|
|||||
Get Ready: Big Commit NOM Tour Counter-Protest Demonstration Location Sunday is Freedom Plaza, Washington, D. C. 2 PM to 4 PM From The Big Commit Planning Team: Dear Big Commit Supporters, On behalf of the planning team, I would like to update you regarding the official location for the Big Commit Rally this Sunday, August 15. We have always known that location would be an important factor for this rally. We also were prepared for a certain amount of secrecy in regards to NOM’s announcement of their location. Weeks ago we filled out applications for two venues that we thought we good possible choices: Freedom Plaza and the West Lawn of the Capitol. NOM’s website has said Capitol Steps for the past few weeks, but by checking the public records, there has not been, and still is not, any approved permits for the Capitol Grounds for this Sunday. The Big Commit Rally will be held this Sunday, August 15, from 2 to 4 in Freedom Plaza. This location is strongly supported by our sponsors, endorsers, and the community leaders who are participating. The messaging of The Big Commit has always been focused on a peaceful response to NOM’s hateful rhetoric. We will join together with our diverse allies and show that we are a unified community that pulls together and becomes stronger in the face of hate. This will be accomplised regardless of venue or proximity to NOM’s rally. Our rally has national attention and will be well-attended. What a message we will send by outnumbering them, being re-energized by a strong community showing, and not even making an appearance at their bigoted event! We are assembling as a group and putting a positive light on something unpleasant and upsetting. All along the organizers of The Big Commit have sought to have a peaceful and organized response to NOM’s presence in our city. Freedom Plaza will ensure that this message does not get lost in a shouting match. We are so very excited about how the events of this Sunday are taking shape. We have assembled a fantastic coalition of activists and allies, LGBT organizations and grassroots supporters, and members of affirming faith communities. We need you to come and be supportive of The Big Commit and be supportive of the LGBT movement for marriage equality and full federal equality as a whole. Please, if you have any questions or concerns, contact the organizers who, however busy, care greatly about this community and are available to discuss the matter further. We also need help spreading the word. We want 1000 people at The Big Commit! Please tell your friends, share on Facebook, blog, add the event to any listserves you have membership to, RSVP and invite like-minded friends. Together we can make this day one to remember. In solidarity, From Wikipedia: Freedom Plaza, originally known as Western Plaza, is an open plaza in Northwest Washington, D.C., United States, located at the corner of 14th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, adjacent to Pershing Park. Designed in 1980, the plaza is mostly composed of stone, inlaid with a depiction of parts of Pierre (Peter) Charles L’Enfant’s plan for the City of Washington.[1] Most of the plaza is raised above street level. The western end of the plaza contains a large fountain, while the eastern end of the plaza contains an equestrian statue of Kazimierz Pułaski. The plaza was renamed in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr., who worked on his “I Have a Dream” speech in the nearby Willard Hotel. In 1988, a time capsule containing a Bible, a robe, and other relics of King’s was planted at the site. It will be reopened in 2088.[2] The John A. Wilson Building, the seat of the District of Columbia government, faces the plaza, as does the historic National Theatre, which has been visited by every U.S. President since Andrew Jackson.[3] Three large hotels are to the north and west. Freedom Plaza is a popular place for political protests and civic events. It is also one of the settings in Dan Brown’s 2009 novel The Lost Symbol,[4][5] in part because of the Plaza’s location at the intersection of Metro lines. The Federal Triangle Metro station, which sits on the Blue and Orange Lines, is across Pennsylvania Avenue from the plaza. The Metro Center station on the Red, Blue, and Orange lines is two blocks north on 13th Street. More: |
 
 | ||||
