Entry posted by Prince Imrahil
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I say unlikely mainly because most would not expect a football player to stick their neck out into political issues, and less so in the manner that Brendon Ayanbadejo of the Baltimore Ravens did. From "The Baltimore Sun:"
Ayanbadejo says same-sex marriage is 'matter of fairness'
Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo has long been a proponent of same-sex marriage, and he penned an op-ed piece on the hot-button issue for The Huffington Post two years ago.
With the battle to recognize same-sex marriages continuing here in Maryland, Equality Maryland released a video of Ayanbadejo encouraging Marylanders to join him "in the land of the brave for standing on the side of love."
Here is the transcription of the video, which is embedded below:
"Hello. My name is Brendon Ayanbadejo. I’m a linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens. And I’m proud to be a part of something that brings Marylanders together. Another issue that should unite Marylanders that I’m quite proud about is love and marriage. And right now, an important issue in our state is whether or not to allow gay and lesbian couples who love each other to marry.
"Gay and lesbian couples want to marry for similar reasons as we all do: love and commitment. It’s time to allow them the opportunity to build a family through marriage. It’s a matter of fairness. This is why I’m asking Marylanders to join me in supporting marriage equality for same-sex couples.
"Having the freedom to marry means committed couples and their children will have the same crucial protections under the law as other families. Churches can always have their beliefs, but government is supposed to treat everybody the same, and that’s equal. America is supposed to be the land of the free but in order for this to be true for all of us, then we must have the ability to marry whom we love regardless of their gender.
"Think about it, and join me in the land of the brave for standing on the side of love. Thank you."
Update: Here's a statement from Morgan Meneses-Sheets, Equality Maryland's executive director:
"We commend Brendon Ayanbadejo for his courageous stand for fairness," Meneses-Sheets said. "Marriage strengthens couples and families, who in turn help strengthen their communities, one at a time -- leading to a stronger, more robust nation. We will reach a time in this country when we value and protect all families equally. We are proud to have heroes like Brendon by our side in this struggle."
For those who don't know, the significance of the timing of this is that a marriage equality bill is one step away from being passed in Maryland. There will likely be a vote in the House on Friday (having already passed in the Senate) and the Governor has already pledged to sign the bill should it get to him.
It is, of course, also significant because it comes from a man in a major team sport here in the States. They do not usually speak on such heavy matters, not to mention they are in what may be considered one of the last bastions of homophobia: male team sports, where millions in endorsements are often on the line. The only other active football player I can think of who stood for marriage equality would be Scott Fujita (outside linebacker for the Cleveland Browns, but more notably he played for the New Orleans Saints when they won the Super Bowl in the 2009-2010 season). With any hope, this may spur other athletes to openly support equality as well.
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