Bay area residents protest ruling on same-sex marriages

Between the raised and angry voices of protestors denouncing the California Supreme Court's decision to uphold a ban on same-gender marriages, the sugary melody of a familiar tune played.

It was the 1964 pop hit "Chapel of Love" by the Dixie Cups. More than 50 people who gathered tonight at Joe Chillura Courthouse Square in downtown Tampa sang along to the chorus.

"Going to the chapel and we're gonna get married, goin' to the chapel of love."

Rainbow flags were held up to catch the wind. Several couples put their arms around each other. Some lit candles.

The rally, which started at 7 p.m., was a way to get local residents together to share "their disappointment and despair" over the court's ruling and "translate that outrage into resolve," said organizer Brian Winfield of Equality Florida.

Although new nuptials are banned in California, the court also decided that same-sex couples who were wed six months before the November vote still have valid marriages.

In Florida, a similar bill to Proposition 8, known as Amendment 2, passed in November with 61.9 percent of the vote.

Winfield said the fight isn't over, and that his organization continues to talk to lawmakers about making Florida a state of "marriage equality."

"As long as you have discrimination against any group, none of us are safe," said Carole Mehlman, a board member of the local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.

As some protestors held up neon pink-colored signs calling for equality, others started chants. Men from a community group called the Tampa Bay Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence - members wear women's clothing and paint their faces like pantomimes - also appeared at the rally to lend support.

Similar protests were held tonight in Pinellas County and Lake Worth. One is planned Saturday afternoon in Fort Myers in front of the city's historic courthouse.

Attendees say they are just seeking full equality.

"We want our civil rights," protestor Cathy James said. "We want our human rights."