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MEDIA
S.C. group starts campaign
with interstate billboard
Charleston’s AFFA reaches out to
voters to say no to the anti-gay
‘marriage amendment’
by Jim Baxter . Q-Notes staff
CHARLESTON, S.C. — The Charleston-
based Alliance for Full Acceptance (AFFA) has
started a campaign to defeat the proposed
constitutional amendment that would ban
same-sex marriage in South Carolina.
“AFFA is in its eighth year and for the past
seven years we’ve been putting up billboards on
1-26,” Susie Prueter, president of AFFA, said.
“It’s becoming our trademark
and we’re becoming known as
‘the billboard people!’
“The billboard and the
whole media campaign are
meant to put a real empower
ing message out there about
the LGBT community’she
added. “The message of our first
billboard is meant to put a human face on the
impact of this discriminatory amendment. We
know that nothing moves a person more
toward support of gay and lesbian equality
than knowing and talking with someone they
know who is gay or lesbian.”
AFFA is paying more than $1,100 a week
for a billboard on 1-26 encouraging people to
vote no in November.
“Someone you know, someone you
love.. .is gay. They need your help in
November,” the billboard says.
“The campaign went out a little later than
usual this year because we are trying to edu
cate voters about the constitutional amend
ment prohibiting gay marriage,” Prueter said.
“This billboard is actually just part of a
bigger media campaign taking place over four
months. There won’t be just one billboard, but
three. This one will be up for six weeks —
through Aug. 13 — then there’ll be a second
and a third just before the vote on Nov. 7.”
In addition to the billboard, the Alliance
plans direct-mail, radio and television ads,
bumper stickers and other means to get its
message out.
Local newspapers quoted a leader of the
Palmetto Family Council, based in Columbia,
in response to the billboard.
“We are encouraging people to vote yes for
marriage as an institution between men and
women,” Oran Smith, the Council’s executive
director, said. “We all have friends who are gay
and lesbian, but it’s our belief that only oppo
site genders should be afforded the privileges
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AFFA’s billboard urging voters to vote no on Nov. 7.
associated with the term’marriage.’”
Prueter takes it in stride.
“Anytime we put out a message about the
LGBT community here, the press feels com
pelled to go to ‘the other side’ for comment.
Rep. John Graham Altman, a co-sponsor of the
gay marriage legislation, is usually quoted,”
she said. “But people do speak out on both
sides of the issue and we welcome that. We
work hard to take the high road, even though
there is a lot of rhetoric out there, a lot of it
untrue. Our motto is to educate, not alienate.”
Warren Redman-Gress, the Alliance’s exec
utive director, adds “If South Carolina resi
dents look into their lives, they’ll see that there
are people who they know and love who are
gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender and
those people need their support.
“There is an important vote in November
and those individuals will be drastically
affected by that vote.” I
ONLINE Q.POLL
www.q-notes.com
Do you think the U.S. will ever amend the Constitution to ban same-sex marriage?
.yes .no
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14 JULY 29.2006 •Q-NOTES