Jake Gellar-Goad's blog

Watch the courageous acts of civil disobedience by everyone who stood up and demanded to be served at marriage license counters across the state, especially those who were arrested sitting in waiting for service that would never come.

I think that it is important to note that even though this amendment passed, those of us fighting for LGBT equality aren't going away. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then I have 5000 words on the eastern North Carolina experience that you might want to see, if you'll kindly follow me below the fold.

This is Raleigh

This is Greenville

This is Wilmington

This is Wilson

This is Rocky Mount

This is Durham

This is North Carolina

That's Protect All NC Families' closing argument. Mine is even shorter. Please don't end my domestic partnership tomorrow.

The annual OutRaleigh street festival happened today for only its second time. Though it looked a lot like the annual pride events over in Durham, I felt that it took on special significance given the looming amendment vote on Tuesday. I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking.

As someone whose day job is that of an organizer, it might be that solutions to many problems in my eyes look like they require organizing, just as the craftsman whose only tool is a hammer starts to see all problems as nails. But I really do believe in the people power of organizing, especially as a tool for achieving civil rights. And so I wanted to take a moment to encourage people to find ways to stay plugged in after May 8th, whether we win or lose, to make sure that organizing for equality continues.

How and where are you going to celebrate or protest after the amendment vote happening one week from today?

The nation's eyes are on North Carolina during this final week of the primary. Many marriage discrimination and equality battles are pending for November. We get to set the stage. If a southern state defeats this discrimination, then all the anti-discrimination campaigns will have a legitimate claim to viability, which is key for recruiting talented staff, volunteers, and donors. To steal a line from HKonJ, this is a movement, not a moment.

After this latest round of radical redistricting, we're not in Kansas any more, and we may not even be in our old districts either.

Election Alert: Preview Your Ballot Before Voting!

You may be surprised by the names you see on the ballot in this election – especially if you’re among the millions of North Carolina voters with new General Assembly and Congressional districts.

You may even get the wrong ballot – but how will you know!?!

North Carolina is featured in this week's Marriage News Watch because early voting has begun in North Carolina. In fact, it started last week on the 19th, but for many counties around the state the full slate of early voting sites waited to open until this week. Do you know where your early voting site is?