NOH8 Campaign to host human rights open photo shoot

Mark Feuerborn

The NOH8 Campaign for Equal Human Rights is hosting an open photo shoot at the Equality House on Tuesday March 10, from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. The photo shoot is a fundraiser event to help raise money for the organization, which seeks to promote marriage, gender and human equality through a variety of mediums, including photo shoots like this one.

At last count, over one thousand people have signed up via Facebook to attend the event. The event seems amply timed in light of Gov. Sam Brownback’s recent bill that rescinded a state protection policy for LGBT workers against discrimination.

The NOH8 Campaign is a national campaign that was started in 2008 by photographer Adam Bouska and Jeff Parshley. The campaign was originally started in protest of the passage of Proposition 8, a California state constitutional amendment that provided that marriage would only be recognized between a man and a woman. Proposition 8 was ruled unconstitutional in 2013, but the NOH8 campaign is continuing to be a spearhead for equal human rights.

The location of the photo shoot will be the Equality House, located across the street from Westboro Baptist Church.  The Equality House is a product of the Planting Peace nonprofit organization, and will be catering to the NOH8 Campaign during their Topeka visit.

Options for the photo shoot will include solo shots, which cost forty dollars, and more affordable group and couple shots, which cost twenty-five dollars per person. The event will be run by Bouska, who will take five to ten shots of each person, then pick one to edit before releasing it to the public.

Topekans choosing to be models for the shoot are advised to wear a white T-shirt. Included in the photo shoot are staples of the NOH8 campaign, such as duct tape being placed over the mouth of the person being photographed and a NOH8 temporary tattoo being placed on the person’s face.

The money raised by the event will go toward efforts to raise awareness for marriage, gender and human equality, along with promoting anti-discrimination. The money will also go toward bringing the campaign to other cities following its stay in Topeka.

Those interested in volunteering at the event should contact [email protected].