Michael Crawford

Michael Crawford (Director, Digital and Creative) led Freedom to Marry’'s in-house creative team and directs its award-winning digital program. His work focused on creating innovative digital campaigns to accelerate the growth of public support for marriage, mobilize supporters into an effective movement, and elevate Freedom to Marry’s brand.

Michael led the Freedom to Marry’s shift to a storytelling-centered content strategy and worked with a team of content creators and digital organizers to build an online supporter base of 1.5 million people, produce award-winning video content and revolutionize the national conversation about gay people and marriage. He advised marriage campaigns in Austraila and Ireland on their digital and social media strategies.

Before joining Freedom to Marry, he was a leading strategist for the successful campaign to win freedom to marry in Washington, D.C. with a focus on public education, community outreach, and communications strategy.

Michael served as Associate Field Director at Human Rights Campaign where he specialized in developing field and legislative strategies to advance pro-LGBT legislation at the state and federal levels and building support for endorsed candidates. As Communications Director at Energy Action Coalition, a coalition of youth and student organizations building a clean energy movement, Michael developed media strategies to tell the stories of young people against man-made global warming. Michael was an organizer of the 2000 Millennium March on Washington for LGBT Equal Rights, which brought together more than 750,000 advocates for LGBT equality.

He has spoken about building Internet powered social movements at numerous conferences, including Social Media Week NYC, Netroots Nation, National Immigration Integration Conference, Campaign Tech, and the U.S. Conference on AIDS.