Nike Kicks Off Marriage Campaign With $280K

Sports apparel giant Nike has announced the formation of a political action committee solely dedicated to establishing marriage equality in Oregon.

Nike Equality PAC was formed with a $180,000 donation from executives and $100,000 from the company itself, The Oregonian reports. The PAC will work in conjunction with Oregon United for Marriage, an arm of the statewide LGBT rights organization Basic Rights Oregon.

"For Oregon businesses to attract and retain the best talent, we need fair and equitable laws that treat all Oregonians equally and prevent discrimination," Nike officials said on the PAC's website.

The PAC site notes that Nike was one of the first companies to extend benefits to same-sex partners of employees, nearly 20 years ago. Nike also supported marriage equality efforts in the neighboring state of Washington and the federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act, and was a signer of the amicus brief filed by dozens of companies in support of Edie Windsor's challenge to the so-called Defense of Marriage Act.

Two other sports apparel companies based in Oregon, Columbia Sportswear and Adidas America, as well as Portland's NBA team, the Trail Blazers, and its men's and women's professional soccer teams, the Timbers and the Thorns, have announced support of the ballot initiative to make marriage legal in Oregon.