Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe on
Wednesday lauded gay marriage ballot wins in four states.
Voters in Maryland, Maine and
Washington state on election night approved marriage equality, and
Minnesotans rejected an effort to ban it.
Kluwe, a vocal supporter of marriage
equality, commented on the historic wins in an op-ed for Slate.com
titled Gay Marriage Legalized! What an Amazing Day To Be an
American.
“I would like to thank every single
person that helped defeat the same-sex marriage ban in Minnesota, as
well as every person who contributed to passing marriage-equality
legislation in Maryland and Maine and (likely) Washington,” Kluwe
wrote.
“Together, we made a statement that
America is tired of division. America is tired of discrimination, of
exclusion, and of unthinking oppression – the belief that people
have to live their lives according to someone else's views rather
than their own free will.”
“There is work yet to be done, but we
passed an important milestone today. Ten, 15, 20 years from now, when
our children ask us, 'What did you do when it came time to fight for
someone else?,' we can tell them about Minnesota and Maryland and
Maine, states where people finally said: Enough.”
“Enough with the hate. Enough with
the bigotry. Enough with the discrimination. We are all Americans,
and we are all in this together. Without each other, we have
nothing.”