Scores of gay rights advocates rallied and marched Friday at the state Capitol – not to lament and protest, but to rejoice.
Just days before same-sex couples are allowed to legally marry in California, Friday's rally was a time to savor history, organizers said.
"We're so proud we live in a state that will allow us to marry. We're so proud that we have a Supreme Court that recognizes our right to marry," said Melba Duncan, 51. "It's such a historic time. … We're being recognized as equal at long last."
At 5 p.m. Monday, county clerks across the state will be allowed to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. In its May 15 decision that legalized gay marriage, the California Supreme Court said same-sex nuptials were a fundamental right.
The court's decision was widely hailed by gay rights advocates but criticized by religious conservatives as an attack on marriage.
On Friday, there were no signs of any protesters taking a dim view of gay marriage.
"How disappointing!" Duncan told the crowd of 300 at what was billed as the second annual Sacramento Dyke March.
"Last year, the protesters beat us here," said Rosa Perez, 41, expressing surprise at the lack of opposing demonstrations.
"I think things are changing," said Rebecca Jones, 44, "but it's taken a long time."
Perez and Jones wore dark T-shirts to Friday's rally – Perez's shirt identifying her as "groom," and Jones' identifying her as "bride." They plan to marry Tuesday.
The Yolo County clerk's office will have expanded hours Monday, issuing licenses to about a half-dozen same-sex couples who have appointments that evening.
On Tuesday, Duncan and her fiancée, Shannon Rex, 31, will rush to the Sacramento County clerk's office to marry.
As of Friday, at least 109 couples had made appointments to obtain marriage licenses Tuesday in Sacramento, the majority of them same-sex couples, said Wanda Dark, the county's assistant clerk/recorder.
The county will have extended hours Tuesday through Thursday at its downtown office, 600 Eighth St., and normal business hours at its community service center in Fair Oaks.
Dark urged couples to make appointments, but will try to accommodate walk-ins.
The Sacramento Police Department is considering boosting patrols near the county's downtown office, and the Sheriff's Department will increase visibility at the Fair Oaks facility, to head off any trouble, officials said.
In addition to Yolo County, Sonoma and San Francisco counties are believed to be the only counties in Northern California that will begin marrying same-sex couples Monday.
Most counties have opted to wait until Tuesday to allow gender-neutral forms to be uploaded on computer systems.
To comply with the high court's ruling, the state has ordered all counties to strip such gender-specific words as "bride" and "groom" – replacing them instead with "Party A" and "Party B."
Call The Bee's Bobby Caina Calvan, (916) 321-1067.
