Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama both openly support same-sex marriage, and Maryland is banking on their vocalization in its latest ad for Question 6, a referendum for legally recognizing marriage for gay and lesbian couples, which will be on the ballot on Tuesday, Nov. 6.
President Obama became the first sitting president to endorse marriage equality when he sat down in May with Robin Roberts for a taped interview for ABC’S Good Morning America, saying, “I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married.”
Last year, Clinton released a statement via the HRC, writing about New York’s plan to allow for same-sex marriages, which passed in June 2011:
“Our nation’s permanent mission is to form a ‘more perfect union’ – deepening the meaning of freedom, broadening the reach of opportunity, strengthening the bonds of community. That mission has inspired and empowered us to extend rights to people previously denied them. Every time we have done that, it has strengthened our nation. Now we should do it again, in New York, with marriage equality. For more than a century, our Statue of Liberty has welcomed all kinds of people from all over the world yearning to be free. In the 21st century, I believe New York’s welcome must include marriage equality.”
The voice on Maryland’s video, which you can watch below, says, “While there are those trying to divide us, Presidents Obama and Clinton stand with us.” Obama endorsed the campaign in Maryland last week, according to The Advocate.
The video depicts black people who support legally recognized gay weddings, since, according to the Baltimore Sun, the black vote is considered the deciding vote on Question 6. While a Washington Post poll found last month that Question 6 is generally supported by state residents, the poll also found that “blacks still oppose the measure 53 percent to 42 percent.”
Photos: Clinton: Ralph Alswang/Clinton Foundation; Obama: whitehouse.gov
