From the South Florida Blade: SoFla joins National Equality March
Here's a snippet an article from this week's edition of the South Florida Blade that highlights a number of South Florida community leaders, including our very own Tobias Packer, and their role in this weekend's National Equality March in Washington, D.C.
Tobias will be one of the featured speakers at Sunday's rally on the West Lawn of the Capitol Building. Click here to see a profile of Tobias from the DC Metro Weekly.
Some of the more notable speakers at the pep rally include Project AIDS Memorial Quilt founder Cleve Jones, and Gay and Lesbian Alliance against Defamation President Jarrett Barrios; Equality Florida’s New Media Manager Tobias Packer also landed a spot at the podium.“I’ve never spoken in front of such a large crowd, but as a young transgender person in the movement I recognize that this march is coming at an integral moment when we have so much going on at all levels of government,” said Packer who is allotted two minutes to speak. “I hope this march will capture the imagination and energy of a lot of people who are not connected to the movement. I want to deliver a message of accountability and what we are willing to sacrifice for full equality.”
Read the full article after the jump
http://www.floridablade.com/2009/10-8/news/localnews/6351.cfm
March aims to further LGBT rights legislation
OCT. 8, 2009
During Barack Obama’s campaign for the presidency in 2008, he promised to allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military and renounce restrictions on same-sex marriage. Now the GLBT community has organized a forum to remind him of these promises. The National Equality March is converging on Washington D.C. the weekend of October 10-11, featuring a 2.33 mile walk across the United States Capitol’s west lawn beginning at noon on Sunday, and culminate in a pep rally with more than 30 speakers and a performance by Lady Gaga at 2 p.m.
Some of the more notable speakers at the pep rally include Project AIDS Memorial Quilt founder Cleve Jones, and Gay and Lesbian Alliance against Defamation President Jarrett Barrios; Equality Florida’s New Media Manager Tobias Packer also landed a spot at the podium.
“I’ve never spoken in front of such a large crowd, but as a young transgender person in the movement I recognize that this march is coming at an integral moment when we have so much going on at all levels of government,” said Packer who is allotted two minutes to speak. “I hope this march will capture the imagination and energy of a lot of people who are not connected to the movement. I want to deliver a message of accountability and what we are willing to sacrifice for full equality.”
While many are traveling independently to D.C., the National Equality March web site lists two South Florida contingencies participating. From Miami, the Freedom Democrats led by Chip Arndt, who is treasurer and Chief Financial Officer for the March, will be bringing several people up to D.C., while Stand Up SWFL (based in Ft. Myers) is bringing a group of more than 100 individuals from the entire state by bus.
This is the fifth organized GLBT rights march on Washington with other such weekend festivities taking place in 1979, 1987, 1993 and 2000. The march at the beginning of the decade estimated about 200,000 people in attendance, which is similar to what organizers are hoping for this year.
Besides the march and rally, 45 other sanctioned events are taking place including discussion panels, lobbying symposiums, transgender workshops, mixers, youth dances, and religious services. For a complete list of events visit: http://nem.gaycities.com.
President Obama will make an appearance by speaking at the Human Rights Campaign’s annual dinner Saturday evening. About 3,000 people are expected to attend the $250 a plate sit-down spectacular with appearances by Lady Gaga, Judy and Dennis Shepard, and the cast of the television show “Glee.”
