Members from the gay activist group Queer Rising chained themselves together in front of the New York marriage bureau. Alan Bounville, Jake Goodman, Justin Elzie and Gabriel Yuri Bollag chained and pad-locked themselves to the railing to the entrance of the marriage bureau. They were subsequently arrested for their disobedience.
More than 20 gay couples attempted to apply for marriage licenses; all were denied. As a result a gay man and lesbian woman applied and were approved for a marriage license. The group then moved outside where the members formed their human barrier.
Spokesperson for the group Spring Super held a press conference in the park adjacent to the bureau stating, “New York City is home to the Stonewall Riots and in that tradition we are here to say that equality doesn’t arrive through the ballot box. The bankrupt strategy of putting all efforts into electing so-called ‘friendly’ officials has failed. We must shift to building a grassroots, national movement that demands full equality by any means necessary. Today, through our symbolic marriage applications, rally and civil disobedience, that message was quite clear.”