The Marriage Equality Caravan, or Marriage Equality Express, was an educational bus tour organized by the California chapter of

Marriage Equality USA Marriage Equality USA was an organization working for the legal recognition of same-sex marriage in the United States. The group worked by doing public education and outreach, media campaigns and holding visibility events. Marriage Equality, Inc. ...

, in response to the invalidation by the

California Supreme Court The Supreme Court of California is the highest and final court of appeals in the courts of the U.S. state of California. It is headquartered in San Francisco at the Earl Warren Building, but it regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sacra ...

, on August 11, 2004, of 4,000

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...

s that had taken place between February 12 and March 11 of that year. The tour was led by

Davina Kotulski ''Why You Should Give a Damn About Gay Marriage'' is a 2004 book by Davina Kotulski in which the author advocates the legal recognition of same-sex marriage. It received generally positive reviews in the LGBT press. Summary Kotulski states that ...

Molly McKay Molly B. McKay (born September 9, 1970) is an American attorney and a civil rights activist for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals. McKay was the former Co-Executive Director of Marriage Equality California and the former Media Di ...

, Belinda Ryan, Wendy Daw, Jacqueline Frank, and Bev Senkowski.

Tour

On October 4, 2004, 44 activists including Kotulski, McKay, California marriage case plaintiffs Stuart Gaffney and John Lewis, Roland Torres Q TV, Karen Ocamb, Out Word, Mike Kepka and Rona Marech, a photographer and reporter for the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. The pap ...

'', and

Unitarian Universalist Unitarian or Unitarianism may refer to: Christian and Christian-derived theologies A Unitarian is a follower of, or a member of an organisation that follows, any of several theologies referred to as Unitarianism: * Unitarianism (1565–present) ...

ministers Helen Carroll and John Millspaugh,{{Cite web, date=2005-09-12, title=UUs see progress in California gay marriage vote, url=https://www.uuworld.org/articles/uus-see-progress-in-california-gay-marriage-vote, access-date=2021-04-09, website=UU World Magazine, language=en left California and traveled across the country, stopping in 13 states and hosting same-sex marriage forums and panels at universities and churches. The trip culminated in the first national same-sex marriage rally in Washington, DC, on October 11, 2004,

National Coming Out Day National Coming Out Day (NCOD) is an annual LGBT awareness day observed on October 11, to support lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people ( the LGBT community, sometimes also called the queer community) in "coming out of the closet". Fi ...

. The rally featured the Hawaii Marriage Case Plaintiff Genora Dancel;

Beth Robinson Beth Robinson (born March 6, 1965) is an American lawyer and judge from Vermont. She is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and is the first openly lesbian judge to serve on any Circuit Court ...

, attorney in the Vermont Freedom to Marry case; Reverend

Jimmy Creech Jimmy Creech is a former United Methodist Church minister who was defrocked for marrying same-sex couples. He was a founding member of the North Carolina Religious Coalition for Marriage Equality, an interfaith same-sex marriage advocacy group, co ...

, a Methodist minister who was defrocked for marrying same-sex couples and leader of

Soulforce Soulforce is a U.S.-based social justice organization that works to end the religious and political oppression of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI) people. The organization's co-executive directors are Alba Onofr ...

; Dr.

Sylvia Rhue Sylvia Rhue (born 1947) is an African-American writer, filmmaker, producer, and LGBT activist. Early life and education Rhue was born in Pasadena, California in 1947. Her parents, a railroad worker and a secretary, were Canadian immigrants. ...

of the

National Black Justice Coalition The National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) is an American civil rights organization serving primarily Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. Since 2003, NBJC has collaborated with national civil rights groups and LGBT or ...

; Robin Tyler, organizer for LGBT rights marches in Washington, DC, and founder of StopDr.Laura.com; Kathy Kelly of Marriage Equality Georgia; a performance from musicians

Tuck and Patti Tuck & Patti are an American jazz duo consisting of guitarist William Charles "Tuck" Andress (born Oct. 28, 1952 in Tulsa, Oklahoma) and singer Patricia "Patti" Cathcart Andress (born October 4, 1949, in San Francisco). Music career Guitarist Tu ...

; and politicians

Mark Leno Mark Leno (born September 24, 1951) is an American politician who served in the California State Senate until November 2016. A Democrat, he represented the 11th Senate district, which includes San Francisco and portions of San Mateo County. Befo ...

and

Eleanor Holmes Norton Eleanor Holmes Norton (born June 13, 1937) is an American lawyer and politician serving as a delegate to the United States House of Representatives, representing the District of Columbia since 1991. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Ear ...

. Marriage Equality Caravaners also told their stories. ''Time'' and ''Parade'' magazines mentioned the rally when describing same-sex marriage

activism Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fr ...

as one of the top 10 issues of 2004.

References

External links

Marriage Equality Caravan Photo Gallery
SFGate * Radio Netherlands` ''Love Exile on the Road,'' a radio program about the Marriage Equality Express and the story of Americans who had to leave the United States to be with their same-sex foreign partner

* October 6, 2004 "Battle Over Same-Sex Marriage: Tales from the road of gay rights caravan Marriage advocates share their stories as they head to D.C.
BATTLE OVER SAME-SEX MARRIAGE / Tales from the road of gay rights caravan / Marriage advocates share their stories as they head to D.C.
* October 7, 2004 "A Grim Anniversary
BATTLE OVER SAME-SEX MARRIAGE / Gay activists mark a grim anniversary / Brutal 1998 slaying left legacy of pain and hope in Laramie
* October 8, 2004 "Tension Grips Caravan
BATTLE OVER SAME-SEX MARRIAGE / Tension grips gay rights caravan
* October 9, 2004 "Freedom Riders Loaded with Tech
Freedom riders loaded with tech
* October 10, 2004 "Marriage rights caravan gets lots of 'no thanks' from gays along road.
Marriage rights caravan gets lots of 'no thanks' from gays along road
* October 11, 2004 "Canvassing the nation for gay marriage rights: Activists visit hometowns en route to D.C. rally today
BATTLE OVER SAME-SEX MARRIAGE / Canvassing the nation for gay marriage rights / Activists visit home towns en route to D.C. rally today
* October 12, 2004 "Marriage equality caravan joins spirited rally in D.C.: Tired but happy, couples renew vows
Marriage equality caravan joins spirited rally in D.C. / Tired but happy, couples renew vows
Activists from California Same-sex marriage in the United States