WOUB’s Tom Hudson talked to Ohio University alum Ian James ’89, who earned a B.A. in Political Science from the Ohio University College of Arts & Sciences in 1989, in All Things Being Equal. James has been named by Ohio Magazine as one of the “brightest political strategists” in Ohio.
Ian James ’89
James is CEO of the Strategy Network and co-founder and sponsor of Freedom to Marry-Ohio, an effort to get the Freedom to Marry and Religious Freedom Amendment on the Ohio ballot.
“The Strategy Network’s team of professionals know what it takes to change public policy, win elections and motivate people to do things that they may initially believe are impossible. We realize that the public arena is difficult, and navigating process can be challenging. Our team will work day and night to accomplish your goals and will do so professionally, cost effectively. We enjoy hard work and getting our hands dirty for clients, because we believe that we win with our clients,” according to its website.
Freedom Ohio is moving to put a gay, same-sex marriage amendment on the Ohio ballot in 2014. The Freedom Ohio Executive Committee “hired me and my firm to help them structure the campaign in a way that was going to be able to win majority voter support,” James told Hudson, noting that 2014 gives them “time to have more conversations with voters….We’ve had great conversations about why marriage matters and explaining to all who will listen and want to have that kind of conversation that marriage ultimately is about family security. It’s about civil rights, and in this amendment, it’s about religious freedom and making sure that a house of worship has the right to perform or recognize marriages … that they agree with and fit in their beliefs and faith.” James was married in 2003 to Stephen Letourneau-James, co-founder of FreedomOhio, in Toronto, Canada. “The sad thing is our friends and family recognize our marriage, but our government cannot and will not,” he said.
Listen to the entire conversation about the political strategy behind the amendment effort.
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