Upset after Maine didn’t legalize same- sex marriage, Western students decided to start a gay rights rally Wednesday at Centennial Mall.

Bowling Green senior Skylar Baker-Jordan was upset that Maine didn’t vote same-sex marriage into effect, the same decision California citizens made this time last year, he said.

A bill that would legalize same-sex marriage was introduced to Maine legislators last winter and passed through a committee, said David Farmer, deputy chief of staff for Maine Gov. John E. Baldacci.

On May 6, Baldacci signed the bill, Farmer said.

Some citizens of Maine then got 55,000 signatures to veto it, and an election on Nov. 3 gave residents an option to vote for or against it, Farmer said.

Baker-Jordan expressed his frustration with the situation on Twitter, which led to a response from the head of Postcards to the President, Tanner Efinger.

Postcards to the President is an organization that encourages people to send postcards to President Barack Obama, asking him to urge Congress to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, according to the Postcards to the President Web site.

The Defense of Marriage Act defines marriage as a union between a man and woman for federal purposes and gives states the right to legalize same-sex marriage, according to the DOMA Watch Web site.

Efinger told Baker-Jordan to “take it to the streets,” so that’s what he did.

“I started this rally to take a stand for equality and to inform the campus community that homophobic harassment exists,” Baker-Jordan said.

He asked Louisville junior Kat Michael to get involved and help him spread the word about the rally.

Baker-Jordan and Michael texted everyone in their phone books and got the word out through Facebook statuses and a group page on Facebook, Michael said.

“There are a lot of lesbian, gay and bi-sexual people on campus, which makes equality an important issue,” she said.

About 25 people participated in the rally.

Madisonville junior Daniel Newman attended the rally because he thinks equality shouldn’t be taken lightly.

“Same-sex marriage is an issue of civil rights, and I don’t believe our civil rights should be put up to vote,” he said.

Baker-Jordan and others decided to march through Downing University Center.

Villa Hills freshman Meghan Grone, who witnessed the march, said the group had a right to march and a right to equality.

Michael said she’ll continue fighting for equality.

“We need to continue to fight and to support each other until everyone’s love is good enough,” she said.