Gov. O'Malley kicks off Maryland marriage equality campaign

Governor Martin O'Malley (D-MD) described himself as a "Marylander for marriage equality" as part of a video campaign seeking to raise support for same sex marriage.

"As a free and diverse people of many different faiths, we choose to be governed under the law by certain fundamental principles, among them, equal protection of the law for every individual and the free exercise of religion without government intervention," O’Malley says in the video. "The legislation we plan to introduce in the 2012 legislative session will protect religious freedom and equality of marital rights under the law."

The Marylanders for Marriage Equality coalition launched the video campaign on Monday. The coalition includes the NAACP Baltimore Branch, 1199 SEIU, Progressive Maryland, ACLU of Maryland, Equality Maryland, Human Rights Campaign, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Senator Rich Madaleno and Delegate Luke Clippinger.

“We are certainly grateful the Governor is kicking off our video campaign, which will give state lawmakers the opportunity to see the depth and diversity of support for civil marriage equality,” said Tessa Hill-Alston, president of the Baltimore Chapter of the NAACP. “The momentum is on our side, including significant gains in the African-American community.”

Watch video, uploaded to YouTube, below: