Freedom

This week has turned out to be quite the watershed moment for Nevada. After years of seeing the state government fight equality, its leaders are starting to signal that the fight is finally starting to come to an end. When Governor Brian Sandoval (R) and Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto (D) announced their decision to drop their legal defense of marriage discrimination in the Sevcik v. Sandoval suit, we couldn't help but see it as a critical turning point in this story.

Yet even with that occurring, the fight is not quite over just yet. We were also reminded of that this week when a host of G-O-TEA politicians decided to follow Richard Ziser's lead (instead of Governor Sandoval's) and continue fighting against equality.

With all of this taken into consideration, there isn't a better time than now for Freedom Nevada to launch. While the Sevcik suit is working its way up the federal judiciary chain, there's still the matter of SJR 13. Even though it passed the Legislature last year, it must pass there again next year before it can reach voters in 2016.

This is why now is the perfect time for Freedom Nevada and other marriage equality advocates to spring into action this year. In order for SJR 13 to pass the Legislature next year, voters must elect a pro-equality majority to send to Carson City this year. And even should the Sevcik plaintiffs prevail in court in the mean time, it always helps to build a pro-equality majority to cement in place those legal victories.

We're closer now than ever before to securing the freedom to marry in Nevada. But even now, a final push is needed to make it happen. The past decade plus of fights haven't been easy and occasionally offered painful setbacks, but now is the time to finish the job. Freedom is almost here.