We were not able to defeat the amendment, and this is very sad and troubling.
So many of us gave everything we had. We pounded the pavements. We emptied our wallets. We forced ourselves to go up to the doors of strangers and ask them how they feel about something many of them had never discussed so openly before.
What I am most proud of is how all of us dared to hope. And we must not lose this hope and we cannot ignore what we have accomplished.
Despite the results I still believe in a fair Wisconsin. I refuse to stop believing.
This debate was forced on us at a time not of our choosing.
We know for certain that many of the same people who voted for this amendment today are the very same people who will support equality for gay families within the next 5 or 10 years.
The change we want to see might not have been on the timeline forced on us by our opponents, but we cannot ignore the fact that we have laid the foundation for long-term change in Wisconsin. Because of our work, more people in this state than
ever before understand that gay families exist and discrimination hurts them.
Our accomplishments are not in vain.
Two and a half years ago, it was unfathomable to most people, including myself, that we could wage a strong fight against the ban.
People said we couldn't raise enough money. But we raised over $5 million from over 12,000 people to help us communicate with the people of this state.
People said we couldn't recruit enough volunteers, but over 10,000 of you exploded that myth from day one.
People said any leader who opposed the amendment would suffer at the polls and those who pushed this agenda would mobilize their base. But they were wrong and yesterday brought a decisive end to the strategy of using gay families as political scapegoats.
We could not get to a majority against the amendment, but this issue helped, not hurt, elected leaders like Gov. Jim Doyle, who stood up against it. And some of the most extreme anti-gay leaders like Assembly Speaker John Gard, state Senator Tom
Reynolds, and state Senator Dave Zien were sent to the unemployment lines.
The state Senate will now be controlled by Democrats, all of whom vocally opposed the amendment. It's clear that Fair Wisconsin's massive get out the vote effort around the state helped defeat anti-gay candidates across.
Thank you to the thousands of gay and lesbian people who did not ask for this fight, who did not want to become poster children. You chose to interrupt your lives so that one-day our children will know a world without discrimination.
You bravely stepped up to put your lives on display.
Thank you to all of you who like me aren't gay but made this issue your own. Thousands of you refused to stand by silently while your friends, families, and citizens we will never meet were attacked with this amendment.
Together, all of us stood shoulder to shoulder--grandmothers, farmers, ministers, teachers, and many, many more of us from all walks of life.
And although we didn't win we ran a historic effort that changed Wisconsin.
In the coming months, Action Wisconsin and Center Advocates, the two groups that formed Fair Wisconsin will be assessing our next steps and getting input from our supporters.
We are fully committed to taking advantage of the progress we've made and the new allies we've gained to our cause.
We are fully committed to a day when LGBT Wisconsinites and their families have fair and equal treatment under the law.
For now, let's take care of one another and remember the many silver linings in yesterday's outcome.
Sincerely,
Mike Tate and the staff of Fair Wisconsin
I can tell you from first hand experience, these guys did a helluva job. I had a canvasser at my door at 9:30 tuesday night to tell me that the polls in my district were being kept open later. They did everything they could without having any structure in place before this amendment was proposed.
I've always thought that equal rights in marriage are an inevitability. Fair Wisconsin's efforts in this election only makes me more certain I'm right.
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