As I mentioned the other day on Twitter, Megan and I are getting married.  I’m delighted, she’s delighted, apparently many of you are delighted (as you should be), and so I’m going to prey on your cheery goodwill for a moment.

This week, instead of talking to me about flowers and places to have the reception (don’t worry, we can talk about those things later), I want you to come up to me when you see me on Thursday or Friday and tell me you want to add your signature to the letter I’m pasting in below.  If you’re not someone who sees me, you can mail this in yourself.  (the instructions are here)

I want to remind you that it’s not just marriage that is at issue here. The military has kicked out 58 Arab linguists for being GLBT (because we totally don’t need them right now, do we?), discrimination is still legal in a variety of states, and the opposition works tirelessly to ensure that we have second-class citizen status.

The letter you will be signing is below.

January 21, 2009

Dear President Obama,

Congratulations on your historic and inspiring victory. Your lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender citizens, along with families, friends, and heterosexual allies, would like to welcome you to the White House. We are thrilled to see that true change has come to this country.

During your election campaign you wrote an open letter to us, making it clear that you were committed to gaining ‘full equality for the millions of LGBT people in this country.’ In that letter you asked for our vote and promised to:

• Repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and ensure that states treat same-sex couples with full equality in their family and adoption laws
• Enact a fully inclusive Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) to outlaw workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity
• Repeal ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
• Enact the Matthew Shepard Act to outlaw hate crimes against our community
• Confront the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the stigma surrounding it
• Amend the Uniting American Families Act to afford same-sex couples the same rights and obligations as married couples in our immigration system

We come to you as esteemed citizens of the United States of America in need of equal protections under the law for all families. The LGBT community is part of this diverse country, but do not share the same rights as their heterosexual brothers and sisters. In the spirit of family, respect, and of course, hope, we will work with you to make these promises become a reality.

We paid attention to the statements you made during your campaign, and we voted for you. Now, as you take office, we ask something in return. Please keep your promises to the LGBT community and provide the leadership needed to achieve true equality for all Americans.

Sincerely,
Your Fellow Americans