Minneapolis rally protests gay marriage bans

More than 500 people gathered in downtown Minneapolis Saturday to protest measures passed in California and other states.

By CURT BROWN, Star Tribune

Last update: November 16, 2008 - 7:50 AM

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Kendra Atkins shrugged Saturday as she helped put the finishing touches on a large banner proclaiming, "Legalize Love."

"It's really sad that this is even an issue at all," Atkins, 21, a University of Minnesota student from Eau Claire, Wis., said before a rally in support of gay marriage in downtown Minneapolis. "Love is something we all experience in our own way and it's very unfortunate that certain people think there should be a right way and a wrong way to love."

More than 700 people gathered on the plaza of the Hennepin County Government Center on a chilly afternoon to express their dismay with constitutional amendments in California, Florida and Arizona prohibiting gay marriage.

Similar demonstrations were held at the Capitol in St. Paul, Duluth and in cities across the country.

"From Golden Gate Park to Loring Park, we will step together until this battle is won," Minneapolis City Council Member Gary Schiff told the crowd at the government center. "We will not forget the tens of thousands of gay couples who had their loves erased in California."

Protests that followed the vote on Proposition 8 in California, which defined marriage as between a man and a woman, have sometimes been angry and even violent, and demonstrators have targeted faiths that supported the ban, including the Mormon church.

However, representatives of Join the Impact, which organized Saturday's demonstrations, asked supporters to be respectful and refrain from attacking other groups during the rallies.

In Boston, the mood was generally upbeat, with attendees dancing and signing to the song "Respect." Signs cast the fight for gay marriage as the new civil rights movement, including one that read "Gay is the new black."

Planning for the nationwide protests was started by a Seattle blogger, Amy Balliett, just days after the California vote, which took away gay marriage rights that had been granted by the state's high court.

The idea rapidly spread online and Join the Impact predicted that Saturday's protests would involve tens of thousands of people in hundreds of communities.

In North Dakota, where voters in 2004 overwhelmingly approved a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, low-key protests were held Saturday in Grand Forks and Fargo, where people lined a bridge carrying signs and flags.

Massachusetts and Connecticut, which began same-sex weddings this past week, are the only two states that allow gay marriage. All 30 states that have voted on gay marriage have enacted bans.

Reg Merrill, 63, drove up from Fort Dodge, Iowa, to attend the Minneapolis rally because "I believe no one should be about the business of taking away people's rights."

Molly Murphy, 27, of Minneapolis, was among many straight people attending the rally. She said Election Day was "bittersweet" because Barack Obama's barrier-busting victory was offset with setbacks in the gay rights movement, including an Arkansas provision banning same-sex couples from adopting children or serving as foster parents.

"It's really a civil and human rights issue," Murphy said. "It's not about gay, straight, bi or transgender, it's just about equality."

State Sen. Joe Marty, DFL-Roseville, joined a list of elected officials at the rally.

"I look around here and don't see what there is to fear," Marty said.

He and state Rep. Karen Clark, DFL-Minneapolis, vowed to push for enhanced gay rights legislation during the next legislative session, including allowing same-sex couples more freedoms for hospital visits.

After the hourlong rally, demonstrators marched peacefully to Loring Park. Despite the peaceful nature of the gathering, the anger was clear in the many colorful signs. Said one placard: "No More Mr. Nice Gay."

Curt Brown • 612-673-4767

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