Diane and Marge live in Spokane, Washington in a home with two dogs and a lovely garden. They have been together for thirty years and raised two children together. When their son was five, he fell off his bike and injured his hand. Marge rushed him to the hospital, but because he was Diane’s biological son and they lacked legal recognition of their partnership, the doctors refused to treat him until Diane could get off work.

Kari and Julia live in a suburb of Yakima in the center of Washington’s apple country. Kari is a school nutritionist and Julia is a family physician and they love living in a community where they know half the people they see at Safeway. As a physician, Julia has seen patients who have been unable to be with their loved ones in times of crisis, and so she is grateful that their domestic partnership will ensure that Kari can be with her in the case of a medical emergency.

Janet and Cindy live in Richland in the Tri Cities area of Washington where Cindy works for the Hanford Site and Janet is a minister at River of Life MCC. They have seven kids, six of whom they adopted from foster care. Janet and Cindy love raising a large family, and when they need an extra pair of hands, Cindy’s mother, who lives next door, comes over to help out.

Jen and Heidi live in North Seattle with their two kids, Max and Maggie. Heidi teaches high school English and Jen is a firefighter in the Seattle Fire Department. Vote to Approve Referendum 71 to ensure that if something happens to Jen at work, Heidi and their kids will have access to Jen's firefighter’s pension and death benefits.

Cathlin and Avril live in Clarkston, Washington, a small community across the Snake River from Lewiston, Idaho. Cathlin was recently diagnosed with cancer, and so now between their kids’ dance lessons and soccer games they squeeze in weekly trips to Spokane for chemo treatments. Cathlin’s family does not support her relationship with Avril and the couple are relying on their domestic partnership to ensure that their relationship is respected.

Everybody knows the media is important. It may be the most effective way of getting the attention of the board you are working on and the public. And whether you want attention or not, the way you come across if the media does cover your story may be the most important factor in whether you succeed.

•  Template for legislative testimony 107.21 Kb - letters to legislators, position papers, etc. on proposed state legislation

These resources will come in handy when countering opposition arguments that, while seemingly based on fact, are actually easily disproven by the available evidence.

If you’re going to persuade people to support the idea of relationship recognition for same-sex couples, you’ll need to deliver consistent messages and avoid reinforcing those of our opponents. Talking points are important tools to keep your campaign focused.  They should be short (no more than a few sentences) and straightforward.  You can distribute general talking points to anyone involved in your campaign who may be called upon to speak to media or at events. They can be affirmative messages you have decided are the most important messages to get across to the public, or reactive messages to respond to tough questions or criticism from your opponents.  Every set of talking points is different, varying by messengers and audiences, but here are some basic recommended guidelines.

The opinion section is one of the most widely read parts of any newspaper or magazine, and with the advent of blogs, and the general proliferation of individualized, opinion-based content on the internet, an opinion piece can spark a conversation that goes far beyond the printed page.  It’s as important as ever to use opinion pieces (op-eds and letters-to-the-editor) to your advantage.  There’s no one model to follow, but there are certain things you should consider before submitting an op-ed or letter-to-the-editor: