Gay activist Cleve Jones has joined the chorus of calls for a national march in Washington D.C.

Jones roused a Gay Pride crowd Sunday in Salt Lake City with the announcement of a planned October 11 march to coincide with National Coming Out Day.

“We must seek nothing more and nothing less than equal protection in all matters governed by civil law in all 50 states,” Jones told a crowd estimated in the thousands.

Gay activists are ratcheting up their visibility outside the confines of liberal, gay-friendly West coast cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles. Two weeks ago, they took to the streets of Fresno, California to protest the state Supreme Court's decision to uphold the constitutionality of a gay marriage ban, Proposition 8. A large majority of Fresno County voters supported Proposition 8 last fall.

Utah is home of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Mormons, whose door-knocking and financial support is often credited for passage of Proposition 8.

Speaking just blocks from the Mormon Church's headquarters, Jones directly addressed their gay rights opposition.

“I've got a message for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” Jones said. “I've got two words from California … I've got two words for the prophet … Thank you. Thank you for uniting us. Thank you for galvanizing us.”

The fall campaign for passage of Proposition 8 divided many Americans but its approval unintentionally united an otherwise uninvolved generation of gay men and lesbians. Shocked at the relative ease with which gay marriage opponents revoked their newly-found rights, thousands of previously unorganized gays took to the streets in massive protests.

“We thank you for unifying us as never before. We thank you for teaching our young people that they must be prepared to fight for freedom,” Jones told a cheering crowd.

A long-time gay activist and creator of the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, Jones joins other prominent gay activists in calling for a national protest. In May, prominent activist David Mixner called for such a march at this blog, davidmixner.com.

One unavailable Washington D.C. venue is the National Mall. “It's unavailable,” a National Parks Service staffer told gay weekly Gay City News. The park is booked for the weekend of October 11 with a breast cancer charity event and the Million Man March for God.