Ayanbadejo ‘excited’ to speak at Supreme Court

Baltimore Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo on Monday said he is “excited” to speak in support of marriage rights for same-sex couples outside the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday.

“I’ve gone out to the polls and passed out fliers and done stuff like that, but I’ve never spoken in front of a courthouse or in any type of rally ever before,” he told the Washington Blade during an extended interview. “This is sort of uncharted territory for me. I’m kind of the most unlikely of people to do so where everyone else will be some sort of activist or is some way involved in politics. I’m just a concerned citizen.”

Ayanbadejo, who will speak alongside D.C. Congressional Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton and others outside the Supreme Court before the justices hear oral arguments in a case that challenges California’s Proposition 8, in 2009 became the first professional athlete to endorse marriage rights for same-sex couples. He also became one of the most public faces of last year’s campaign in support of the referendum on Maryland’s same-sex marriage law.