SAN DIEGO--There wasn't much to celebrate about the one year anniversary of Election Day 2008 for the gay rights activists in San Diego. A year ago, the constitutional amendment that bans gay marriage in California went down to defeat.
On Tuesday, a similar measure in Maine also lost.
"To lose in Maine, its like re-living it all over again a year later" said Robert Close-Rodriguez.
He joined his husband and about a hundred others in walking from the County Administration Building to the Manchester Grand Hyatt to advocate for gay rights.
"We took a licking last year and we're fighting back" said gay rights supporter Fred Karger.
Advocates watched Sean Penn's Oscar winning performance as gay rights political leader Harvey Milk in "Milk."
But at the Skyline Wesleyan Church in Rancho San Diego, the mood was much more upbeat.
"At some point this movement is going to have to come to terms that they are not a movement, that a movement would have victories through the will of the people" said Senior Pastor Jim Garlow.
He said that many people are embarrassed to admit they are against gay marriages, but let their views be known when it counts--in the voting booth. "When these people go into the voting booth, nationally, its anywhere from 2 to as high as 7 percent of those people who intend to vote for traditional marriage, but they intend to vote the other way because they feel so intimidated."
Garlow called the decision in Maine was "very significant" proof of a larger trend. In the 31 states where gay marriage has been on the ballot, it has failed every time. The 5 states that currently have gay marriage received that right from judges or state legislature votes.
The pastor worked with Maine pastors to get the "traditional marriage" word out, and will continue to do so in other states in the coming months.
In the meantime, there is a debate in the gay rights community about whether it would be more effective to put a gay marriage constitutional amendment on the California ballot in 2010 or 2012.
"Either way the work has to be done and we're here to do the work" said Robert Close-Rodriguez.
