POLITICS

Activist Stars Attend Supreme Court's Gay Marriage Hearing, While Hollywood Tweets Support

8:07 AM PDT 3/26/2013 by Jordan Zakarin

Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images

After years of leading campaigns for marriage equality, the entertainment industry will be well-represented at the Prop 8 hearing, with Dustin Lance Black at the forefront.

The battle has been years in the making; the line to get into the historic event began nearly a week ago. As the Supreme Court finally hears the arguments for and against Proposition 8, the struck-down ban on same-sex marriage in California, Hollywood is in Washington to show its support for marriage equality.

Oscar winner Dustin Lance Black, who wrote the biopic of gay civil rights leader Harvey Milk and then penned 8, the attention-grabbing, Clooney and Pitt-starring play about the original court case that felled Prop 8, wrote on Facebook that he will be at the Supreme Court for the hearing.

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"Four years ago I stood on a very big stage and made an even bigger promise to the young people of this nation," he wrote. "That hopeful promise quickly turned to hard work and collaboration. In a few hours, I will walk into this nation’s highest court to watch our team make the case to fulfill that promise of Federal Equality. Our time is truly now."

In addition, Huffington Post reports that Rob Reiner, who sits on the board of the American Foundation for Equal Rights, was first in line to enter the court; he reportedly paid someone to save his spot. Such "tickets" were commanding up to $6000 according to reports early Tuesday.

Those not in Washington were still rallying behind the cause, especially online. Jesse Tyler Ferguson wrote that he regretted not being able to attend, but was proud of husband Justin Mikita and others who were there. New Girl star Jake Johnson tweeted, "RT if you agree that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness applies to #LGBT Americans," while Russell Simmons wrote, "I hope that the Supreme Court stands on the right-side of history today by acknowledging marriage equality for all. RT!"

Elsewhere, Mia Farrow sent out several messages, including one that included a video called "The Most Compelling Case for Marriage Equality in 60 Seconds" and Daily Show creator Lizz Winstead tweeted, "The civil rights of people you love are being decided this week. Think of how scary that must feel. Tell your #LGBT friends you love them" on Monday.

Corporate players in the industry have also gotten involved; Walt Disney, CBS, Google, Apple and Viacom were among companies that joined an amicus brief -- or "friend of the court" filing -- supporting the reversal of the Defense of Marriage Act, the other major same-sex marriage case that the court will face.

A decision is expected in June.

More celebrity tweets follow: