Celebs fight Prop 8

Mark Cornelson and T.R. Knight
via People

With Proposition 8 recently passing by a hair in California, celebs are stepping up to speak out against the new Constitutional Amendment which places a ban on gay marriage. A rally this Saturday in Silver Lake, drew 12,500 demonstrators, including the likes of Drew Barrymore and James Franco.

T.R. Knight, one of the first gay stars to stand up for the "No on Prop.8" cause, took his passion to the front line on Election Day where he volunteered outside a polling place in SoCal. He spoke to The Advocate, where he details people spitting at him and yelling crude obscenities at him throughout the entire event. T.R. also mentioned among all the people that passed him in the 13 hours he was at the site, only one older man chose to have a civilized discussion with him.

"...I know that gay people will one day gain all the rights due us as American citizens," the older man said. "I know that the people who stand in our way today will be the people the majority will later mock as foolish and bigoted. I was speaking to an African-American friend tonight. She told me, 'It takes so long. But people will come around. You have to continue to fight. It just takes a very long time.'"

Also, Melissa Etheridge just spoke out against the passing of Prop. 8 on a new blog post on The Daily Beast. In the post, she says that if she's not "allowed the same right [to marry] under the state constitution as any other citizen... I am taking that to mean I do not have to pay my state taxes, because I am not a full citizen." With her millions in income, and that of other high profile gay celebs like Ellen DeGeneres, Melissa says that's a lot of dough that's going to go missing from the state's coffers.

Lastly, Lindsay Lohan's girlfriend Samantha Ronson just posted a new message on her MySpace page regarding animal rights and the new ban on gay marriage. It reads, "Miss Piggy and Chicken Little may rest easy, but gay people in Florida and California can no longer get married." She was referring to the passage of California Proposition 2 that grants farm animals such as chickens and pigs more humane living conditions. "I guess people care more about farm animals than they do their fellow man, that's really sad to me," she continued. "I am glad that the chickens will have more room and better conditions as they wait to die, but I just think it's frightening that people show more compassion for tomorrow's dinner than for the chef."

Other celebs who outwardly voted against Prop. 8 include Brad Pitt, Mary J. Blige, Ellen DeGeneres and Sacha Baron Cohen.

What happens to
Californian gay couples who were already legally wed before Prop. 8 passed? Find out here.

What do you think about Sam's statement, that people should care more about gay rights than animal rights? Let us know!