A leading group opposed to California's
gay marriage ban, Proposition 8, is making its first stop in Iowa.
The NOH8 Campaign will hold a photo
shoot on Saturday, June 4th in downtown Des Moines.
The campaign was founded by
photographer Adam Bouska and his partner Jeff Parshley. The couple
photographs celebrities and everyday folks with their mouths duct
taped and “NOH8” often written on one cheek.
The Iowa stop carries the risk of
touching off a protest from social conservatives angry over the
unanimous 2009 Iowa Supreme Court decision that legalized gay
marriage in the state. Last year, they banded together to oust three
of the court's seven justices over their decision.
In an effort to court the state's large
bloc of evangelical voters, presidential hopefuls campaigning for the
GOP nomination in the early caucus state have escalated their
opposition to gay rights, creating an increasingly hostile political
environment for such issues.
The
NOH8 Campaign received a huge boost in January when NCIS
star Pauley Perrette wore a strapless dress that featured the group's
logo to the People's Choice Awards in Los Angeles.