Activists on both sides of the marriage equality issue made themselves heard at Utah's state capitol in Salt Lake City Tuesday, resulting in tense ideological clashes that saw at least one pro-LGBT demonstrator arrested.
Several hundred LGBT activists and allies rallied on the capitol steps, according to Getty photographers, while antigay activists swarmed the capitol's interior.
The traditionally conservative state of Utah has become a flashpoint in the national debate over marriage equality after a federal judge struck down the state's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, briefly legalizing such unions in the state. The U.S. Supreme Court ultimately placed a stay on that ruling, putting a halt to the weddings, as the state's Republican governor and attorney general appeal the decision to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. In the meantime, the governor's office announced that the state will not recognize the estimated 1,360 same-sex marriages that were solemnized in Utah's 17-day equality window, though the American Civil Liberties Union has filed a separate suit challenging that decision.
The initial case that brought marriage equality to the Beehive State, filed by three same-sex couples, is due to be heard in the federal appeals court in Denver this spring. The Utah challenge will be heard by the same three-judge panel who will consider a similar decision striking down Oklahoma's same-sex marriage ban, since both states are within the 10th Circuit's jurisdiction.
See photos from Tuesday's pro-LGBT and antigay rallies below.
Supporters hold a pro-equality rally outside the Utah state capitol Tuesday in Salt Lake City.
Several women hold equality T-shirts at a rally outside the Utah state capitol.
Jolene Mewing joins several hundred people in a pro-equality rally outside the capitol.
Supporters display a variety of signs at the pro-equality rally outside the Utah capitol.
Marriage equality opponents rally inside the Utah capitol.
Antigay demonstrators display signs opposing marriage equality.
LaRenta Brinkerhoff was among demonstrators arguing that only opposite-sex couples are fit to raise children.
Utah Highway Patrol officers take away marriage supporters protesting opponents' rally inside the Utah capitol.
Tanner Crawford (center), a marriage equality supporter countering the antigay rally in the Utah capitol, is arrested by Utah Highway Patrol officers.
Utah attorney general Sean Reyes speaks to demonstrators holding an anti-marriage equality rally inside the Utah state capitol.
