RENWL

Eugene Hedlund, grassroots organizer and founder of Truthandhope.org. Flower power child, total anarchist, a real troublemaker and STRAIGHT as a board. We love this guy!

Hot off the press: Truthandhope.org, a political action committee (PAC) organization, launched its own 2010 campaign base—a Web site Voices4Equality.org with a social hub called MYV4E.org for marriage equality 2010 according this Daily Kos post. In speaking with RENWL this afternoon (cause you know we jumped all over this like white on rice), Truthandhope.org’s founder Eugene Hedlund, says the new site is a place for social as well as strategy information. He emphasizes that he created the site so all voices could be heard, and people could have the ability to interact with their geographic groups, share ideas, best practices, and maybe have some fun too. The site features perks like like personal goals, forums, blogs, etc. Hedlund says it’s modeled after mybarackobama.com

While Hedlund insists that the site will be complimentary to the already existing 2010 campaign (RE 2010), we’re still trying to figure out how the 2010 camp is digesting this new campaign “partner.” He’d contacted Love Honor Cherish’s John Henning earlier today (Henning’s now the newly anointed Don of the RE 2010 campaign—we’ll get to that in a minute) to inform him that the site would be going live. But so far according to Hedlund, no response. Hedlund also stated that while he’d like the relationship between his effort and the 2010 camp to be fluid, he said his site won’t be used as a datamine for another org.

RENWL translation: RE 2010 still has to hustle its own love.

Back to Hedlund:

“This is a home for those who want to do more than or other than just sig gathering,” says Hedlund. “And we have an eye to the long term both through messaging like our video and doing real outreach with a sense of humility.”

This vid is his latest 2010 campaign messaging effort.

We should also add that Hedlund is already contracted to RE 2010 to create campaign media. However, Hedlund told us he’s only been working with RE 2010 for the last 45 days but they wouldn’t let him touch a thing (what a shame). This new effort is completely separate says Hedlund, and not in violation of his existing agreement with the 2010 camp, he emphasized.

Okay kids, now on to the dirt: Clearly Hedlund wasn’t happy with the way things have been run with 2010. And from what we’ve gathered John Patterson, co-creator of the Davis Plan— the organizational structure that was created originally to help empower activists to work locally and regionally to assist in helping to accomplish gathering the 1 million sigs—-hasn’t been a happy camper either (here’s a pdf of the Davis Plan) .  The exclusive emphasis on signature gathering and nothing else by RE 20120 has more then stepped on a few toes is our feedback. Let’s couple that with the fact that as of last Sunday night the campaign’s State Advisory Panel (SAP), voted Henning in as Executive Committee chairman aka King Lord God of the entire campaign. That’s right. LHC’s John Henning is now calling all the shots. Which means of course LHC is now calling all the shots.  So now the campaign is pretty much a “from-the-top-down” scenario. Now exactly, what was the Davis Plan created to achieve again?

This may have been the reason why Hedlund felt it necessary to create his own thing—okay let’s not tiptoe here—-IT WAS THE REASON HEDLUND CREATED HIS OWN THING. Well at least something that Henning and company couldn’t control.  So we see Hedlund’s actions as a straight up “eeff you” move if there ever was one. We love it. And we’re pretty confident LHC is not at all pleased with Hedlund’s actions since they’ve been drumrolling for some time now that they’re in the process of creating a social media like hub for 2010rs. And well, they’re pretty much a from-the-top-down kinda’ crew. That whole Davis Plan business was just a ruse as far as we were concerned from day one.

We will say this much and if its read as an endorsement well then okay:  Hedlund’s new site is the bomb. You should also check the videos he’s created for previous campaigns. The way we see things if there’s gonna be yet another white male voice added to the mix—-might as well be one that makes the other white males cringe.  And besides, this guys the real deal. He’s worked on other campaigns including Obama’s and Howard Dean.

With the Obama campaign he made a series of videos interviewing folks in Missouri, Nevada and Ohio and some projects in Colorado, Michigan, North Carolina and Florida. Called the Local Voices projects the vids feature ordinary folks from all walks of life giving their reasons for supporting Obama. The campaign won some awards.  We think It’s some of the most moving stuff we’ve ever seen. Cause it’s for real comin’ from for real people. Hedlund has a gift for creating powerful and emotional cinematic scenarios to drive home a particular point as it relates to a political campaign or message. He’s so good at it we find it laughable that the likes of Courage Campaign and  Deathstar EQCA did not latch onto this guy long ago. Both orgs in their clearly misguided messaging attempts—aim at gay people—-about gay people—telling gay people—why gay people should be permitted to be married.

Gay people rave unanimously over the videos from both orgs is our experience. Problem is—gay people already want gay people to get married.

Hedlund so far seems like the only person in this campaign (well besides ourselves) who gets that the messaging should be aimed at straight voters for straight voters with stories about straight voters telling why gay people should get married. Seems like a simple and glaringly obvious equation to us. And apparently for Hedlund as well. Maybe it’s because he’s straight. We don’t know. We’re not straight. Not that folks hadn’t already guessed that.  But anyway he’s good. And if Henning and crew have a lick of sense, they’d do well to not give this guy any hassles about this new thing he’s created. Share the love guys. No one in the entire marriage equality campaign—including last year’s disastrous No On 8, has had a clue as to how to reach voters through messaging in the way this guy does is our thought. RE 2010 should be grateful for his presence.

To check out more of his work go to Truthandhope.org. And then after that go check out Voices4Equality.org. You have sign up to get on the site. We know, annoying. But it’s worth it if you support the cause.

By the way, there’s more RE 2010 news to come. We feel nice dissecting of the most recent events with the 2010 campaign is much needed. Especially with this new 5-person Executive Committee (oh we didn’t mention that did we?) presided over by his new lordship LHC’s John Henning. So stay tuned!

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