Part of the CLAGS After Marriage Conference

The legalization of same-sex marriage may have banned one kind of relationship-based discrimination, but many others are still enshrined in law and practice around the country. How do we build a movement that fights for equal rights for single people, or people in polyamorous relationships, or anyone else outside the “charmed circle” of couple-hood (to borrow a concept from Gayle Rubin)? How can we push for greater acknowledgement of family diversity in all parts of law and society? As we’ve learned from the fight for same-sex marriage, it takes decades of small-scale, local activism before federal-level changes are even imaginable. Around the country, in a variety of ways, many individuals and organizations are already beginning to tackle this thorny issue. In this session we will stage a roundtable discussion of actual, practical steps that can be taken to move the discussion forward on this issue.

To spark the conversation, we have invited a range of activists working on this issue. Each speaker will present for 5-10 minutes about the work they are doing on these issues in their own lives, before we open the discussion up other strategies, ways to bring these strategies back to participants’ home communities, and the pitfalls and practicalities of doing this work.

Presenters include: Sarah Wright, Andy Izenson, Ricci Levy, The Scarborough Family, Martha Ertman, and James Lopata