Scott Fujita on marriage equality - 'Why is common sense not enough?'

Scott Fujita, an 11-year N.F.L. veteran and an ambassador for Athlete Ally, which fights homophobia in sports, has written a powerful op-ed for the New York Times on the subject of marriage equality and the many examples he plans to use to explain to his young daughters how and why discrimination against gay marriage existed and the progress that has been made.

From the New York Times:

I support marriage equality for so many reasons: my father’s experience in an internment camp and the racial intolerance his family experienced during and after the war, the gay friends I have who are really not all that different from me, and also because of a story I read a few years back about a woman who was denied the right to visit her partner of 15 years when she was stuck in a hospital bed.

My belief is rooted in a childhood nurtured by a Christian message of love, compassion and acceptance. It’s grounded in the fact that I was adopted and know there are thousands of children institutionalized in various foster programs, in desperate need of permanent, safe and loving homes, but living in states that refuse to allow unmarried couples, including gays and lesbians, to adopt because they consider them not fit to be parents.

In articulating all my feelings about marriage equality, I almost don’t know where to begin. And perhaps that’s part of the problem. Why do we have to explain ourselves when it comes to issues of fairness and equality? Why is common sense not enough?

Read the entire essay here.

In December 2011, Fujita recorded a video for Americans for Marriage Equality:



In 2009, Fujita was named the New Orleans Saints’ “Man of the Year” for his contributions on the field and in the community.

Thank you, Scott Fujita.