"This wedding ring means so much to me"

David Hyde Pierce and his husband, Brian Hargrove.

Look at those two men.

How could their commitment to each other, their ability to file a joint tax return and visit each other in the hospital no questions asked, possibly be a threat to anyone? In the debate over same-sex marriage, what could I possibly say that would be more eloquent and to the point than this:

"When we heard the minister say 'Now by the power vested in me by the State of California I pronounce you married,' something happened to us. And we realized, 25 years together, if not us, who? If not now, when?

This wedding ring means so much to me. We've been together so long. It represents all the years since we first met. It represents all the family and friends who supported us all those years. It represents all the family and friends we've lost together. It represents the future that we don't know what it's going to be but we know we're going to face it together until, as they say, death do us part.

On Oct. 24 we got married. At the beginning of November, the people of California got together and took a vote and said no, I'm sorry, that ring means nothing. When we were fighting against Proposition 8 in California, a lot of things have been said about that fight. Maybe we made some mistakes. Maybe the timing wasn't right. But people said we were complacent. I promise you, we were not."

David Hyde Pierce at the rally for marriage equality in New York City, talking about marrying his partner of 25 years, Brian Hargrove. You can watch his speech here.