Today is the final day of #5DaysofEquality, a time to celebrate the anniversaries of 31 Australian same-sex couples who were married one year ago during a brief period from December 7 – 12, before their marriages were revoked. GLAAD has been encouraging our followers to share messages of support for these couples on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Vine, using the hashtag #5DaysOfEquality.
In honor of the couple's paper anniversaries, thousands of the most moving messages will be transcribed into letter-pressed cards and sent to the couples. Smudge Ink has kindly created custom cards and donated them in support of #5DaysofEquality. In a statement to GLAAD, Smudge Ink said:
Smudge Ink is proud to announce our involvement in GLAAD’s 5 Days of Equality, a global campaign for marriage equality. Calling Massachusetts home, the first U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage, we were moved by the stories of 31 couples in Australia whose marriages were nullified by the government only five days after getting married. These marriages happened during the brief window of December 7-12, 2013, and one year later, we stand with others around the world to recognize and celebrate their first anniversary (traditionally the paper anniversary!).
Inspired by this remarkable initiative, we designed a collection of anniversary cards commemorating the couples' unions. Smudge Ink has donated 6,000 cards in which your messages of love and support will be written and sent to the couples. On December 17th, GLAAD will hold a public celebration where the couples will open and read their cards.
Between December 7-12, we invite you to support marriage equality and send anniversary messages to the couples by posting a message on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Vine, using the hashtag #5DaysOfEquality.
Joel Player and his partner Allen were the first same-sex couple to legally marry during the 5 days it was possible in Australia. Joel said:
"It's about celebrating the love we have for each other. I get a bit teary about it. Love is love and love will win."
#5DaysOfEquality is a part of the GLAAD Global Voices program, which aims to build support for LGBT equality across the globe by sharing culture-changing stories of LGBT people and families in American and international media.
