FROM A PRESS RELEASE
On the eve of President Obama's address to the gay community and the National Equality March, a group of LGBT activists associated with The Dallas Principles has announced a new web based activist hub that dramatically distributes the power in the movement for equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. Among the tools it provides the grassroots are: a blog for strategy, an online action hub, and a public whip count for LGBT legislation in the US Congress. The site also provides a widget that shows the current status of all LGBT-related bills in Congress. Coding for the widget is provided for posting on other websites.
The website is dedicated to putting The Dallas Principles into action by empowering the grassroots of the LGBT movement to demand full equality. Act On Principles will become only what its users make of it.
Among the tools on the website, the most revolutionary is the Public Whip Count. For the first time ever, LGBT activists and those who support their efforts will be able to crowd source a count on legislation in the US Congress and input that information onto the website. That information will inform the grassroots where to focus limited resources in passing long-awaited legislation to achieve equality. Current legislation in the whip count section include the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, the Uniting American Families Act, and legislation to repeal the ban on gays in the military and the Defense of Marriage Act.
Organizations are being sought to partner with Act on Principles to take the lead on whipping specific pieces of legislation. The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network ( SLDN ) is one such organization, as they have agreed to take the lead on legislation to repeal the ban on gays in the military. SLDN has long been a leader on this issue and they bring an expertise to the whip count that will ensure that grassroots activity is informed, targeted, and effective.
The online action center allows users to post actions that lead to achieving equality.The actions are searchable by state and are also rated by other users. The highest rated posted actions will be automatically displayed more prominently.
The blog is specific to outlining strategy for more quickly achieving equality. Registered users may submit blog posts and rate them. Top-rated posts by users will be displayed more prominently.
Just as The Dallas Principles is a document for all who want to achieve LGBT equality, Act on Principles is an online tool center that allows those Principles to be put into action. Its success, like the success of our entire movement, will depend on large numbers of grassroots activists using the tools now at their fingertips.
Find more on the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network at www.sldn.org and explore Act On Principles at www.ActonPrinciples.org .