Joining other brands this year that have made public their support of gay rights, Expedia this week released a poignant video depicting a father's journey his daughter's wedding to another woman.
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The video, titled "Find Your Understanding," follows retired business owner Artie Goldstein and his wife on "a journey that will test him, challenge him, and ultimately change him," as he comes to accept his daughter Nikki's choice to marry her partner, Jill.
"You always have great expectations for your children. My expectations of what Jill's life was going to be included a husband." Goldstein says in the video. "When Nikki came to ask permission to marry our little girl, that startled me. I told her, 'This is not the dream I had for my daughter."I didn't say yes, I didn't say no."
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In the video, as the father and daughter pair took their ceremonial first dance, Nikki cries as she tells her father, "I dreamed of this dad... I mean it."
Goldstein replies, "So have I... So have I."
Dara Khosrowshahi, Expedia's CEO, told The Huffington Post that he was proud to share the family's story. "At the heart of Artie’s story is the idea that travel is deeply personal," Khosrowshahi said. "We’ve built our entire brand behind that idea."
This isn't the first time Expedia has voiced its support of same-sex marriage. Last month, the company publicly backed Referendum 74, which could effectively legalize same-sex marriage in Washington State, where Expedia is based. Other companies, such as Oreo, Amazon, and Facebook have also come out in support of same sex marriage in recent months.
In addition to rolling out the ad, Expedia has switched out the cover photo on its Facebook Page to be a picture of the couple.
The response has been mostly positive.
"Expedia, you just brought tears to my eyes. What a way to blow away your competition by showing what an accepting and loving company you are," the top YouTube comment on the video reads. "This was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."
Not everyone applaueded Expedia's stance. "Thanks for reminding me that I wanted to make a donation to each of the local pro-traditional marriage candidates here in Missouri and Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan," reads a comment by Steve Krulin. "By the way I also vote with my travel dollars."
The now-married couple also took to their Facebook page to share their thoughts about the video and thanked Expedia for "telling our story and partnering with us in the voice for marriage equality."
This story originally published on Mashable here.
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