Hundreds of Illinois residents crowded both inside and outside the state Capitol Wednesday, protesting same-sex marriage. They wore bright yellow buttons depicting stick figures of one man and one woman.
David Smith is the Illinois Family Institute's executive director. He says limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples is not a form of discrimination.
"Marriage benefits society. It's the perfect environment to raise the next generation of children. Children do best in a mother-father home," Smith says.
The Institute helped protesters contact their state representatives. A same-sex marriage proposal is in the Illinois House after clearing the Senate on Valentine's Day.
Gay and lesbian couples were also in the Capitol Wednesday, trying to gather support for the measure.