Excerpted from IALD Reflections, the newsletter of the IALD:
Thank you, all of you, who took the time to weigh in on this issue. Your efforts, and those of our colleagues in the entertainment lighting industry, and members of the ALA, ESTA, IES and many other organizations, have paid off. I am pleased that we were able to mobilize so quickly and in such concentrated fashion. This effort demonstrates very clearly the power of a collective voice.
Now that Senator Averitt has agreed to remove the language from the bill, we need to send heartfelt and sincere thanks to those Texas legislators who received our vociferous protests. May I impose upon each of you to craft an appropriate message and send it on behalf of yourself or your company? It will go a long way toward helping ease future relations with the Texas decision-makers when we go back to the table and continue our discussions with them.
No one thinks this is over yet; far from it. This portion of the saga has been concluded in our favor, and that’s a big victory because the situation would have been very different, and very difficult, had things gone the other way. We should not belittle or downplay the effort that it took to achieve this “stay of execution” because it took hundreds of people and significant coordination among IALD, the ALA, ESTA and other organizations to put their collective influence, and that of their members, into play. What was accomplished here has never before been attempted or accomplished by the IALD.
It is correct for us to “celebrate the moment” just as it is correct for us to be working with Senator Averitt and the other Texas legislators to participate in the work that will happen after this. Which we are; those conversations have already begun. We will of course keep the membership informed.
Congratulations to all of you for a truly significant achievement.
