Freedom to Marry Lauds HUD Secretary Donovan for Supporting Marriage

11/16/2011

(Washington, D.C., November 16, 2011) – Below is a statement from Evan Wolfson, founder and President of Freedom to Marry, on U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan becoming the first sitting cabinet secretary to announce support for the freedom to marry, which he did in an exclusive interview yesterday with Metro Weekly:

“'I think Secretary Donovan – like a majority of Americans – understands that ending marriage discrimination would help families, while hurting no one.   In these tough economic times, we all want to protect and take care of our loved ones, and gay couples need the safety-net that marriage brings.  New York did the right thing to celebrate love and commitment, and end exclusion and unfair denial of the freedom to marry.  It is time that President Obama join Secretary Donovan as part of the nationwide majority for marriage.”

In March, Freedom to Marry launched its “Say I Do” campaign urging President Obama to support the freedom to marry for gay and lesbian couples.  Since then, more than 118,000 Americans have signed its Open Letter to the President.

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Freedom to Marry is the campaign to win marriage nationwide. We are pursuing our Roadmap to Victory by working to win the freedom to marry in more states, grow the national majority for marriage, and end federal marriage discrimination. We partner with individuals and organizations across the country to end the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage and the protections, responsibilities, and commitment that marriage brings.