Light Up the Night

Be the Light in the Night

November’s election cast a wintry darkness over the lives of gays and lesbians throughout California. But light will cast out darkness, and we can be that light. Show your candle, show your flame, show yourself. Show the world what shines inside your heart, and light up the night.

The Basics

• What: A candlelight vigil and food drive
• When: Saturday, December 20, 5-7pm
• Where: Meet at the Hollywood United Methodist Church at the corner of Franklin and Highland.  The vigil procession will go down Franklin, turn right on to Hollywood, go past the Hollywood & Highland complex, and loop back around to the church.  We’ll repeat this loop, staying on the sidewalks.
• How: This will be a peaceful vigil in the spirit of the holidays.
• Bring: A t-shirt saying “Second Class Citizen (or some variation), a light, and an item for the food drive.

The Details

On Saturday, December 20, from 5-7pm, we’re holding a candlelight vigil in honor of our marriage rights.

This is a nation-wide event, brought to you by the same people who coordinated the November 15 City Hall protests.  This is different, though.  It’s a peaceful event, to show our strength simply through our visibility and resolve.

• We’ll assemble at the Hollywood United Methodist Church (an ally at in the fight against Prop 8 ) at Franklin and Highland between 4:30 and 5.  This will be our home base before, during, and after the vigil.
• Bring an item for the food drive.  Yes!  There’s a food drive!  More below.
• Bring a battery-operated candle (to avoid spilling wax on each other). You can pick these up at Target, Rite-Aid, CVS, Dollar stores, and similar venues.
• It’ll be too cold for t-shirts, so we’ll have bumper stickers to plaster across your chest. You can get a preprinted one for a small, voluntary donation, or you can write your own.
• This will be a peaceful demonstration in the spirit of the holidays.  We will stay silent unless asked a question. We won’t yell, instigate, or carry signs; we’ll let our shirts do the talking and our candles pay our respects.

Volunteers

We need volunteers the day of the event to pull this off. Two volunteer training meetings are scheduled; you can come to either one.

Volunteer Training Session #1
Thursday, December 18 – 7:30 pm
AOO Marketing
6309 La Mirada
Los Angeles, CA 90038
(1 block south of Fountain, near Vine St. in Hollywood )

Volunteer Training Session #2
Saturday, December 20 – 3:30 pm
Parking lot of the Hollywood United Methodist Church northwest corner of Franklin and Highlands (But please park elsewhere as we’re trying to reserve the lot for the food drive and a large gathering of people – 4 hours for $2 at Hollywood & Highland with easy validation available)

A Food Drive?

We’re collecting food to give to a faith-based charity food bank.  It will be distributed through the United Methodist Church, which passed a resolution against Prop 8, though with some internal resistance.  The food will go to a variety of churches, mostly in South Los Angeles.

There are so many reasons for this food drive. The help it will offer, the moral weight of it, the good publicity, and simple strategy of building allies—all these things make the food drive an integral part of the event.  Here are some suggestions of what to bring:

Packaged Items
Instant Mashed Potatoes
Packaged Stuffing
Jello Pudding
Cake Mixes
Cereal
Rice
Dried Beans
Macaroni Pasta
Instant Cocoa
Tea
Coffee
Juice

Hygiene Items
Soap
Shampoo
Toothpaste
Feminine Hygiene Products
Disposable Razors
Diapers
Handiwipes
Detergent
Deodorant

Canned Items
Yams
Pumpkin Pie Filling

Cranberry Sauce
Corn
Beans
Applesauce
Gravy or Meat Broth
Soups or Stews
Fruit
Canned Milk
Tuna
Peanut Butter
Condiments

You can also donate all week long at the Crescent Heights United Methodist Church in West Hollywood every day from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM up to and through December 20th. CHUMC is located at the corner of Fountain and Fairfax.

Thanks to http://8accountability.ning.com for the food drive suggestions.