Cover Letter for 2008 D.C. Council Questionnaire

Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance of Washington
P.O. Box 75265
Washington, DC 20013
(202) 667-5139

July 5, 2008

Dear D.C. Council Candidate:

In order to elicit your viewpoints on current issues of concern to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens in the District of Columbia, I am enclosing your copy of our questionnaire for all D.C. Council candidates running in the September 9 primary elections.

We at GLAA are proud to be the nation’s oldest continuously operating gay and lesbian civil rights organization. In every election since our founding in 1971, we have sent out similar questionnaires to help educate our community about the choices facing us at the polls.

GLAA does not endorse candidates in partisan races. Rather, we give numerical ratings to all candidates on a scale from -10 to +10, based upon each candidate’s written responses to our questionnaire, combined with our assessment of each candidate’s past record on behalf of GLBT citizens. Our candidate ratings are released to the media and are advertised and posted to our website and email list.

Please give more than a simple “yes” or “no” response to our questions—though you should begin each with a “yes” or “no” except for the last question (#19) which is purely an essay question. The depth and completeness of your answers play a major role in determining your final rating. We encourage you to consult our enclosed policy paper, Agenda: 2008, which explains our perspectives on a variety of issues.

Please ensure that we receive your answers to our questionnaire no later than Tuesday, August 5. Be sure to read the fine print at the bottom of the second page of your questionnaire for detailed instructions for submitting your answers. Posting your responses to our questions on your campaign website will help demonstrate your commitment to our issues.

Your record is part of your rating. Please feel free to submit any letters to the editor, legislative testimony, campaign literature, or other materials that document your record on behalf of GLBT people.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Barrett L. Brick
President

Enclosures