Voice of Equality Rep. John Lewis Receives Presidential Medal of Freedom

By support
Feb 18, 2011 at 03:56 pm

Presidential Obama presented Georgia Congressman John Lewis with the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the White House Wednesday. The civil rights hero is a vocal supporter for the freedom to marry, as you can see in this stirring video of his passionate speech opposing the so-called "Defense of Marriage Act" back in 1996 on the House floor:

Here's an excerpt from the speech:

You cannot tell people they cannot fall in love. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. used to say when people talked about interracial marriage and I quote, "Races do not fall in love and get married. Individuals fall in love and get married." Why do you not want your fellow men and women, your fellow Americans to be happy? Why do you attack them? Why do you want to destroy the love they hold in their hearts? Why do you want to crush their hopes, their dreams, their longings, their aspirations? We are talking about human beings, people like you, people who want to get married, buy a house, and spend their lives with the one they love. They have done no wrong.