About 175 people were arrested Tuesday while protesting against the California Supreme Court's ruling that upholds the constitutionality of Proposition 8, the state's controversial gay marriage ban, the AFP reported.

The San Francisco Chronicle tweeted additional details live from outside the court's San Francisco building where a large crowd had gathered to protest the decision.

As word spread of the court's 6 to 1 decision in favor of Proposition 8 around 10AM, protesters began chanting “Shame on you, shame on you,” then moved to block traffic at the intersection of Grove and Van Ness with a sit-in.

Gay activists greatly outnumbered anti-gay forces. One gay marriage opponent carried a sign that read “Gay = Pervert.”

“We're sad and upset,” said Randy Nadeau, 43, who married William Lawson, 47, in California before the gay marriage window vanished.

Several reports indicated that the protesters negotiated with police to begin arrests at noon so television crews could broadcast the arrests live. The first to be arrested was an Episcopal priest. A male couple who staged a kiss-in were arrested without incident as the crowd cheered them on.

Everyone arrested was released on the scene, Sergeant Lyn Tomioka told the news agency.

Civil disobedience continued peacefully as protesters marched their way through the streets of San Francisco. In the Castro, the gay hub of the city, over 2,000 people gathered near Market and Castro to demonstrate.

In Los Angeles, about 100 people staged a sit-in at an intersection near the University of California during rush hour.

Actress Drew Barrymore addressed a crowd of protesters that gathered for a rally in West Hollywood.

“Children need families, people need to love and we need to move forward, not backward,” Barrymore said. “What defines a family? We do!”

Proposition 8 effectively overruled the Supreme Court's 4 to 3 ruling that legalized gay marriage in May of 2008. The court allowed 18,000 gay and lesbian marriages performed during the June-to-November “summer of love” to stand.