California's Restore Equality 2010 Issues Fundraising Challenge for Marriage Equality Research

I received this in my inbox from Restore Equality 2010, the coalition working to restore marriage equality to California next year. I thought I would pass it on!

Hello, fellow Restore Equality Activists!

You’ve been asking what you can do to help restore marriage equality…

Good news!

You can help us get the word out about our upcoming signature gathering campaign by answering our challenge match!

We will be announcing our own fundraising efforts soon, but we believe that asking for major contributions for Restore Equality 2010 should come after the election out of respect to Maine and Washington’s upcoming elections.

Research Benefits Our Efforts

The generous folks at Courage Campaign have been conducting research to ensure that we have the best ballot language submitted so that we can win in 2010. In order to find those voters who have not made up their mind about marriage equality, additional funding was needed. We benefit from the findings of this research, so Restore Equality 2010 is asking you to help us contribute to their efforts.

A few anonymous donors have already come forward, issuing a challenge to the RE 2010 team: Raise $1750 towards our coalition partner Courage Campaign's research, and they will match your donations for a total of $3500! That doesn’t sound like much, and we think you all will do better. To donate now, go to http://actblue.com/page/coalitionchallenge

This comparatively small goal, however, can be achieved in a few days...or even hours...if we get the word out. This is your opportunity to see how easily fundraising goals are achieved when we communicate in large numbers. If we get 100 people to donate $17.50, or if we get 200 people to donate $8.75, then we meet our goal. Please be clear there is no donation too small. As President Obama's winning campaign showed, large numbers of people donating $5, $10, $20 at a time can break fundraising records. Let's start showing California and the entire country just what we are capable of doing. Again, the link to donate is: http://actblue.com/page/coalitionchallenge

If you make a donation of $25 or more, we’ll send you a Restore Equality 2010 shirt.

You can be the first in your community to proudly wear your activism for this cause!

Here's a quote from the e-mail from our anonymous donors:

"I consider collaboration with Courage Campaign and all the other orgs doing great work for 2010 vital. I also consider showing the community that Restore Equality 2010 can raise funds equally vital. I am contributing these matching funds so that the RE 2010 community can see how small, incremental goals in fundraising can be achieved easily, and how even small donations are big communications that inform how campaigns are run."

And here's what Courage Campaign's Rick Jacobs has had to say about the research:

"Leading California elected officials and community leaders have hailed this research process as the key first step in winning back marriage equality. A joint statement released by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former State Senator Shelia Kuehl, San Francisco Supervisor Bevan Dufty, LA City Council Member Bill Rosendahl, Assemblymember Tom Ammiano and SCLC’s Rev. Eric Lee said, “We must support the intensive public opinion research work necessary to provide reliable and useful information to the movement for equality. The Courage Campaign's plan for conducting this research, led by Steve Hildebrand, is exactly what we need to get that work started. These steps are critical to helping us understand how to move Californians to support marriage equality and how to change the way those who still don't support us think about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people."

When our friends at Courage called for their members to support the research, they expected some of the money to come from the coalition of groups who support repealing Prop 8 in 2010. That's us. No matter how you feel about the research and its cost (marketing and campaign professionals on the IAG confirm that $350,000 for statewide research is comparatively inexpensive), our contributing to Courage helps Rick Jacobs, Sarah Callahan and others be able to sell a 2010 repeal to the doubters far more easily.

To donate, go to http://actblue.com/page/coalitionchallenge

The members of the IAG are grateful to you for your hard work and dedication not just towards restoring equality in 2010, but in helping our LBGT community realize its full potential as activists and leaders.

In solidarity,

The Restore Equality 2010 Interim Administrative Group

P.S. Don't forget: If you make a donation at http://actblue.com/page/coalitionchallenge of $25 or more, we’ll send you a Restore Equality 2010 shirt!