by Lisa Weismann for WICU 12 News Erie:
Proposition 8 was passed in a state clear across the country.
But on Saturday, people in Erie stood up for those in California.
"The point is, if it happens anywhere, we have to take care in our own state. We are doing this in support of what's happening in California," Doris Cipolla, a gay rights activist, said.
Proposition 8 has been in the spotlight since the election, when it was passed in California.
It's an amendment that only recognizes a marriage between a man and woman -- not a gay couple.
But on Saturday, local gay rights activists took the steps of the Erie County Courthouse to show their pride and their anger towards the amendment.
"I'm just hoping -- I'm just hoping that [heterosexual] people realize that we are just people. We're no different; Our aspirations are the same," Cipolla said.
Aspirations like those of Linda Henderson and her female partner, who recently purchased The Latonia in Oil City.
"As soon as we opened and started doing things there, the right wing -- in particular, the American Family Association -- spoke out against us. [They were saying that] what we're doing had a gay agenda, simply because we happened to be lesbians," Henderson said.
Rallies, like the one in Erie, were held all across the country Saturday as a display of solidarity.
"This is not some theological group of people. These are actual human beings. We're your friends, your neighbors, your parents, your teachers. And we deserve the same rights to equality," Co-Editor of the Erie Gay News Michael Mahler said.
Video: "The Battle Continues"
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