Should Ellen Do More to Defeat California's Prop 8?
Tuesday October 14, 2008
I was shocked to learn that you and so many other gay and lesbian celebrities have not personally given to the No on 8 campaign. Why is this? You make tens of millions of dollars a year. You and Portia recently got married. Surely you know how important keeping that right is to you and your family. If we are to win, we desperately need your financial support.What do you think? Do you share Jason's outrage at Ellen or do you think she's done enough by speaking about the issue on The Tonight Show and discussing her marriage to Portia on her show and in People magazine, among other places? Vote in the Lesbian Life Poll.
More about California's Prop 8
Comments
Ellen does more for the LGBT community EVERY DAY by being so public about her life, sharing her wedding, I say it is enough! No amount of money could buy the kind of support she creates by being out and proud in front of the tv cameras for everyone. Thank you, Ellen.
i agree with Barb! just because someone has a lot of money and is a celebrity does not give us the right to tell her what to do with it. she is still a person that has her own mind and opinions. I love what she has done for our community. she has done things that have opened doors for us all. yes she is a roll model for and some one i look up to but she does not have to do it all all the time! the question is have you donated to the cause?
I think her support to Prop 8 is worth more than money can be. She Campaigns outloud and to the public to show her support and to get others to support it as well. Money is just that…money. It will do nothing in matters of convincing or spreading truth as much as what she is doing will
I agree with the previous comments. Ellen has done so much to support the community and to bring a positive light for the general public to view our community in a new way. No one has any business even suggesting what another person should be doing with their money, even if that person happens to be a celebrity.
I agree Ellen has done a great deal for our community. However, I believe that she, as well as all California & Massachusetts gays and lesbians need to contribute financially to the defeat of Prop 8. Unless our community steps up to counter the millions of dollars the Mormon and Catholic Knights of Columbus are pouring into their efforts to pass Prop 8. Money buys marketing and marketing works. As the saying goes, put your money where your mouth is — even Ellen.
Jason, WHAT!!! and next you’ll want her to run for governor of CA
I agree Ellens openness in all she does is priceless. Please know that Arizona is also fighting a battle. Last year voters voted against a ban on gay marriage. This year they are trying to change the constitution to word that only a marriage between and man & woman is legal….just they want to ensure that the 60% divorce rate is maintained….
I love Ellen and I would like her and her partner to donate to the cause!
I am a part-time social worker, full-time student, and work in the LGBT community. Additionally, I am in a same-sex relationship. I advocate out loud and promote the rights of the community every single day. I am not a celeb like Ellen, so my advocacy and work doesn’t get the same recognition. Still, I do all that I can, including putting bumper stickers on my car and signs in my yard. I am low income currently and yet I still took the time and effort to make a couple of donations to NO on Prop 8 even though it isn’t “in the budget.”
I believe it is my RESPONSIBILITY to do EVERYTHING that I can to fight Prop 8 from being passed. So, it is hard to fully understand why Ellen and Portia have not made a donation. However, it is not for me to say what they should and shouldn’t do. I do certainly want for them to donate to the cause.
The money is what is needed in addition to the verbal advocacy. Some people don’t want to hear or see what our community is fighting for, money helps increase the visibility of the message and the rights of our community through running ads. NO on Prop 8 needs the money, that is clear. What if a donation of 50,000 is the line of demarcation between winning and losing the right to marry the one you love. It would seem silly then to not fight with all we’ve got to raise the money to preserve the right.
In any event, the celeb couple is choosing not to donate and I will do my best to respect that.
Go Ellen!
She has given so much time to Prop 8 on her show. The No on Prop 8 would have to pay millions for the advertising she has given the cause. I say she’s done enough. If she were to contribute money it would be over and above what she’s done, and that’s her decision.
I agree with those people who say that Ellen is doing enough by being vocal. I don’t see why she should HAVE to give money. And why is she being singled out anyway? Is she the only wealthy person out there, or the only person capable of making a donation?
Why not ask(pick on) some other gay and lesbian, or any celebrities to be as vocal as she is?
…and another thing! How do you all know that she hasn’t given any donations??? Are you her financial controllers?
Lulu, I’m not singling Ellen out, I believe that all gays and lesbians, as they are able, in both Mass & California need to financially support the No on Prop 8 initiative.
Also, when I donated, I had to disclose my name and address. I assume that Kathy Belge verified that Ellen had not donated before she posted the story. Maybe Kathy can confirm my assumption.
I don’t think its fair to criticize her - she’s done a lot and raised a lot of awareness, and it’s not his money - he’s got no right to tell her what to do with it. Ellen is a smart woman, I’m sure she knows what she’s doing and made a fully informed decision about the issue. Also, not all problems can be solved by throwing money at them - what Ellen has been doing is worth more than a donation.
All donations to political candidates and ballot measures are a matter of public record. The person who wrote that letter to the editor claimed to have verified that Ellen did not donate to the No on Prop 8 Campaign. I have not verified this information.
I do find it interesting, however, that the Advocate has removed the letter from their site. I don’t know what this means.
This was announced on http://www.noonprop8.com
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17, LOS ANGELES – The NO on Prop 8 campaign, Equality for All, is pleased to announce today that Ellen DeGeneres has made a media buy to urge Californians to vote NO on Proposition 8. The effort was partially revealed Tuesday when Ellen released a special video to confront false and misleading scare tactics used by those supporting the proposition. DeGeneres is purchasing television time for her ad to underscore the importance of this fight and broaden the reach of the spot.
Hey, money talks, people! I don’t have much, but I’ve given till it hurts, and I don’t even live in California. It is not enough for celebrities to lend their voices and images; the opposition is pouring millions of dollars into a campaign filled with lies, fear and hatred, and we need EVERY RESOURCE POSSIBLE to fight back! Make no mistake, we are fighting for our lives here, and every friend with money, including Ellen, needs to step up to the plate and donate.
I agree with most of you, but I feel that piece would have knocked the socks off lots of opponents if somebody, not necesaarily Ellen had paid to air it. Her warmth and genuineness are just what the fight needs.
We have to keep in mind that she is under contract with her network, her sponsors, and essentially her viewers. It’s hard to be in her position because there are formalities involved. Just like her interview with John McCain, you know part of her wanted to let him have it but she stayed professional about it. I think she is doing as much as she can by being present and not folding under media scrutiny to run and hide, while her hands are tied by her network and such. She is paving the way in the only way she can and that is by being visible and OUT about her marriage, vocal about her rights, and honest with herself when it comes to network pressures.
Also consider that the networks make millions not the actors, and even though the actors make a lot, they still pay taxes like we do unless they are their own company like Paris Hilton. Most celebrities are just getting by like the rest of us, many don’t even own their homes etc. Not to say that Ellen is broke at all, I’m just saying we can’t always just expect celebs to foot the bill. If we can each squeeze out $5 we can take em!
I agree that Ellen has done a great job of drawing attention in the right way to the campaign to defeat this ballot measure. The same, also, has to said of George Takei, who not only has spoken out, but who, like Ellen, has gotten married himself. Celebrities who have contributed money, such as Brad Pitt, should, also, be praised. I hope that Ellen has contributed funds, too, but if she hasn’t, there is still time for her to get on board in that area, as well.
It’s not only celebrities who can make a difference in this extremely important battle for gay and lesbian rights. Anyone can go to the website of the leading gay and lesbian organization in California, Equality California, at www.eqca.org, and make a generous donation to their campaign to defeat Proposition 8, or as some would term it Proposition Hate. This group has been fighting for gay and lesbian marriage all along, and they need the financial support of all fair-minded Americans right now. The next few days are crucial in terms of their importance in winning this battle. The more money they have, the more campaign spots they will have to put on the air. Several recent surveys have shown that people who have really seen the advertisements put out by Equality California have been for the most part persuaded to vote against Proposition 8. So, get over to their website and donate now!
Lets not be naive. Of course her verbal endorsement helps be we need (needed) as there is only one hour left to donage from the major celebs both gay and straight whose biggest fan base is the GLBT community.
The silence has been deafening from the likes of Kathy Griffin, Cher, Bette Midler, The Will and Grace cast, Madonna…. this may sound trite but its true!!
I would first look to the the No on 8 organizers for not rallying the Hollywood elite early on in the game. Do they know something we dont? Seems like money for the taking when pitched by competent fundraisers with connections.
And while I am on it.. why didnt HRC have a massive DONATE sign on its homepage… The way California goes, so goes the nation. This is a national- not a state struggle. Dont they get it?? The “Christian Right” certainly does!
Frankly, I feel betrayed by most of the celebrities that we have helped to become fabulously wealthy.