2010-02-09 13:35:26 -

ELLEN DEGENERES' wife PORTIA DE ROSSI is thankful she's one half of a Hol= lywood power couple - because she wants to use her fame to "make a differ= ence" in the fight for gay rights.
The openly gay pair wed

in 2008, taking advantage of the Supreme Court = ruling which legalised same-sex unions in California.
But their rights were revoked just months later after the passing of th= e Proposition 8 bill, which reversed the previous ruling permitting the m= arriages.
De Rossi believes she has finally found her real calling as she steps i= nto her new role as a gay rights campaigner - and hopes she can make a re= al change in the world.
She tells The Advocate magazine, "Ever since Ellen and I got together, = I feel like I've been given an opportunity to actually - God, this sounds= corny... Well, I feel like my life can actually kind of stand for someth= ing. And I don't mean that in a self-aggrandising way, like, 'Look at me,= I can make a difference.' But I feel like, maybe I get why I'm here. May= be by sharing my life, I can make people more aware of how important gay = marriage is." And the former Ally McBeal star is adamant fighting for gay rights is t= he number one priority in her life - even over-shadowing her acting caree= r.
She adds, "Of course (it's more important than acting.) Actors come and= go. Characters come and go. TV shows come and go. While acting is entert= aining, for me personally, it's a little empty. My career is only a part = of my life, and it's certainly not what I think I was born to do." De Rossi will be lauded with the Human Rights Campaign's Visibility Awa= rd at a ceremony in Los Angeles next month (Mar10), in honour of her "cou= rage to come out publicly and to take a stand for same-sex marriage." (LR=