14 DAY TRIAL // A while back, Miley Cyrus got a tattoo meant to show her support for marriage equality, a gesture that brought her plenty of criticism and even hateful comments from her fans. In an essay for Glamour magazine, she explains the decision to speak up for equality.
Miley has never made a secret of having plenty of gay friends who, she hopes, will be one day able to get married legally all across the country.
Neither has she made a secret of her religious upbringing and her faith in God. The two don't automatically exclude each other, she says now.
Upset that many people reached out to her only to have her know that Christianity says gay love is a sin, Miley is finally speaking up: gay love is still love, so it can't possibly be a sin.
“I believe every American should be allowed the same rights and civil liberties. Without legalized same-gender marriage, most of the time you cannot share the same health benefits, you are not considered next of kin and you are not granted the same securities as a heterosexual couple,” she reasons.
“How is this different than having someone sit in the back of the bus because of their skin color?” Miley asks.
She goes on to plead for more tolerance and understanding, saying that even people with deeply rooted conservative beliefs are known to show both.
“We all should be tolerant of one another and embrace our differences. My dad [country singer Billy Ray Cyrus], who is a real man’s man, lives on the farm and is as Southern and straight as they come. He loves my gay friends and even supports same-sex marriage. If my father can do it, anyone can,” the former Disney star says.
“This is America, the nation of dreams. We’re so proud of that. And yet certain people are excluded. It’s just not right,” Miley adds.
The tattoo that started this debate is the equal sign on Miley's ring finger.