Equality Virginia announced on Monday that its Annual Commonwealth Dinner, to be held on April 18 in Richmond, will be dedicated this year to celebrating the freedom to marry in the commonwealth. Today, 37 states and Washington D.C. have the freedom to marry, but just five months ago, on October 6, 2014, Virginia became the first southern state to gain the freedom to marry.
“This is the time to recognize the work that so many Virginians have put into this fight for decades, some of whom never got to see this day,” said James Parrish, executive director of Equality Virginia. “We will honor everybody’s hard work and celebrate this important time in history by throwing one big wedding reception for Virginia.”
Joining Equality Virginia to commemorate this important time in history will be over 1,000 supporters of Virginia’s LGBT community, the plaintiff couples in the cases that challenged Virginia’s ban on marriage, and political allies that helped make the freedom to marry in the commonwealth a reality.
“From Attorney General Herring’s historic decision to side with the plaintiffs, to Judge Arenda Wright Allen’s ruling – the day before Valentine’s Day – finding the marriage ban unconstitutional, to the rallies that hundreds of Virginians participated in, this journey has been phenomenal,” said Parrish. “Virginia is ready to celebrate!”
The Commonwealth Dinner is Virginia’s largest black-tie gathering for the LGBT community and its supporters, and is Equality Virginia’s largest annual fundraiser. To learn more about this event, click here: www.equalityvirginia.org/dinner
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AFP
