Activists in Florida on Wednesday
launched a campaign to win gay marriage in the state.
Equality Florida, the state's largest
LGBT rights advocate, described the campaign, titled Get Engaged, as
a “statewide call to action with the goal of securing the freedom
to marry in Florida.”
The organization's executive director,
Nadine Smith, announced the campaign during a conference call with
reporters, the Sun-Sentinel
reported.
Smith did not announce a petition drive
to repeal the state's marriage ban approved by voters in 2008, but
she also didn't rule it out.
“We're not in a position to say that
that's the best course,” Smith said. “So I would say the best
answer is we're not committed to the 2014 ballot. But every option
remains on the table. It will depend on a lot of factors.”
“The path … is not yet certain.”
One thing is certain, Smith was not
pinning her hopes on the Supreme Court striking down marriage bans
throughout the nation.
“The heart of this effort is a public
education campaign to shift public opinion,” she said. “Too many
people have written off the South as the last place that justice will
eventually trickle down. We aim to prove them wrong and understand
that history and the numbers are now firmly on our side.”
According to a Washington Post
poll released late last year, a
majority (54%) of Floridians support marriage equality, while 33
percent remain opposed.