Emerging Polyamory Activism Organization Thanks Gingrich For Increased Publicity
In the weeks following Newt Gingrich's second wife, Marrianne, going public about the president hopeful's past affair and attempt to broach the possibility of an "open marriage", polyamory and alternatives to monogamy have hit the public spotlight. A new politically-charged polyamory organization responds to this publicity.
- (1888PressRelease) February 07, 2012 - Website traffic for Modern Poly, a polyamory advocacy organization, increased by over 30% in the two weeks following claims by Newt Gingrich's second wife, Marianne, that the presidental hopeful wanted an "open marriage". After this statistic was noted in a recent New York Times article, traffic to Modern Poly's website spiked again by 1100% during the weekend.
On Sunday Mai Li Pittard, Chief Publications Officer for Modern Poly, issued a statement in response to the increased media attention towards open relationships. Her fiery response, now available on the organization's website[2], thanked the presidential candidate for bringing open relationships into the spotlight:
"Let us be clear," wrote Mai Li. "Newt Gingrich: We owe you a great debt of gratitude."
The sudden attention could not have been better timed, as Modern Poly is in the process of filing for 501(c)(4) status.
"There are many places in current law where the legal rights and protections of the non-monogamous community can be improved." noted Chief Business Officer Randy Frehse. "These include, but are not limited to fair divorce and child custody proceedings, workplace equality, and military regulations and service. Modern Poly applied for 501(c)4 status to be in the best position to lobby for the rights of polyamorous families and individuals. "
The addition of political advocacy is a change in direction for this young organization, founded in August 2009.
"We originally focused on community building and changing cultural perception. Our past projects reflect that." stated Chief Technical Officer Jessica Karels in reference to the organization's online magazine[3] and polyamory group directory[4]. "Since joining the Polyamory Leadership Network two years ago, we've seen a lot of emphasis on academics and community development with a few people being media advocates. We need to start pushing for legislative change in addition to cultural acceptance."
The leaders of Modern Poly hope the increased attention will also lead to increases volunteers and donations. The three officers currently do the majority of the organization's work, paying its expenses out-of-pocket.
"If this incident is the catalyst that allows us to get big enough that I can afford to do this more, at least part-time," mused Mai Li, "it would be a dream come true. Not just for me, in doing the work I love, but also for the people who already count on the kind of work we're trying to do."
[1]Open Marriage's New 15 Minutes, Alex Williams, February 3, 2012:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/05/fashion/open-marriages-new-15-minutes.html
[2]Thank You, Newt Gingrich, Mai Li Pittard, February 5, 2012:
http://www.modernpoly.com/article/newt-thank-you-mainstreaming-open-relationship-discussion
[3] Modern Poly website: http://www.modernpoly.com
[4] Polyamory Group Registry: http"//www.polygroups.com
[5] Polyamory Leadership Network website: http://www.polyamoryleadeshipnetwork.org
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