Wisconsin may have voted ‘yes' on the amendment banning gay marriage, but many Madison residents refused to concede the fight against the ban as they gathered to protest Friday on Library Mall.
The event was organized by a group of Madison area students in response to the Nov. 7 decision to ban gay marriage and civil unions.
""Our goal at the protest is mostly to indicate to the public that this movement isn't over, and though the amendment passed, we still believe that it's unjust,"" said Lindsay Broughel, a UW-Madison junior who helped organize the rally.
The protest included several speakers, including Nikki Baumblatt, outreach coordinator for Outreach Inc., Madison's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender center.
""You can look at this as a glass half full or half empty, but sticking with the negatives is only going to hurt us,"" Baumblatt said. ""We need to take our anger, our frustration, our sadness and turn that into a positive.""
The protest also compared the gay rights movement to previous civil rights movements.
Emily Shor, UW-Madison senior and LGBT liaison for University Housing, voiced her personal opinion of the protest.
""I think that this movement is going to take the face of a lot of civil rights movements that we've seen and will be very public and in the media,"" Shor said. ""We need people that are willing get dirty and to be up there protesting and talking.""
The protest attracted many students, faculty and community members, both gay and straight alike.
""I myself am straight, but I have absolutely no reason to tell people what they can and cannot do in the privacy of their home,"" said Miles Kristin, a Madison Area Techinical College student. ""I think gays should have all the same rights as straight people. To do anything other than give them the exact same rights is completely wrong and un-American.""
The protesters proceeded to march down State Street, chanting slogans and carrying signs along the way. They continued to the Capitol and later to the City-County building, 210 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, where protesters said they would sit until they were granted marriage licenses. No marriage licenses were granted to same-sex couples Friday.
Despite this, protesters remain hopeful.
""There are a lot of people who put a lot of time and energy into this battle and lost,"" Baumblatt said. ""And what most people seem to forget is that for a lot of people this was just a political debate, to us it's our lives.""
