Press

MEDIA CONTACT:
Roberta Sklar, Director of Communications
media@theTaskForce.org
646.358.1465

The City of West Hollywood, in conjunction with the City's Lesbian and Gay Advisory Board and L.A. Weekly, will host a town hall forum on same-sex marriage on Mon., April 12 from 7-10:30pm at the West Hollywood Park Auditorium, 647 N. San Vincente Blvd. The forum is free and open to the public.

The forum will provide an opportunity for the public to obtain diverse perspectives and the most current information on the legal status of same-sex marriages. A group of panelists will share their expertise with a focus on three major areas - "The Human Element," "The Legal Issues" and "Strategies."

Members of the West Hollywood City Council will be present at the forum. L.A. Weekly editorial staff will moderate the forum. It will also cable cast live on the City of West Hollywood's Citychannel 10 and audio streamed live on the City of West Hollywood website, http://www.weho.org. A "Call to Action" area will be available where attendees can sign petitions, register to vote, sign up for mailing lists and gather more information about the fight to legalize same-sex marriage.

The town hall is co-sponsored by the following organizations: ACLU of Southern California; AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF); Aid for AIDS (AFA); Aids Project Los Angeles (APLA); Bienestar Human Services; California Freedom to Marry Coalition; Christopher Street West (CSW); Children of Gays and Lesbians Everywhere (COLAGE); Congregation Kol Ami; DontAmend.com; Equality California (EQCA); Family Pride Coalition; Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD); Human Rights Campaign (HRC); Immigration Equality; IMRU Radio; L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center; LAMBDA Legal Defense and Education Fund; Latin Pride; Marriage Equality California (MECA); Metropolitan Community Church Los Angeles (MCCLA); National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR); National Gay and Lesbian Task Force; Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG); Pride At Work/LA, AFL-CIO; Stonewall Democratic Club; The California Legislative LGBT Caucus: Senator Sheila James Kuehl, 23rd District; Assemblymember Jackie Goldberg, 45th District; Assemblymember Christine Kehoe, 76th District; Assemblymember John Laird, 27th District; Assemblyman Mark Leno, 13th District; The Equality Campaign; The Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund; The Green Party of Los Angeles County; The June Mazer Lesbian Archives; West Hollywood Democratic Club and UCLA LGBT Resource Center.

For more information, call Fran Solomon, deputy to Councilmember John Heilman, at (323) 848-6460 or Imee Gacad in the City's Public Information Office at (323) 848-6431.

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The mission of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is to build the political power of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community from the ground up. We do this by training activists, organizing broad-based campaigns to defeat anti-LGBT referenda and advance pro-LGBT legislation, and by building the organizational capacity of our movement. Our Policy Institute, the movement’s premier think tank, provides research and policy analysis to support the struggle for complete equality and to counter right-wing lies. As part of a broader social justice movement, we work to create a nation that respects the diversity of human expression and identity and creates opportunity for all. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., we also have offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis and Cambridge.