The Great Minnesota Outing ( www.greatminnesotaouting.com ) went live today as part of the effort to defeat a Minnesota amendment that would limit freedom of marriage in the state. The campaign collects videos produced by LGBT Minnesotans informing their friends and neighbors of their identity and making an appeal to them to vote no on the amendment. The Great Minnesota Outing is acting on statistics that show people who know a LGBT person are far more supportive of gay rights.
In their recordings, men and women identify themselves as LGBT, explain why they love Minnesota and express why it is important that Minnesota not limit the freedom of marriage for committed couples. Minnesotans can search for videos by city or zip code, funneling visitors towards people they are most likely to know in real life and thus most likely to be influenced by.
The campaign also features an aggressive social media component to ensure videos are seen by a broad spectrum of voters.
LGBT Minnesotans can log onto the website and share their own story. This is a difficult step for many LGBT Minnesotans, but the courage it takes to come out publically is what makes the videos powerful.
The Great Minnesota Outing also offers a letter to the editor feature, a mentorship program, volunteer opportunities and LGBT resources.
Minnesotans will vote on the amendment Nov. 6, 2012.
The Great Minnesota Outing is an independent activism start-up founded by Jon Staff, a commercial and social entrepreneur originally from Bemidji and supported by a contingent of dedicated volunteers. Jon graduated from Harvard University in 2010. Partners of The Great Minnesota Outing include Minnesotans United for All Families, Project 515 and Mechanica.