Subject: HRC Unveils OutVote 96, Its First Political Convention
From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 5 Mar 1996 18:24:11 -0500

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NEWS from the
Human Rights Campaign

1101 14th Street NW
Washington, DC 20005
email:  [email-masked]
WWW:    http://www.hrcusa.org
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, March 4, 1996

                                    HRC UNVEILS OUTVOTE  96, 
                             ITS FIRST POLITICAL CONVENTION

                         Also Launches Youth Campaign College 
                         to Train Tomorrow's Movement Leaders

                                 FOR MORE INFORMATION 
               GO TO OUR WEBSITE AT http://www.hrcusa.org

Washington -- As part of its drive to make a difference in federal, state and
local elections in 1996, the Human Rights Campaign will hold its first
national political convention -- OutVote  96 -- and its first Youth College
for Campaign Training to equip young activists to work in political campaigns
this fall.
     "OutVote  96 promises to pull together major political figures, the best
campaign experts in the business and HRC professionals to motivate and train
HRC members," said Elizabeth Birch, HRC's executive director. "The goals
include helping to elect a Congress supportive of lesbian and
gay equal rights; re-electing the first president in history who has endorsed
a lesbian or gay civil rights bill; and defeating anti-gay ballot
initiatives."
     About 1,000 of HRC's staunchest supporters are expected to attend the
convention, from Aug. 16-18 in Chicago. They will learn essential campaign
skills, become educated about HRC's slate of candidates and get prepared to
return home and make a difference in local, state and national elections. HRC
chose Chicago because it is the heartland of America, located in  a must-win
state for the presidential election. 
     During the week leading up to OutVote  96, the Youth College will train
26 young people to provide a boost to campaigns across the country and work
for the defeat of anti-gay initiatives and the election of a fair-minded
Congress. "After the elections, these young leaders will continue to
provide vision and energy in the fight for lesbian, gay and bisexual equal
rights for years to come," Birch said.
     The Youth College, also in Chicago, will include six days of intensive
workshops, teaching the essentials of winning campaigns. From Aug. 13-18,
participants will learn about campaign management, fund-raising, media use
and get-out-the-vote skills. The week ends with Youth College
members participating in OutVote  96.
     OutVote  96 offers a weekend packed with skills-building workshops to
teach voter registration and get-out-the-vote techniques, including
 phonebanking, literature drops, canvassing and visibility. Media and
fund-raising training will also be a focus.  Discussions will center around
how to talk about lesbian and gay issues using the most up-to-date polling
data in order to get fair-minded Americans to register and vote. HRC's
political staff will be on hand to outline the important issues in races
across the nation.  
     "This is a critical election year, and HRC has set forth an aggressive
strategy to accomplish ambitious goals for the health and safety of all
Americans after the  96 elections," Birch said.
     The top priorities of the plan include:   Re-electing President Clinton;
Electing  a Congress supportive of equal rights for lesbian and gay people;
Defeating statewide anti-gay ballot initiatives; and Embarking on
groundbreaking partnerships with state and local organizations with strategic
and targeted goals for victory on the state, local and national levels.
     "In the 1990 election, the focus of our community was to defeat Jesse
Helms," Birch said.  "In 1992, our priority was to elect Bill Clinton. In
1994, lesbian and gay Americans across the country helped to defeat anti-gay
ballot initiatives in Oregon and Idaho.  Now, in 1996, it is necessary for us
to do all three. "
     The Human Rights Campaign is the largest national lesbian and gay
political organization, with members throughout the country. It effectively
lobbies Congress, provides campaign support and educates the public to ensure
that lesbian and gay Americans can be open, honest and safe at
home, at work and in the community.

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