WATCH: Protesters Rally as N.C. Women Seek Marriage License

Keisha Hollifield and her partner, Dericka, were turned down for a license in North Carolina's McDowell County, but were glad to make a point about marriage equality.

Trudy Ring

Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.

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Trudy Ring

July 23 2014 2:20 PM EST

November 17 2015 5:28 AM EST

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A lesbian couple seeking a marriage license in Marion, N.C., encountered 150 anti-marriage equality protesters at the McDowell County courthouse Tuesday.

Keisha Hollifield and her partner, Dericka, sought the license as part of the Campaign for Southern Equality's We Do Campaign, an effort to bring marriage equality to the South. They were denied a license or even an application for one, reports The McDowell News.

The couple gathered outside the courthouse with about 30 to 40 supporters for a prayer led by Rev. Jasmine Beach-Ferrara, executive director of the Campaign for Southern Equality, before going into the register of deeds' office to ask for a license. "Let us stand tall," Beach-Ferrara said. "Let us stay connected. Let us know we are doing your will."

Nearby were about 150 antigay demonstrators with signs bearing slogans such as "Repent or perish" and "Better to Obey God. Rather than Man. Adam & Eve -- Not Another Way," the News reports.

Inside the courthouse, Dericka told Register of Deeds Tonia Hampton,"We are a loving couple and we want the right for our marriage to be recognized in this state. We love McDowell County and I was raised here."

But because North Carolina law bans same-sex marriage, they did not receive the license.