MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. — Three same-sex couples went to apply for marriage licenses in Mecklenburg County, fully aware it's against the law in North Carolina.

Their effort is a part of the WE DO Campaign.

It's aimed at pushing North Carolina to overturn Amendment One and uphold the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision.

In June, the high court ruled defining marriage only between a man and a woman is unconstitutional. The justices left it up to states to determine their own marriage laws, which is why these couples were denied under Amendment One Wednesday.

Channel 9 spoke to Tami Fitzgerald, executive director of the NC Values Coalition by phone. She said the campaign is simply an attempt to break state law.

"There are lots of people who'd like to get married, first cousins might like to get married,13 year olds might like to get married -- but our laws have clear boundaries and for good reason," she said.

Fitzgerald said the couples have the option of going to a state that allows gay marriage, which is what Ron Sperry and Scott Bishop plan to do.

"We are engaged and we are going to get married in April in Massachusetts where I'm from," Bishop said.

The couple vowed to return to the Marriage License Office in Uptown in the future.

"We would love to come here as witnesses for our friends and watch them do what we couldn't do today," Sperry said.

The WE DO campaign will continue to travel across the state including stops in Cabarrus and Rowan counties in November.

WSOC