Statehood for DC – Esai Morales from Paul Strauss on Vimeo.

A new television advertisement featuring Puerto Rican actor Esai Morales begins running tonight on the Caribbean island in support of D.C. statehood.

The ad, which also features D.C. Shadow Senator Paul Strauss, draws parallels between the District and Puerto Rico, neither of which have a star on the flag or voting representation in Congress. Puerto Rico’s status as an unincorporated U.S. territory has complicated its massive debt crisis. D.C. residents, accustomed to Congress shitting all over them, can relate.

“We believe that all Americans deserve equality. That’s why we support statehood for the District of Columbia and economic justice for Puerto Rico,” intones Morales in the ad. According to Strauss, Morales ad-libbed the line about economic justice.

But the ad doesn’t go so far as to advocate for Puerto Rican statehood. “We’re not getting in the middle of all that,” says Strauss.

The ad enters rotation tonight and runs through Sunday, targeting MSNBC and CNN viewers.