Morgan Freeman is standing up for marriage equality in a new ad for the Human Rights Campaign. The ad celebrates the Nov. 6 victories for same-sex marriage initiatives in Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, and Washington, and promotes America’s commitment to “freedom, justice, and human dignity” in order to form a more perfect union.
“America stands at the dawn of a new day,” says Freeman in the ad. “Now, across our country, we are standing together for the right of gay and lesbian Americans to marry the person they love.”
Freeman adds that the victories at the ballot box in November have “delivered a mandate for full equality.”
Maine, Maryland, and Washington became the latest three states to legalize same-sex marriage, while Minnesota struck down a constitutional amendment that would have defined marriage as being between one man and one woman. There are currently nine states that legally recognize same-sex marriage.
The ad comes just as the Supreme Court prepares to consider cases challenging the Defense of Marriage Act. The high court will meet Friday in a closed-door conference to decide which cases to put on the court’s schedule for the coming year.
In October, a federal appeals court in New York ruled parts of DOMA unconstitutional, paving the way for a possible Supreme Court ruling to do the same.
Freeman’s involvement in the campaign for marriage equality is not the first time the Academy award-nominated actor has shown support for the cause. In 2011, Freeman was one of dozens of actors to participate in the Broadway play 8, based on the federal trial that overturned California’s Prop 8 ban on same-sex marriage. The show raised money for the American Foundation for Equal Rights.
Freeman has also lent his voice to President Obama’s campaign during both the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections.
Traci Lee