2009 Love is Equal Dinners

All photos credit of Mark A. Lee. For more of his work check out his website.

Valentine’s Day weekend 2009 held more than just your typical roses and cheap chocolates—the weekend was the setting for Indiana Equality’s Annual “Love is Equal” Dinners. Every year former City County Councilor Scott Keller invites IE and its guests to dine at the historic Hill Place.

Republican, Democrat, conservative, and liberal alike joined Indiana Equality for the annual dinners. Held for four days spanning February 12-15 more than 180 Hoosiers got to take a break from the cold and dine together in a common goal: raising $18,000 to support IE’s HRO Project.

IE’s HRO Project aims to help secure statewide civil rights protections for LGBT Hoosiers, the project focuses on expanding the number of Indiana communities providing LGBT protections via a local human rights ordinance. Project activities will include educational and outreach programs, an enhanced Speakers Bureau, earned media, polling, and community mobilization.

Project collaborators include Midwest Office of Lambda Legal (Lambda Legal), American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana (ACLU-IN), American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees Council 62 (AFSCME), Indiana AFL-CIO (AFL-CIO), state and local LGBT groups, and several other allied organizations.