HRC stands against Referendum 71

This winter, the Washington State Legislature passed the Domestic Partnership Expansion bill of 2009, granting the final 250 rights and responsibilities of marriage under state law to registered domestic partners. Now there is an attempt to place a referendum on the November ballot to repeal the domestic partnership bill.

The most important thing you can do is speak to your friends, family, co-workers, neighbors, clergy and congregants and ask them to decline to sign Referendum 71 petitions and ask them to join you in speaking to their social circles as well. And if you have not previously signed our online Decline to Sign Pledge, please do so now.

If Referendum 71 qualifies, Washington families could lose their rights. If we can keep Referendum 71 off the ballot, then the bill will go into effect in July! HRC is standing with over 50 other organizations and thousands of individuals across Washington State and working under the banner of Washington Families Standing Together to retain the Domestic Partnership law. We encourage you to check out the website to stay informed on the news of the day, take action, download and distribute decline to sign pledge forms, and see which organizations are supporting this effort. You can ask organizations you are involved with to endorse the campaign. There is an online endorsement form available.

Want to do more? Write a letter to the editor to your area newspapers! Washington Families Standing Together has made it easy - all you have to do is enter your ZIP code and use the talking points provided. Your letter will then be sent to newspapers in your local area. It’s most effective to keep your letter between 200-300 words and to share your personal story. Just click here and get started!

Together, we can protect Washington families. It all starts when you take action. Please forward this e-mail to everyone you know in Washington State and let them know how important this is to our families!

Warmly,
Joe Solmonese
President, Human Rights Campaign

P.S. If you haven’t seen Senator Ed Murray’s op-ed on the advancement of the equality movement, both nationally and in Washington state, you should check it out here.