Tens of Thousands protest the Mormon Church

Here are some details from major protest locations.  There are many others around the country.

Los Angeles

Police estimated that 12,500 boisterous marchers converged about 6 p.m. at Sunset and Santa Monica boulevards.  Police guided the demonstrators through the streets for more than three hours without major confrontations. Other demonstrations, including one that attracted up to 10,000 people in San Diego

A handful of counter-protesters were also on the scene, separated from the marching crowds by police on horseback. One man held up a large sign: "God does not love you just the way you are."

A smaller demonstration in the late afternoon near Pierce College in Woodland Hills attracted a crowd of about 300, police said. Some of them hopped aboard buses to join the Silver Lake rally.

The demonstrations across the state "are all pretty spontaneous," said Jason Howe, a former spokesman for the No on 8 campaign. "This is all pretty grass-roots stuff. They're just going out on Facebook and MySpace and Craigslist. . . . People are angry and frustrated."

The L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center announced a campaign to raise money towards efforts to invalidate Proposition 8, which included sending a postcard to Mormon President Thomas Monson. The announcement sparked a near-spontaneous protest that gridlocked traffic for hours as it nosily spilled into the streets with chants of "Separate church and state" and "What do we want? Equal rights."

On Thursday in Los Angeles, thousands of protesters snarled traffic and picketed in front of a Mormon church because of its support for the measure. The night before, about 1,000 people blocked traffic in West Hollywood.

San Diego

Frustration and outrage over the passing of a ban on same-sex marriage intensified in San Diego yesterday as thousands of protesters took to the streets and vowed to continue the fight for equal rights. An estimated 8,000 to 10,000 people marched from Hillcrest to North Park behind a giant rainbow flag in protest of Proposition 8.

San Francisco

A crowd of 1,000 protesters gathered on Friday at San Francisco's Civic Center and marched down Market Street during rush hour. And in Long Beach, another 2,000 protesters joined in support of gay rights, where three people were arrested, report The Associated Press.

Sacramento Protests

A couple thousand people gathered outside the Capitol in Sacramento this afternoon to rally for the legalization of same-sex marriages just days after voters imposed a constitutional ban.  That gathering prompted the Highway Patrol to shut down two Highway 13 ramps to protect pedestrians.