For many families, that will be the progression - from outright disapproval, to accepting the idea of civil unions, to supporting same-sex couples. But the important point is, for all the expensive television ads that were rolled out for and against Proposition 8, it is the personal touch that really changes minds.

The opponents of Prop. 8 learned that lesson. That's why they're rallying in Fresno today as part of the first high-profile effort to get voters to undo the ban on gay and lesbian couples. The thought is that if conservative voters met the same-sex couples and their families, they would be less likely to fight against their push to be married.

That's exactly what this civil rights battle needs.