Facebook partners with Australian Marriage Equality for rainbow frame campaign
Facebook has given a boost to Australia's same-sex marriage 'yes' campaign through a partnership with the Australian Mariage Equality (AME) organisation which will allow users to show their support by overlaying a rainbow banner on to their profile picture.
The campaign marks the first time Facebook has offered up its 'frame' feature for a political or social cause to the country's 14 million users.
The overlays are currently undergoing beta testing and will be available to users from Tuesday 2 March to coincide with the LGBT Mardi Gras festival which launches in Syndey on the same day.
In a Facebook post the AME said it had been working with Facebook to make sure that "marriage equality is front and centre" of the event this year.
The move comes amid onging public debate in Australia around same-sex marriage and LGBT issues and follows on from a leaked pamphlet obtained by Fairfax Media which had been funded by former Australian MP Chris Miles. The leaflet spoke out against gay marriage and suggested that gay and lesbian parents were more prone to "abuse and neglect" and more likely to be unemployed, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
Last June, Facebook helped users celebrate the legalisation of same-sex marriage in the US with a rainbow filter designed to replicate the colours of the Pride flag. 26 million users adoped the overlay to show their support.