Welcome to ournoblecause.com, a site launched in 2005 by me, singer and songwriter Johnny Schaefer.  In a constantly changing world with new challenges and issues springing up all the time, there are many just and worthy causes to dedicate our time and energy to.  I felt compelled to respond to the invasion of Iraq with a song inspired by grieving mother turned activist Cindy Sheehan with a song titled What Noble Cause.  The November 4, 2008 election ushered in new hope with the election of Barrack Obama, but was clouded by the stripping away of civil rights for millions of gay and lesbian citizens through passage of Proposition 8 in California and similar measures in other states, including Arkansas where gay and lesbian couples are now prevented from adopting children.  Many children who would otherwise have ended up in loving homes will now be deprived of that opportunity.  For Californians, this marks the first time in history that discrimination was written into the state constitution, creating second-class citizenship for its gay and lesbian residents. 

The original website with the candlelight vigil and song will stay in place until our soldiers have come home.  I offer this new song to you and you can now download each for free.  The message is the important thing, so please pass it on to whomever you feel moved to share it with.  Nothing would make me happier.  For those who feel so moved to help defray the cost of the project, I do have a Pay Pal account set for donations.  Twenty percent of proceeds from donations will be forwarded to those who are heading up the court battle to overturn prop 8.  While it is much appreciated, it is certainly not necessary. 

The beginning of the video for the song It’s About Love features a quote from Abraham Lincoln: “To stand in silence when they should be protesting makes cowards out of men.”  Many of us were caught off-guard by the passage of this unjust legislation and searched for a way to express our anger, grief, frustration and pain-but also to do something about it.  The outcry in nearly a hundred cities throughout America in formal protests was a start.  We feel we have no choice.  For me, this project is my contribution to the cause, a noble one indeed.