Project 515 will hold the “515 Awards” on Monday to honor the organization’s legacy and celebrate a mission completed.
Project 515 was founded in 2006 to spotlight the inequalities that existed in Minnesota’s marriage laws for same-sex couples. There were 515 different laws that discriminated against same-sex couples, everything from survivor benefits and hospital visitation to joint fishing and hunting licenses. Those inequalities were eliminated when the DFL-majority legislature passed marriage equality in 2013 and Gov. Dayton signed it into law.
The organization played a huge part in Minnesota’s marriage equality debate especially around education efforts that spotlighted inequalities in the law. That work will be honored at the 515 Awards which will be the “final public event as an organization,” Project 515 interim executive director Jake Blumberg told TheColu.mn.
Specifics on the wind-down of the organization will be announced next week, he said.
The 515 Awards will feature a display created by the Minnesota Historical Society featuring the accomplishments, campaign memorabilia, and Project 515 materials that went into the organization’s 8 year history.
The 515 Awards will also honor three members of the community who have made a lasting impact on the organization’s mission. Those awards include the 515 Legacy Business Leader Award, the Karen Clark and Scott Dibble Courageous Leader Award, and the 515 History Maker Award. Award winners have not been made public, and will be announced at Monday night’s event.
Tickets are on sale through Friday night at $25 a piece. Blumberg said that tickets are selling out quickly and the event is “approaching capacity.” The event is sponsored by Target, as well as General Mills and St. Jude Medical.
[sws_blue_box box_size=”100″] Details
Date: Monday, May 12 at 5:30pm
Location: Minnesota History Center, 345 W. Kellogg Blvd., Saint Paul, Minnesota 55102
Admission: $25. Tickets available through Brown Paper Tickets
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