto the national scene and its directors have been actively collaborating with citizen activists in other states. Co-director and webmaster Aaron Toleos explains, "The Republican Party has used the gay marriage issue as a tool to mobilize voters in this country. But their tactics have also given rise to a counter-movement that we plan to capitalize on as KnowThyNeighbor.org becomes a tool for grassroots organizing across the nation."
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