Amy Balliett
Encyclopedia
Amy Balliett is a gay activist living in Seattle, Washington
and is responsible for starting the Join the Impact
organization in response to the passage of Proposition 8
in California during the 2008 US elections.
Join the Impact
has organized the National Day of Protest on November 15, 2008. The protest took place in over 400 cities in every state in the country and in ten countries around the world. The protest was attended by an estimated one million people worldwide.
Join the Impact
also helped organize Day Without a Gay on December 10, 2008. The event encouraged same sex marriage supporters to call in to work "gay" and do community service in their communities. Also many participated in an economic boycott that day by not spending any money. On December 20, 2008 Join the Impact organized Light Up The Night For Equality and the National LGBT Food Drive for Equality in cities across the country. Candlelight vigils were held in commercial centers and shopping malls in remembrance of the 18,000 same sex marriages performed in California between June and November 2008. An estimated one million people were educated about five rights not afforded to one in ten citizens simply because they are gay. The event garnered national attention, even the attention of the Fred Phelps clan of GodHatesFags.com, who held a counter protest at the Light Up the Night for Equality vigil in Chicago, IL. The event had pre and post event promotion from Equality California,The Human Rights Campaign, Courage Campaign, Marriage Equality USA MEUSA, LOGO,365Gay.com,LezGetReal, and many other groups.
Events in 2009 that are planned include a National DOMA
Protest on January 10, 2009. The protest plans to gather one million signatures on a letter to President-Elect Barack Obama about his promises to the LGBT community. The signatures and letters are planned to be delivered to President Obama by Amy Balliett and
Join the Impact
on January 21, 2009.
In 2002 as an undergraduate of Wright State University
in Dayton, Ohio
, Balliett was involved in the student LGBT
group where she served as a key leader in organizing on-campus events.
Balliett is included on a list of out influential people in The Advocate
's "Forty under 40" issue of June/July 2009.
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
and is responsible for starting the Join the Impact
Join the Impact
Join the Impact is an American LGBT political movement in support of gay rights which rapidly developed a national coalition after the passage of Proposition 8 in California. The website for the group was established November, 7th, 2008 after founders Amy Balliett and Willow Witte decided to...
organization in response to the passage of Proposition 8
California Proposition 8 (2008)
Proposition 8 was a ballot proposition and constitutional amendment passed in the November 2008 state elections...
in California during the 2008 US elections.
Join the Impact
Join the Impact
Join the Impact is an American LGBT political movement in support of gay rights which rapidly developed a national coalition after the passage of Proposition 8 in California. The website for the group was established November, 7th, 2008 after founders Amy Balliett and Willow Witte decided to...
has organized the National Day of Protest on November 15, 2008. The protest took place in over 400 cities in every state in the country and in ten countries around the world. The protest was attended by an estimated one million people worldwide.
Join the Impact
Join the Impact
Join the Impact is an American LGBT political movement in support of gay rights which rapidly developed a national coalition after the passage of Proposition 8 in California. The website for the group was established November, 7th, 2008 after founders Amy Balliett and Willow Witte decided to...
also helped organize Day Without a Gay on December 10, 2008. The event encouraged same sex marriage supporters to call in to work "gay" and do community service in their communities. Also many participated in an economic boycott that day by not spending any money. On December 20, 2008 Join the Impact organized Light Up The Night For Equality and the National LGBT Food Drive for Equality in cities across the country. Candlelight vigils were held in commercial centers and shopping malls in remembrance of the 18,000 same sex marriages performed in California between June and November 2008. An estimated one million people were educated about five rights not afforded to one in ten citizens simply because they are gay. The event garnered national attention, even the attention of the Fred Phelps clan of GodHatesFags.com, who held a counter protest at the Light Up the Night for Equality vigil in Chicago, IL. The event had pre and post event promotion from Equality California,The Human Rights Campaign, Courage Campaign, Marriage Equality USA MEUSA, LOGO,365Gay.com,LezGetReal, and many other groups.
Events in 2009 that are planned include a National DOMA
Defense of Marriage Act
The Defense of Marriage Act is a United States federal law whereby the federal government defines marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman. Under the law, no U.S. state may be required to recognize as a marriage a same-sex relationship considered a marriage in another state...
Protest on January 10, 2009. The protest plans to gather one million signatures on a letter to President-Elect Barack Obama about his promises to the LGBT community. The signatures and letters are planned to be delivered to President Obama by Amy Balliett and
Join the Impact
Join the Impact
Join the Impact is an American LGBT political movement in support of gay rights which rapidly developed a national coalition after the passage of Proposition 8 in California. The website for the group was established November, 7th, 2008 after founders Amy Balliett and Willow Witte decided to...
on January 21, 2009.
In 2002 as an undergraduate of Wright State University
Wright State University
Wright State University is a comprehensive public university with strong doctoral, research, and undergraduate programs, rated among the 260 Best National Universities listed in the annual "America's Best Colleges" rankings by U.S. News and World Report. Wright State is located in Fairborn, Ohio,...
in Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
, Balliett was involved in the student LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
group where she served as a key leader in organizing on-campus events.
Balliett is included on a list of out influential people in The Advocate
The Advocate
The Advocate is an American LGBT-interest magazine, printed monthly and available by subscription. The Advocate brand also includes a web site. Both magazine and web site have an editorial focus on news, politics, opinion, and arts and entertainment of interest to LGBT people...
's "Forty under 40" issue of June/July 2009.